Say cheese: Exeter named one of the happiest UK cities

According to Instagram, Exeter is officially the 4th happiest city in the UK.

Software company Jetpac has developed a tool that can detect – and record – whether people are smiling or not in photos and rank cities in accordance to these revealing ‘smile scores’.

It works by focusing primarily on Instagram pictures. The software sifts through these pictures, and measures the size of people’s smiles by counting the pixels on each picture.

Say cheese!

Jetpac co-founder Peter Warden says, “Smiles on the faces of millions of people in millions of photos are the most direct measure we have of happiness.”

However, it takes quite a lot to make the cut for a ‘smile score’ : “A small grin doesn’t score as highly as a broad smile.”

After analysing over 100 million photos taken across 40 UK cities, Jetpac has pieced together a guide of recommended places to visit across the UK. Prepare to smile as you spot where Exeter features on the following list:

1. Belfast
2. Bournemouth
3. Derby
4. Exeter
5. Lincoln
6. Aberdeen
7. Glasgow
8. Colchester
9. Newcastle-upon-Tyne
10. Oxford

Keep on smiling, guys