This paper explores international and interpersonal differences in subjective well-being during the last fifth of the 20th century, using data from three waves of the World Values Survey (WVS) covering about 50 countries. It reviews reasons for emphasizing subjective well-being measures, surveys earlier studies, describes key variables, reports results, and discusses links between social capital, education, income, and well-being. The main innovation is the use of large international data combining individual and societal-level variables to identify both individual and societal determinants of well-being, particularly the direct and indirect links between social capital and well-being. The paper begins by examining the role of health, finding that self-assessed health has the strongest effect on well-being. It then considers employment status, showing that unemployment significantly lowers well-being. Family status variables show that married individuals are the happiest, followed by those living as married, widows, widowers, divorced, and separated. Education variables show small and insignificant effects, possibly because benefits of education through income, health, and trust are already accounted for. Age shows a U-shaped pattern, with well-being increasing after middle age. Religious activity has strong positive effects on well-being, with both the importance of God and church attendance contributing. Social capital variables, including voluntary associations and trust, show positive effects on well-being. Income effects are non-linear, with diminishing returns as income increases. National variables, including trust and governance quality, have significant effects on well-being. The paper concludes that both individual and societal factors are important in explaining well-being, with social capital and trust playing key roles. The results suggest that well-being is influenced by both individual characteristics and societal conditions, with social capital and trust having significant positive effects.This paper explores international and interpersonal differences in subjective well-being during the last fifth of the 20th century, using data from three waves of the World Values Survey (WVS) covering about 50 countries. It reviews reasons for emphasizing subjective well-being measures, surveys earlier studies, describes key variables, reports results, and discusses links between social capital, education, income, and well-being. The main innovation is the use of large international data combining individual and societal-level variables to identify both individual and societal determinants of well-being, particularly the direct and indirect links between social capital and well-being. The paper begins by examining the role of health, finding that self-assessed health has the strongest effect on well-being. It then considers employment status, showing that unemployment significantly lowers well-being. Family status variables show that married individuals are the happiest, followed by those living as married, widows, widowers, divorced, and separated. Education variables show small and insignificant effects, possibly because benefits of education through income, health, and trust are already accounted for. Age shows a U-shaped pattern, with well-being increasing after middle age. Religious activity has strong positive effects on well-being, with both the importance of God and church attendance contributing. Social capital variables, including voluntary associations and trust, show positive effects on well-being. Income effects are non-linear, with diminishing returns as income increases. National variables, including trust and governance quality, have significant effects on well-being. The paper concludes that both individual and societal factors are important in explaining well-being, with social capital and trust playing key roles. The results suggest that well-being is influenced by both individual characteristics and societal conditions, with social capital and trust having significant positive effects.