Although self-reported good health remains the biggest contributing factor to well-being, the importance of having a lifelong partner to contentment has increased.
Compared with six years ago, those asked in this survery done between October 2017 and September 2018, marital status mattered more to people.
Those who are separated from their partner or widowed were, expectedly, more likely to report lower life satisfaction, compared with people who are single.
Being married made the average person 9.9% happier than those who are widowed and 8.8% higher than those separated from a partner.
Harry Benson from the Marriage Foundation told Premier Christian Radio's News Hour the marriage's link to happiness was because of the security it provides: "It's blindingly obvious that if people are secure and content at home and they've got someone who they know is going to stick around till their dying days, then they're more likely to have to be content in terms of life satisfaction or happiness".
"That act of making a commitment to one another produces real clarity, it removes ambiguity about the future, it puts you both on the same page and it does it in a way that you can do in cohabitation but fewer couples do it this way.
"It's so much more of a deliberate, intentional act where you you both know exactly what direction you're going and the result is that people are very, very much more likely to stay together. Most marriages work, we've just produced some research that shows that divorce rates have been falling dramatically since the 80s, 90s, which was sort of peak divorce time, and that's really where the good news is."
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