In this paper we address the issue related to the level of happiness in relation to acts of corruption and shadow economy in Romania. From our survey conducted on a sample of 101 respondents from Romania, we find that Romanian people does not link happiness to material issues in particular, but rather they see it as a consequence of having a families, professional and spiritual fulfilment, while money and property are last in this ranking. The average income that would make the respondents happy is on average 5,223 lei, an amount that they consider necessary to cover the needs of basis and activities that influence their development. Our findings reveal that the most corruption practices encountered in the public institutions refer to receiving money and gifts for services to which people are entitled followed by receiving money and gifts to favour someone. However, corruption and shadow economy are not perceived as very relevant in fully influencing the level of happiness they perceive.