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ABSTRACT Objectives: to assess the relation between sociodemographic characteristics of young people associated with the subjectivity of being happy; to evaluate the relationship between the subjectivity of being happy and the perception of health status; to evaluate the relationship between the subjectivity of being happy and the school and family environments and peer groups at school. Methods: this is an observational study, with an intentional sample of 1,069 young Portuguese people, with ages varying from 14 to 24, most of them women, attending secondary education. The self-filling questionnaire was used. Results: there are statistically significant associations between the subjectivity of being happy and schooling, perception of health status, family APGAR, school and family involvement, absence of problems or teasing by peers at school. Conclusions: a positive and holistic care coupled with the potential of obtaining and consolidating healthy lifestyles for young people will enable health professionals to perceive them as agents of individual and social change.