Happier Lives Fund
The simplest way to make the biggest difference
Thanks to the Happier Lives Fund, you can support all our recommended charities with one single donation: 90% goes to them, while 10% powers further happiness research from the Happier Lives Institute.
Total amount raised
$ 215,044.35
Number of WELLBYs created
7,946
Years of depression
averted
6,075
Cost per year of depression averted
$25
Updated on a quarterly basis. Current numbers for the period Dec 2025 – Mar 2026.
HLF: How it works
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How we allocate the money
For each donation:
– 90% of the sum goes to our recommended charities: StrongMinds, Friendship Bench, Pure Earth and Taimaka;
– 10% goes to HLI’s operating costs and research.
In distributing the 90% to charities, we use our expertise (based on the evidence behind our recommendations), as well as any special insights we might have. There are no set ratios or percentages: we want every allocation to be as effective as possible, so every quarter we analyse how the money should be distributed to maximise impact at that specific point in time.
You can read how we have allocated the money so far for the first round of disbursements and for the second one.
Why donate to the Happier Lives Fund?
At the Happier Lives Insitute, we believe that happiness matters and that it is what we should focus on to improve people’s lives as much as possible. Our research draws on the latest quantitative tools in the social science ands and compares charities using WELLBYs (Wellbeing-adjusted life years).
The Fund makes it possible for donors interested in maximising wellbeing to support all our recommended charities in an easy and convenient manner. With just a few clicks, you will be able to donate to organisations that work in different fields (depression treatment, reduction of lead poisoning, reducing children malnutrion), but are all extremely cost-effective in producing more happiness for the people they help.