You’ve probably heard that money can’t buy happiness — but it turns out, it can… just maybe not for you. According to a new analysis from the Happier Lives Institute featured in the 2025 World Happiness Report, donating to highly effective charities can dramatically increase happiness — for others — at a surprisingly low cost. The best charities can generate huge boosts in well-being for just a few dollars, especially in low-income countries. For example, donating about $25 to StrongMinds, which provides depression treatment in Africa, can buy someone an entire year of improved mental well-being. The report uses a new standard called the WELLBY — a "well-being year" — to calculate the bang-for-your-buck value of donations. The key message? When it comes to giving, focusing on happiness — not just survival — can make your dollars go even further.

Here are the key takeaways:

• The “WELLBY” (well-being year) is a new metric used to measure how much impact a charity has on someone’s subjective life satisfaction — think of it as a 1-point improvement on a 0–10 life satisfaction scale for one full year.

• StrongMinds, one of the top-rated charities, treats depression in Africa using community group therapy led by trained locals. It can create a full WELLBY for just $25.

• Other top-performing charities include:
  • Pure Earth – fights lead poisoning, which kills more people annually than HIV, malaria, or car crashes.
  • Tamaika – treats severe malnutrition in children, with a 95% recovery rate.
  • Friendship Bench – provides mental health care in Zimbabwe through elders offering therapy on park benches.
  • Icddr,b – trains parents in better childcare practices for long-term happiness.
  • NEPI – combines therapy with cash transfers to reduce criminality in at-risk men in Liberia.

• Why not focus purely on saving lives or boosting incomes? Experts argue subjective well-being captures what people actually care about. As researcher Michael Plant put it: “Part of the virtue of the subjective approach is that people can bring whatever matters to them into their assessments.”

• While some experts, like GiveWell co-founder Elie Hassenfeld, are skeptical about using "feelings" as a metric, this growing shift toward evaluating happiness is now reflected in major publications like the World Happiness Report.

• The bottom line? Giving just $1,000 to the most effective charities could be as impactful as giving $200,000 to a random one. So yeah — you actually can “buy happiness,” and at a bargain.

For more feel-good giving, check out these standout charities: StrongMinds, Friendship Bench, Pure Earth, Tamaika, Icddr,b, and NEPI.

Sources: Vox.com, World Happiness Report 2025, Happier Lives Institute
Link to Article