Karlsruhe remains the unhappiest big city in Baden-Württemberg!

Karlsruhe remains the unhappiest big city in Baden-Württemberg!

There are always informative rankings that show us what happiness is like in German cities. Today we are looking at the 2025 city ranking, which was created by the South German Class Lottery (SKL). The result is anything but pleasant for Karlsruhe: the city ends up in 38th place out of 40 and has therefore only improved its unfortunate position from the previous year by one place. This reports heidelberg24.

The survey, which was conducted over a period of more than three and a half years, surveyed a total of 23,468 people between the ages of 16 and 78. The results show that 14.2 percent of Karlsruhe residents are dissatisfied and 49.5 percent classify themselves as “moderately satisfied”. This puts the city well above the national average, where only 9.5 percent of the population is dissatisfied.

Public satisfaction: A clear contradiction

Despite objectively good living conditions such as high incomes and low unemployment, Karlsruhe is clearly lagging behind in the area of ​​subjective life satisfaction. With 6.61 points, the city comes in 38th place. This discrepancy between objective circumstances and personal happiness is particularly pronounced in Karlsruhe. SKL highlights that the high cost of living and rent as well as the low number of families and children are the main reasons for dissatisfaction.

However, there is also a positive aspect: life satisfaction in Karlsruhe has increased by 0.18 points compared to the previous year. This shows that citizens definitely have the potential for greater satisfaction, even if 35.9 percent described themselves as highly satisfied. Another plus is the good infrastructure and the strong economy, which actually offer the city stable support.

Comparison with other cities

A look beyond the borders of Karlsruhe clearly shows the differences. Freiburg im Breisgau, Mannheim and Stuttgart offer significantly higher life satisfaction scores on average. While Freiburg has a score of 7.01, Mannheim has 7.09 and Stuttgart has 7.02. These cities seem to be better at promoting the happiness of their residents.

• 1. Kassel, Hessen: 7,44 Punkte
• 2. Krefeld, Nordrhein-Westfalen: 7,30 Punkte
• 3. Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen: 7,25 Punkte
• 4. Augsburg, Bayern: 7,20 Punkte
• 5. Aachen, Nordrhein-Westfalen: 7,18 Punkte

The cities of Kassel and Krefeld in particular, which are at the top of the ranking, not only have a good range of leisure activities and quality of life, but also affordable housing, which is a decisive factor for many people. This shows that life satisfaction is often more than just good infrastructure and high incomes - it's the little things in everyday life that make life worth living. Travel reporter also mentions cultural offerings and the general social atmosphere.

The result of the Happiness Atlas 2025 casts a shadow over Karlsruhe, but as the saying goes: There is always a reason to remain optimistic. With minor adjustments, things could soon change for the better!