Melbourne: Want to know what makes women happy? Well, ladies’ happiness lies in a bigger shopping trolley.

That’s the conclusion from the latest Wellbeing Index, which shows that inflation is impacting on women's health and wellbeing more than men because women better understand the prices of everyday goods and are finding it harder to make ends meet.

Index author Professor Bob Cummins, from Deakin University, Victoria, says the results reverse a trend during the seven-year survey in which women's wellbeing had consistently rated more highly than their male counterparts.

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"Females are the front-line purchasers, which makes them more sensitive to the actual cost of things," The Daily Telegraph quoted him, as saying.

"When there's not enough money it affects their wellbeing very quickly,” he added.

Men often have less awareness about household budget realities than women, and are also commonly under false impressions that wages are rising, rather than remaining steady or declining, Professor Cummins said.

"There's a false sense of security, that's certainly been evident," he said.

"It gradually dawns on men that there's not enough money for a meal at a restaurant ... and then it has a knock-on effect on their wellbeing,” he added.

About 2000 people were surveyed across Australia in April and May this year, mainly in capital cities.