Only four in every 10 young singles are happy, according to a survey by a matchmaking firm. The company asked Prof. Choi In-cheol at Seoul National University to poll 1,000 people in their 20s or 30s nationwide in November.

Some 41.8 percent of respondents said they are content, with economic factors cited as having the biggest impact.

Asked whether they are happy, the largest number or 41.3 percent ticked "so-so," 33.1 percent "happy" and 8.7 percent "very happy." Men were less happy than women, and those in their 30s less than 20-somethings.

Some 61.6 percent said they feel happy one to three times a week, while 11.6 percent never felt happy. Men were more often completely unhappy than women.

Asked what influence their happiness, 36.8 percent cited economic factors, followed by health (29.5 percent), love (9.9 percent), success (9.2 percent), family (5.7 percent) and friendship (3.3 percent). People also judged others' happiness based on financial well-being (37.2 percent), health (21.1 percent) and success (12.3 percent).

Men placed more weight on money than women, and 30-somethings more than those in their 20s. But only 14.3 percent said they are financially content, far fewer than those who were happy with their appearance (40.1 percent), education (39 percent), and job (35.1 percent).