Despite war, 71% of Ukrainians consider themselves happy – poll

Despite the war and the challenges facing society, most Ukrainians (71%) consider themselves happy. Meanwhile, one in six Ukrainians (16%) say they are unhappy.

Source: a study by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS)

Details: According to the survey, 31% of respondents said they were definitely happy, while 40% chose "more yes than no". Another 11% answered "both yes and no".

Meanwhile, 16% of respondents said they were unhappy or rather unhappy (9% answered "more no than yes", while another 7% chose "no").

"Men are slightly happier than women, but this is largely due to the fact that women in Ukraine live about 10 years longer than men, and the level of happiness in Ukraine decreases with age. In addition, due to longer life expectancy, more women become lonely with age, which also negatively affects the level of happiness," the KIIS press release said.

Sociologists noted that the decline in happiness with age significantly distinguishes the results for Ukrainians from those of many studies conducted in the US and European countries.

"The level of happiness in Ukraine decreases with age. This significantly distinguishes Ukraine from the results of many studies in the USA and European countries, where the dependence of subjective well-being on age has a U-shaped shape: its level decreases until about 45-50 years and then increases again," the researchers said.

The researchers said that in Ukraine in May 2026, 75% of people under the age of 40 considered themselves happy, compared with 60% of those aged 70 and over.

"The studies that we and other sociological centres began to conduct after the start of the full-scale invasion yielded paradoxical results at first glance.

Objectively, the situation in the country deteriorated significantly, millions of people lost their usual way of life, income, housing and were separated from their families, but in the first period of the war, many subjective indicators did not worsen, and some even increased. This also applied to the feeling of happiness," Volodymyr Paniotto, Director General of KIIS, said, commenting on the findings.

For reference: The survey was conducted from 7 May to 3 June 2026 using telephone interviews based on a random sample of mobile phone numbers. A total of 2,007 Ukrainians aged 18 and over took part. Residents of Ukraine's temporarily occupied territories were not included in the sample (although some respondents were internally displaced people who had moved from the occupied territories). The survey also did not include Ukrainian citizens who left the country after 24 February 2022.

Background: Previously, anxiety levels among Ukrainians were reported to have fallen, while their sense of happiness had increased.

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