Only 33 percent of Filipinos consider themselves “very happy” with their lives, according to a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.
The survey found that 50 percent of respondents described themselves as “fairly happy,” while 15 percent said they were “not very happy,” and 2 percent reported they were “not at all happy.”
The poll was conducted in November 2025 through face-to-face interviews with 1,200 Filipinos aged 18 and above. Respondents were evenly distributed across Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao.
SWS noted that the 33 percent “very happy” rating was comparable to 31 percent in March 2025 and 34 percent in December 2024, but 10 points lower than the 43 percent recorded in December 2023.
Meanwhile, the 50 percent who said they were “fairly happy” was slightly down from 53 percent in March 2025 and similar to 48 percent in December 2024.
The proportion of those who were “not very happy” at 15 percent was close to the 13 percent recorded in March 2025 and unchanged from December 2024, but six points higher than the 9 percent posted in December 2023.
Those who said they were “not at all happy” stood at 2 percent, nearly the same as 3 percent in March 2025 and 4 percent in December 2024.
Regionally, the highest percentage of “very happy” respondents was recorded in the Visayas at 40 percent, up from 36 percent in March 2025. This was followed by Mindanao at 34 percent and Balance Luzon at 32 percent.
Metro Manila posted the lowest share, with only 24 percent describing themselves as “very happy,” down from 28 percent in March last year.
The survey also measured life satisfaction, with only 28 percent of Filipinos saying they were “very satisfied” with their way of life.
The highest “very satisfied” rating was also recorded in the Visayas at 35 percent, followed by Metro Manila and Balance Luzon at 27 percent each, and Mindanao at 25 percent.
Meanwhile, 51 percent said they were “fairly satisfied,” 14 percent were “not very satisfied,” and 7 percent were “not at all satisfied.”
