<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Australia has fallen to its lowest ranking in the World Happiness Report, as social media makes young people feel worse than ever before.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The annual report ranks 140 countries on the general wellbeing of their citizens, with Australia falling to 15th in the rankings, a drop of four places from last year.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The report, totalling more than 200 pages, said the mental health and wellbeing of young people in Australia had declined significantly due to the impacts of social media.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>JUST IN:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/australians-pay-lower-energy-prices-report/e552bc82-34e7-414a-abf0-14dc6ea8b417" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>Millions of households could save hundreds on power bills from July</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It was not alone, with New Zealand, Canada and the United States seeing the wellbeing levels of their younger populations - people under 25 - falling dramatically since the report began in 2013.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In rankings for happiness changes for people under 25 years old, the four countries fell between 122 and 133 in the list, out of 136 countries.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The study cited some Australian surveys of younger people who felt social media was becoming a large factor in declining mental health.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/national/australia-falls-to-lowest-ranking-world-happiness-report-social-media/3ae98691-88d6-49ca-82db-7b7dc2d89385" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Australian survey data show similar patterns, with young people identifying social media as a leading contributor to declining youth mental health," the report said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/cyclist-rohan-dennis-backlash-over-social-media-post-of-car/24f0dd31-7974-43b2-a240-740602fe7c0f" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>Ex-Olympic cyclist's post slammed as 'deeply offensive' after wife's death</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"When the apparent victims are surveyed, they positively identify social media as the perpetrator." </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>It marks a fall from grace for Australia in the World Happiness Report, consistently being in the top 10 since its creation, only sliding out in 2025.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Nordic and Scandinavian countries dominated the top 10, with Finland coming out on top, followed by Iceland and Denmark.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>New Zealand came in 11th, while the United States and the United Kingdom were further down in 23rd and 29th, respectively.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>UPDATE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/jacinta-allan-dismisses-leadership-speculation-as-victoria-premier-labor-leader/1251a20e-feb3-4f72-8a4a-7bd147c295d9" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>Crime rises to record levels in Victoria, placing pressure on embattled premier</span></strong></a><strong><span></span></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The report, which was centred around happiness and social media, made specific mention of Australia's world-leading social media ban, which was implemented for children under 16-years-old at the end of last year.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The report's authors said the findings concluded Australia's model should be one to follow.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We believe that the evidence is now sufficient to justify the sort of action that the Australian government took in 2025 when it raised the age for opening or maintaining a social media account to 16," it said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Recent evidence suggests that younger individuals – especially in North America, Western Europe, Australia, and New Zealand – are experiencing declining levels of wellbeing and mental health. Potentially, this is a result of increased social media use among young people."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><em><strong><span>NEVER MISS A STORY: Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.</span></strong></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><ul><li><em><strong><span>Download the 9NEWS App here via</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://apps.apple.com/au/app/9news/id1010533727" rel="" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>Apple</span></strong></em></a><span> </span><em><strong><span>and</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=nineNewsAlerts.nine.com&amp;hl=en_AU&amp;pli=1" rel="" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>Google Play</span></strong></em></a></li><li><em><strong><span>Make 9News your preferred source on Google by</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://9.nine.com.au/8x987w" rel="" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>ticking this box here</span></strong></em></a></li><li><em><strong><span>Sign up to</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://login.nine.com.au/edm?client_id=nineatnine" rel="" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>our breaking newsletter here</span></strong></em></a></li></ul></div></div>