Finland is located in Northern Europe, near the Arctic Circle, with an area of 338,000 square kilometers and a population of 5.55 million (2021). In 2021, the country's GDP was US$298.6 billion, and its per capita GDP was US$53,869, making it a highly developed country.

What is the standard of living in Finland and what is the life of the locals?

The standard of living in Finland is very high:

Safety: Finland is a safe country, with around 83% of people saying they feel safe when walking alone at night. This is much higher than the OECD average (68%).

Health: The average life expectancy in Finland is 82 years, one year higher than the OECD average (81). Life expectancy is 85 years for women and 79 years for men2. Finland's child mortality rate is 4 per cent, one of the lowest in the world.

Income: The average disposable income of Finns is US$33,471 per year, almost 10 per cent higher than the OECD average (US$30,490 per year). In terms of employment, 74 per cent of Finland's population aged 15 to 64 is employed, three percentage points higher than the OECD average. In 2019, Finland's consumer prices were 25.6% higher than the European average, while its adjusted total disposable income level was 11% higher than the European average.

Education: Finland has an excellent education system with highly qualified teachers, flexible curriculum, and excellent student performance. Eighty-eight per cent of Finnish adults have completed at least upper secondary education, 18 percentage points higher than the OECD average. In the PISA test, Finnish students surpassed the OECD average in reading, math and science. From 2021, all adolescents between the ages of 16 and 18 must continue their secondary education after completing basic education. Finland has high standards and respect for teachers, and gives them a lot of autonomy and trust. In Finland, only 3.4 per cent of students are "below the poverty line", compared to 21.7 per cent in the United States.

Healthcare: Finland has a hierarchical public healthcare system and a smaller private sector. While the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health has supreme decision-making power, municipalities are responsible for providing health care to their residents. According to the Finnish Constitution, public authorities should guarantee everyone access to adequate social, health and medical services. It was also noted that in 2018, the World Health Organization ranked Finland as one of the healthiest countries in Europe.

Environment: Finland is a country with a lot of forests, lakes and islands. Its natural environment is considered one of the cleanest in Europe. Finland is also one of the lowest carbon emitters in the world, with 40% of its energy consumption coming from renewable sources. Finland was named the happiest country in the world in 2020, and one of the reasons for this is its strong connection to nature. The air quality is good and the water resources are abundant. Finland contains 11.8 micrograms of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) per cubic metre of air, well below the OECD average of 13.9 micrograms and the WHO's recommended value of 10 micrograms.

Culture: Finland has a unique and diverse culture, influenced by neighboring countries and ethnic minorities such as the Nordic, Russian, and Sami peoples. Finnish is one of the official languages and is spoken by most people. The other official language is Swedish, which is spoken mainly in the southwestern coastal region.

Recreation: Finns enjoy a variety of outdoor activities such as skiing, boating, fishing, hiking, etc. They also like to enjoy a sauna, swim in the cold water or roll in the snow. There are also many festivals and celebrations in Finland, such as Christmas, Easter, May Day (Labor Day), Midsummer Festival (summer solstice), etc. In addition, Finland has a rich tradition of music, literature, art, and design.

Happiness: Finns are satisfied and happy with their lives. According to the latest World Happiness Report 2023, Finland ranks first or near first in all 6 factors that measure happiness (GDP, social support, healthy longevity, freedom, generosity, and corruption) and has been the happiest country in the world for four consecutive years.

In general, the standard of living in Finland is very high. In recent years, the country has made remarkable economic and social progress, and its citizens enjoy a high quality of life. Finland is a model for other countries, and its success is a testament to the power of a strong welfare system and the importance of investing in education.

Finns are a quiet people, and there are only two things that can drive Finns crazy: beer and ice hockey. Other than that, most Finns live in a state of tranquility. Finns rarely have dinner parties, and their spare time is very boring, even if the party seems to us to be very passionate. They spend more time alone and thinking, and most Finns are ice and snow.

Finland has a wide range of lakes and high forest coverage, and Santa Claus Village, the home of Santa Claus, is located in the Rovaniemi region of Lapland, Finland.

Finland is located at a particularly high latitude, the northern part of the country is located within the Arctic Circle, and there are many months of the year in which there are dark days and long nights, and winters are very cold, with polar days and nights. In other areas, the dark nights in winter are also very long, with only a few hours of sunshine every day, because the winter here is the extreme weather of minus 30 or 40 degrees at every turn, and there are basically no other outdoor entertainment facilities except skiing, skating and ice fishing, so Finns basically stay at home in winter, sauna, drink, watch ice hockey games, and listen to heavy metal music.