Ancient philosophers knew it, and today’s researchers confirm it: Not all happiness is created equal.
Hedonic happiness is the pleasure of a good meal or a great night out. Eudaimonic happiness is the deeper satisfaction of a life well-lived. These concepts go back thousands of years, but the difference between them is arguably more relevant than ever—and understanding it might change how you think about your own pursuit of happiness.
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Hedonic and Eudaimonic Happiness
Philosophers have long debated the meaning of happiness and the best way to achieve it. At the heart of that debate are two distinct frameworks rooted in ancient Greek thought: hedonic happiness and eudaimonic happiness.
What Is Hedonic Happiness?
Hedonic happiness is the kind of actively pleasurable feeling we get when we’re experiencing something that brings us joy or satisfaction in the moment—the feeling you might have when you’re at a party, listening to your favorite song, or buying a new car. This framework traces back to the Cyrenaics (such as Aristippus), who held pleasure to be the highest good.
Psychologist Martin Seligman identifies pleasure as one of three components of happiness, alongside engagement and meaning. In The Happiness Advantage, positive psychology advocate Shawn Achor builds on this, arguing that pursuing pleasure alone can make you happy, but incorporating engagement and personal meaning will maximize the benefits of happiness.
What Is Eudaimonic Happiness?
“Happiness” is the common translation of the Greek “eudaimonia,” but eudaimonia doesn’t perfectly match a modern conception of happiness. Rather than a temporary emotion, eudaimonia represents a sort of flourishing—a life well-lived, a long-term sense of contentment or purpose. It’s the concept you’re referring to when you say, “I’m happy with my life.”
In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle defines eudaimonia as rational activity aligned with virtue—happiness that stems from regularly making and acting upon morally virtuous choices throughout your life. He considered it the “ultimate good” and the purpose of human life. This idea has resonated across cultures and centuries. In Confucianism, happiness isn’t something you reach privately, but by learning to live well within a family, a community, and a moral order. Buddhist thought draws a line between the kind of happiness that comes and goes with circumstances and the deeper well-being cultivated through how you live. Ubuntu, a sub-Saharan African ethical tradition, holds that private contentment can’t make a good life because what matters is that your relationships reflect care, generosity, and respect.
The eudaimonic/hedonic distinction as a tidy modern dichotomy is largely a product of contemporary positive psychology, associated with researchers such as Ed Diener and Carol Ryff. Modern psychologists propose several ways to reach eudaimonic happiness, such as writing down or reaching important goals.
Harvard professor and positive psychology expert Tal Ben-Shahar defines happiness in his book Happier as an ongoing process of exploring how to find both pleasure and meaning in daily life. Pleasure is about immediate gratification—enjoying the present moment and seeking experiences that bring joy, comfort, or sensory delight. Meaning, on the other hand, requires a longer view—a sense of purpose, or the understanding that what you’re doing contributes to something greater or aligns with your values. Ben-Shahar’s definition closely aligns with Aristotle’s original conception of eudaimonia; Aristotle also concluded that happiness is an ongoing search for pleasure and meaning.
Hedonic vs. Eudaimonic Happiness: Key Differences
Eudaimonic happiness is calmer and more sustained than its hedonic counterpart. Where hedonic happiness peaks in pleasurable moments, eudaimonic happiness is the background condition of a life going well.
Research has shown cultural differences in how people tend to define happiness. One study comparing European Americans to Chinese Americans found that the European-American notion of happiness leaned toward the hedonic variety, while Chinese Americans described a more eudaimonic notion.
Though he doesn’t explicitly name them, psychologist Gay Hendricks alludes to these two types of happiness throughout his book The Big Leap, particularly when he describes why successful people often still feel unfulfilled. That lingering dissatisfaction—which Hendricks attributes to people operating below their potential—could reflect both the natural tendency for hedonic adaptation and the fleeting nature of hedonic pleasure. When we relentlessly chase the “high” kind of happiness and then achieve it, disappointment follows when it doesn’t last. What Hendricks seems to be advocating—exploring what activities bring the greatest satisfaction, adopting a positive mindset, reallocating time to more meaningful pursuits, and sustaining those changes through meditation and positive affirmation—amounts to a shift from the pursuit of hedonic happiness toward the cultivation of eudaimonic happiness.
➡ Learn more about hedonic adaptation.
Harvard behavioral scientist Arthur C. Brooks makes a similar argument in The Happiness Files, noting that most of us operate with a definition of happiness that doesn’t hold up. We tend to think of happiness as the feeling that comes from getting what we want—a promotion, a raise, a relationship, a milestone. But genuine happiness, he argues, consists of four qualities of experience—connection, pleasure, contentment, and purpose—that are largely independent of the external markers of success we spend so much energy pursuing.
Why Relationships Matter for Eudaimonic Happiness
One dimension of eudaimonic happiness that receives particular attention from modern researchers is the role of relationships. In The Good Life, psychiatrist and Harvard professor Robert Waldinger and psychology professor Marc Schulz argue that eudaimonic happiness depends mostly on the quality—not the quantity—of your relationships and how often you interact with others. Having many friends won’t improve your life if they’re all toxic. Positive relationships contribute to happiness in part because they act as a buffer to life’s many health-reducing stressors, including old age. Aristotle himself did not consider relationships a necessary component of eudaimonia, but many modern psychologists do.
Hedonic and Eudaimonic Happiness Aren’t Mutually Exclusive
The hedonic and eudaimonic frameworks are not mutually exclusive. Ben-Shahar argues that happiness involves both immediate pleasure and a longer view—a sense of purpose, or the understanding that what you’re doing contributes to something greater or aligns with your values. Achor echoes this: Pleasure alone can make you happy, but adding engagement and personal meaning will maximize the benefits. The goal, it seems, is not to abandon hedonic pleasure but to anchor it in something more durable.
Dig Deeper
To learn more about the concepts of hedonic happiness and eudaimonic happiness, check out these books and Shortform’s guides to them:
- Nicomachean Ethics by Aristotle
- The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor
- Happier by Tal Ben-Shahar
- The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks
FAQ About Hedonic and Eudaimonic Happiness
What’s the difference between hedonic and eudaimonic happiness?
Hedonic happiness is the pleasure you feel in enjoyable moments—a great meal, a fun evening with friends, or a purchase that excites you. Eudaimonic happiness is the deeper, more sustained sense of contentment that comes from living a meaningful, purposeful life. Hedonic happiness peaks in the moment; eudaimonic happiness is the background condition of a life going well.
Which type of happiness lasts longer?
Eudaimonic happiness is generally more durable. Hedonic happiness is subject to what psychologists call hedonic adaptation—the tendency for pleasurable feelings to fade as we get used to new circumstances. Eudaimonic happiness, rooted in purpose and values, is more resistant to that effect.
Can you have both hedonic and eudaimonic happiness?
Yes—and most researchers argue you should pursue both. Positive psychologist Shawn Achor notes that pleasure alone can make you happy, but adding engagement and personal meaning maximizes the benefits. The goal isn’t to abandon pleasurable experiences but to anchor them in something more lasting.
What’s an example of hedonic happiness?
Enjoying a delicious meal, listening to a favorite song, or feeling the excitement of a new purchase are all examples of hedonic happiness—pleasurable experiences that feel good in the moment.
What’s an example of eudaimonic happiness?
Raising a child, building a meaningful career, volunteering for a cause you believe in, or maintaining deep and caring relationships are all examples of eudaimonic happiness—activities that might not always feel pleasurable in the moment but contribute to a lasting sense of purpose and fulfillment.
How can I cultivate eudaimonic happiness?
Modern psychologists suggest several approaches: identifying and working toward meaningful personal goals, investing in the quality of your close relationships, aligning your daily activities with your core values, and practicing techniques such as meditation and positive reflection. Harvard professor Tal Ben-Shahar defines happiness as an ongoing process of finding both pleasure and meaning in daily life—a useful frame for anyone looking to cultivate more of it.
