These are the 10 countries where people feel best about their lives

[sigallery id="9atB9EenW9H9BafcZFuHN3" title="World well-being rankings"]

If you live in Panama, chances are life is peachy. Residents of the Central American country rate their lives as "thriving" more so than people anywhere else, according to the annual Gallup-Healthways Global Well-Being Index released this week.

Panama finished in the top spot for the second year running, with 53% of residents reporting feeling pretty darn great in at least three out of the five elements of well-being as defined by the survey. Out of the top 10 countries with the highest levels of positive personal well-being, seven are in Latin America. The U.S. didn't even crack the top 10, coming in at 23 out of the 145 countries, which is a massive drop from spot 12 last year.

The survey's five elements are purpose ("liking what you do each day and being motivated to achieve your goals"), social ("having supportive relationships and love in your life"), financial ("managing your economic life to reduce stress and increase security"), community ("liking where you live, feeling safe and having pride in your community") and physical ("having good health and enough energy to get things done daily"). It's all about how people see their lives, rather than any hard numbers related to GDP or cost of goods. In other words, perception is everything.

Latin American countries are actually the happiest in the world, too, with the region claiming every single one of the top 10 countries in Gallup's Positive Experience Index. Gallup calculates that index based on how many positive emotions people experience on a daily basis. We'd definitely like to have what they're having, especially since it's now easier than ever to fly to South America.

Click through the slideshow to see the top 10 countries with the highest levels of well-being.