To Benton, it's not surprising Chengdu keeps hitting the happiest cities list, since it makes people happy to give and help others.
Benton enjoys exploring the city and its cultural sites, meeting friends at its countless restaurants and bars, or relaxing in a bamboo chair at a traditional teahouse.
Despite the dramatic changes brought by urban development, Benton says Chengdu remains a place people want to live in. He has long-term friends from around the world who arrived even earlier and are still there.
For Yang Hao, a 38-year-old entrepreneur from Zhejiang province, Chengdu is a place where both his business and family can thrive.
Attracted by the city's solid industrial foundation and favorable policies, Yang brought his hydrogen energy startup, Qinglv Technology, to Chengdu in 2023.
Today, his company has deployed 11,000 hydrogen-powered shared bikes in Xindu district, amassing over 550,000 registered users — a rare case of large-scale commercial operation in the sector.
Yang credits his company's rapid market entry to the local government's willingness to allow them to pilot their innovations and to the vibrant consumer market. "In other cities, streets probably go quiet by 8 or 9 pm. Here, orders still come in at midnight," he says.
Yang notes his generation values quality of life over an endless grind, which makes the city's comfortable lifestyle a major draw for many.
"The diverse culinary offerings, breathtaking natural scenery, and rich cultural heritage all help relieve the stress," he says.
During the Spring Festival holiday, Yang's family visited him and toured the city and its surroundings. His wife was so impressed by the strong sense of happiness that she decided to relocate there with their 9-year-old daughter and Yang's parents.
Xi Yue, cofounder and chairman of Beijing-based robotics startup Robotera, shares a similar sentiment.
"Life shouldn't be just about work. Chengdu's strong work-life balance makes it especially appealing to young people," Xi says. "Since cutting-edge fields such as AI and embodied intelligence are dominated by young talents, that's a huge advantage."
Recognizing the city's growth potential, Robotera has established its first subsidiary here, with robots already in use at several museums.
Chengdu's permanent population has grown by more than 5 million over the past decade, reaching over 21 million by early 2025, according to official data.
Tan Jihe, a researcher at the Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences, traces the Chengdu-style happy life back to its cultural roots.
"The millennia-old tradition of living in harmony with nature, a carefree attitude toward life, and an enduring aspiration for happiness have sustained Chengdu's unique character and charm through the ages," he says.
