125 Quotes About Gratitude

To utter words of deep gratitude, even quietly and privately, is one of the best things you can do for your inner self and others around you. It might sound like a cheat code in life, but by cultivating gratitude, you really do allow yourself to be happier! 

It’s a way to battle the feelings of uncertainty in life, and to fight back against a lack of self-esteem when you find you’re expecting too much of yourself. It’s a part of our human nature to have these feelings of course, but providing yourself with the highest appreciation of yourself and others can become a self-reinforcing feedback loop that builds an inner strength. 

When life hits you, think of everything that you still have. Maybe it’s family, a friend, a roof over your head, your health or just the fact that you still have the strength to overcome whatever life throws at you. To appreciate yourself, others and the world around you will find your happiness doubled, and satisfy that deepest craving that we all share: to love ourselves fully and completely.

Here are 125 gratitude quotes to help you recognize the good in your life:

Inspirational gratitude quotes

You should make a habit out of writing three things that you are grateful for every single day. Three may seem a lot, especially when you are having a bad day from start to finish. But think of the weather outside, your kids, your parents, the fact that you are healthy or whatever else comes to mind.

Your entire mood will change when you see that there are still things left to be thankful for. It will give you energy to deal with whatever you are dealing with at the moment and eyes to see that things are not all bad after all.

Here are our favorite inspirational gratitude quotes that you can use to cultivate your habit of being grateful:

Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.

RALPH WALDO EMERSON (more Ralph Waldo Emerson quotes)

Thankfulness is the beginning of gratitude. Gratitude is the completion of thankfulness. Thankfulness may consist merely of words. Gratitude is shown in acts.

HENRI FREDERIC AMIEL

"Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul."

HENRY WARD BEECHER

Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.

ECKHART TOLLE (more Eckhart Tolle quotes)

Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.

MELODY BEATTIE

Some people grumble that roses have thorns; I am grateful that thorns have roses.

ALPHONSE KARR

Two kinds of gratitude: The sudden kind we feel for what we take; the larger kind we feel for what we give.

EDWIN ARLINGTON ROBINSON

“Gratitude is the closest thing to beauty manifested in an emotion." 

MINDY KALING

Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.

CHARLES DICKENS (more Charles Dickens quotes)

No one who achieves success does so without the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude.

ALFRED NORTH WHITEHEAD

Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for.

ZIG ZIGLAR (more Zig Ziglar quotes)

When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.

WILLIE NELSON

In ordinary life, we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give, and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich.

DIETRICH BONHOEFFER

I lie in bed at night, after ending my prayers with the words 'Ich danke dir für all das Gute und Liebe und Schöne.' (Thank you, God, for all that is good and dear and beautiful.)

ANNE FRANK (more Anne Frank quotes)

Gratitude is when memory is stored in the heart and not in the mind.

LIONEL HAMPTON

We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude.

CYNTHIA OZICK

Gratitude helps you to grow and expand; gratitude brings joy and laughter into your life and into the lives of all those around you.

EILEEN CADDY

Learn to be thankful for what you already have, while you pursue all that you want.

JIM ROHN (more Jim Rohn quotes)

None is more impoverished than the one who has no gratitude. Gratitude is a currency that we can mint for ourselves, and spend without fear of bankruptcy.

FRED DE WITT VAN AMBURGH

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.

WILLIAM ARTHUR WARD

Gratitude is the sweetest thing in a seekers life in all human life. If there is gratitude in your heart, then there will be tremendous sweetness in your eyes.

SRI CHINMOY

Be grateful for what you already have while you pursue your goals. If you aren’t grateful for what you already have, what makes you think you would be happy with more.

ROY T. BENNETT

Gratitude is an antidote to negative emotions, a neutralizer of envy, hostility, worry, and irritation. It is savoring; it's not taking things for granted; it is present-oriented.

SONJA LYUBOMIRSKY

Gratitude for the present moment and the fullness of life now is the true prosperity.

ECKHART TOLLE

Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.

ROBERT BRAULT

Gratitude bestows reverence...changing forever how we experience life and the world.

JOHN MILTON

Gratitude is the sign of noble souls.

AESOP

‘Thank you’ is the best prayer that anyone could say. I say that one a lot. Thank you expresses extreme gratitude, humility, understanding.

ALICE WALKER

What separates privilege from entitlement is gratitude.

BRENE BROWN (more Brene Brown quotes)

Let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayer. And let faith be the bridge you build to overcome evil and welcome good.

MAYA ANGELOU (more Maya Angelou quotes)

Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for. 

EPICURUS

In the end, though, maybe we must all give up trying to pay back the people in this world who sustain our lives. In the end, maybe it's wiser to surrender before the miraculous scope of human generosity and to just keep saying thank you, forever and sincerely, for as long as we have voices. 

ELIZABETH GILBERT

If having a soul means being able to feel love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals are better off than a lot of humans. 

JAMES HERRIOT

Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others.

 MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO

Gratitude therefore takes nothing for granted, is never unresponsive, is constantly awakening to new wonder and to praise of the goodness of God. For the grateful person knows that God is good, not by hearsay but by experience. And that is what makes all the difference. 

THOMAS MERTON

Gratitude looks to the Past and love to the Present; fear, avarice, lust, and ambition look ahead. 

C.S. LEWIS

The greatest wisdom is in simplicity. Love, respect, tolerance, sharing, gratitude, forgiveness. It's not complex or elaborate.

CARLOS BARRIOS

Gratitude bestows reverence... changing forever how we experience life and the world. 

JOHN MILTON

But once you accept the fact that you have always been alone, and will always be, then your perspective can begin to change. You can become aware of the small kindnesses, the little comforts. Be grateful for them. 

LINDA OLSSON

When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude. 

G.K. CHESTERTON

Take full account of what excellencies you possess, and in gratitude remember how you would hanker after them, if you had them not. 

MARCUS AURELIUS

Gratitude is the ability to experience life as a gift. It liberates us from the prison of self-preoccupation. 

JOHN ORTBERG

Ungrateful people forget what they are not grateful for. 

ANA MONNAR

A little "thank you" that you will say to someone for a "little favour" shown to you is a key to unlock the doors that hide unseen "greater favours". Learn to say 'thank you' and why not? 

ISRAELMORE AYIVOR

Only children and a few spiritually evolved people are born to feel gratitude as naturally as they breathe, without even thinking. Most of us come to it step by painful step, to discover that gratitude is a form of acceptance. 

FAITH BALDWIN

Be thankful for your allotment in an imperfect world.  Though better circumstances can be imagined, far worse are nearer misses than you probably care to realize. 

RICHELLE E. GOODRICH

It’s up to us to choose contentment and thankfulness now—and to stop imagining that we have to have everything perfect before we’ll be happy. 

JOANNA GAINES

Those who are not grateful soon begin to complain of everything. 

THOMAS MERTON

It has been said that life has treated me harshly; and sometimes I have complained in my heart because many pleasures of human experience have been withheld from me…if much has been denied me, much, very much, has been given me… 

HELEN KELLER

Courtesies of a small and trivial character are the ones which strike deepest in the grateful and appreciating heart. 

HENRY CLAY

Because gratitude is the key to happiness, anything that undermines gratitude must undermine happiness. And nothing undermines gratitude as much as expectations. There is an inverse relationship between expectations and gratitude: The more expectations you have, the less gratitude you will have. 

DENNIS PRAGER

Positive gratitude quotes

Being grateful for everything that is still good in our lives is part of having a positive mindset. Practicing gratitude can provide us with a shield from depression. If you choose to be more optimistic about yourself and your surroundings, you lower the risk of getting depressed. It’s kind of like your own free prevention program for mental health. Enjoy our list of positive gratitude quotes!

Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom. 

MARCEL PROUST

Start each day with a positive thought and a grateful heart. 

ROY T. BENNETT

True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future, not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears but to rest satisfied with what we have, which is sufficient, for he that is so wants nothing.  The greatest blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach. A wise man is content with his lot, whatever it may be, without wishing for what he has not. 

SENECA

Piglet noticed that even though he had a Very Small Heart, it could hold a rather large amount of Gratitude. 

A.A. MILNE

If the only prayer you said was thank you, that would be enough. 

MEISTER ECKHART

When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed. 

MAYA ANGELOU

The unthankful heart discovers no mercies; but the thankful heart will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings. 

HENRY WARD BEECHER

It's a funny thing about life, once you begin to take note of the things you are grateful for, you begin to lose sight of the things that you lack. 

GERMANY KENT

My heart cracked with gratitude. I think it was the first gratitude I’ve ever really known. I lay there beside you and the tears rolled down the sides of my face and onto the pillow. I loved you then and I love you now and I have loved you every second in between.

STEPHEN KING

For each new morning with its light, For rest and shelter of the night, For health and food, for love and friends, For everything Thy goodness sends. 

RALPH EMERSON

We should certainly count our blessings, but we should also make our blessings count. 

NEAL A. MAXWELL

You pray in your distress and in your need; would that you might pray also in the fullness of your joy and in your days of abundance. 

KAHILL GIBRAN

Gratitude paints little smiley faces on everything it touches. 

RICHELLE E. GOODRICH

I have learned over a period of time to be almost unconsciously grateful--as a child is--for a sunny day, blue water, flowers in a vase, a tree turning red. I have learned to be glad at dawn and when the sky is dark. 

FAITH BALDWIN

Gratitude is one of the most powerful human emotions. Once expressed, it changes attitude, brightens outlook, and broadens our perspective. 

GERMANY KENT

Gratitude helps you to grow and expand; gratitude brings JOY and laughter into your life and into the lives of all those around you. 

EILEEN CADDY

Gratitude for the seemingly insignificant—a seed—this plants the giant miracle. 

ANN VOSKAMP

Gratitude always comes into play; research shows that people are happier if they are grateful for the positive things in their lives, rather than worrying about what might be missing. 

DAN BUETTNER

I have learned that in every circumstance that comes my way, I can choose to respond in one of two ways: I can whine or I can worship! And I can't worship without giving thanks. It just isn't possible. 

NANCY LEIGH DEMOSS

A sincere attitude of gratitude is a beatitude for secured altitudes. Appreciate what you have been given and you will be promoted higher. 

ISRAELMORE AYIVOR

Here is the world, and you live in it, and are grateful. You try to be grateful. 

MICHAEL CUNNINGHAM

Dance. Smile. Giggle. Marvel. Trust. Hope. Love. Wish. Believe. Most of all, enjoy every moment of the journey, and appreciate where you are at this moment instead of always focusing on how far you have to go. 

MANDY HALE

Thankfulness creates gratitude which generates contentment that causes peace. 

TODD STOCKER

Whatever you appreciate and give thanks for will increase in your life. 

SANAYA ROMAN

Appreciation is a wonderful thing. It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well. 

VOLTAIRE

The poor man shuddered, overflowed with an angelic joy; he declared in his transport that this would last through life; he said to himself that he really had not suffered enough to deserve such radiant happiness, and he thanked God, in the depths of his soul, for having permitted that he, a miserable man, should be so loved by this innocent being. 

VICTOR HUGO

When you are grateful, fear disappears and abundance appears. 

ANTHONY ROBBINS

And when you crush an apple with your teeth, say to it in your heart: Your seeds shall live in my body, And the buds of your tomorrow shall blossom in my heart, And your fragrance shall be my breath, And together we shall rejoice through all the seasons. 

KHALIL GIBRAN

Take time daily to reflect on how much you have. It may not be all that you want but remember someone somewhere is dreaming to have what you have. 

GERMANY KENT

I cannot pretend I am without fear. But my predominant feeling is one of gratitude. I have loved and been loved; I have been given much and I have given something in return; I have read and traveled and thought and written. 

OLIVER SACKS

If we want to keep the blessings of life coming to us, we must learn to be grateful for whatever is given. 

HAROLD KLEMP

In order to complete our amazing life journey successfully, it is vital that we turn each and every dark tear into a pearl of wisdom, and find the blessing in every curse. 

ANTHON ST. MAARTEN

Got no checkbooks, got no banks. Still I'd like to express my thanks - I've got the sun in the mornin' and the moon at night. 

IRVING BERLIN

Be happy, noble heart, be blessed for all the good thou hast done and wilt do hereafter, and let my gratitude remain in obscurity like your good deeds. 

ALEXANDRE DUMAS

When you express gratitude for the blessings that come into your life, it not only encourages the universe to send you more, it also sees to it that those blessings remain. 

STEPHEN RICHARDS

There is strange comfort in knowing that no matter what happens today, the Sun will rise again tomorrow. 

AARON LAURITSEN

The most beautiful moments in life are moments when you are expressing your joy, not when you are seeking it. 

JAGGI VASUDEV

I have been finding treasures in places I did not want to search. I have been hearing wisdom from tongues I did not want to listen. I have been finding beauty where I did not want to look. And I have learned so much from journeys I did not want to take.

SUZY KASSEM

The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green earth, dwelling deeply in the present moment and feeling truly alive. 

THICH NHAT HANH

The struggles we endure today will be the ‘good old days’ we laugh about tomorrow. 

AARON LAURITSEN

For me, I’m going to believe in miracles, celebrate life, rejoice in the views of eternity and hope my choices will create a positive ripple effect in the lives of others. This is my choice. 

MIKE ERICKSEN

Gratitude quotes for friends

When was the last time you told your friend that you were lucky to have them, or that you were grateful for everything they have done for you since you’ve met? Here are some of the best gratitude quotes for friends to let you besties know how much you appreciate them:

I think that real friendship always makes us feel such sweet gratitude, because the world almost always seems like a very hard desert, and the flowers that grow there seem to grow against such high odds.

 STEPHEN KING

You can count on me like one, two, three/ I'll be there/ And I know when I need it, I can count on you like four, three, two/ And you'll be there/ 'Cause that's what friends are supposed to do, oh, yeah!

BRUNO MARS

Because with true friends, no one is keeping score. But it still feels good to repay them – even in the tiniest increments. 

EMERY LORD

Always remember people who have helped you along the way, and don’t forget to lift someone up. 

ROY BENNETT

If you weren’t stuck by my side through thick and thin, I don’t know where I would be now. Thank you for being there. Thank you for love. Thank you for friendship.

UNKNOWN

I don't have a ton of good friends, but you're one of the best. 

LINDSEY OUIMET

Sometimes a friend is most important, for friends are always there to laugh, cry, travel, see, hide, and feel with the other person. They will always be there. That is the measure of a true person: being a friend. It’s so much more than you think. 

SOPHIA BRAUN

I swear my best friend is so fine. I see her every day after work and I'm always like, "she doesn't even have to try!" She's that perfect! 

LIONEL SUGGS

Thank you for the ears that listen to my pointless dramas over and over again. Thank you for tons of laughter. Thank you for being someone I can lean on at all times. Thank you for being you.

UNKNOWN

We must find time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives. 

JOHN F. KENNEDY

You are the only one who sees right through me and knows when I need a hug more than anything. Thank you for all the times you knew me better than I knew myself. You mean the world to me.

UNKNOWN

It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them.

RALPH WALDO EMERSON

There’s not a word yet for old friends who’ve just met.

JIM HENSON

Of all possessions a friend is the most precious.

HERODOTUS

A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked.

BERNARD MELTZER

If you live to be a hundred, I hope I live to be a hundred minus one day, so I never have to live without you.

WINNIE THE POOH (MORE WINNIE THE POOH QUOTES)

There are three things that grow more precious with age; old wood to burn, old books to read, and old friends to enjoy.

HENRY FORD

Thank you for silencing my overthinking. Thank you for being the voice of reason when I’m in too deep. Thank you for keeping my secrets. Thank you for your trust. Thank you for being the best friend a person can have.

UNKNOWN

Life's a battlefield, and we remain loyal to those who fight for us; those who'd die for us. 

CRYSTAL WOODS

A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow.

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

Thank you for being brutally honest. I can count on you to give it to me straight. I know that even when your tongue is sharpest, you are just completely honest and have my happiness and best interests at heart.

UNKNOWN

Everyone enjoys being acknowledged and appreciated. Sometimes even the simplest act of gratitude can change someone's entire day. Take the time to recognize and value the people around you and appreciate those who make a difference in your lives. 

ROY T. BENNETT

You are my best friend, my human diary, and my other half. You mean the world to me and I love you. 

UNKNOWN

Being in the habit of saying "Thank you," of making sure that people receive attention so they know you value them, of not presuming that people will always be there--this is a good habit, regardless...make sure to give virtual and actual high-fives to those who rock and rock hard. 

SARAH WENDELL

There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends.

JANE AUSTEN

Thank you for being my friend. Thank you for your part in my journey.

UNKNOWN

Some people arrive and make such a beautiful impact on your life, you can barely remember what life was like without them.

ANNA TAYLOR

You were someone who came into my life by accident. I didn’t expect we would get along this incredibly well. But it turned out you were a blessing in disguise. Thank you for showing me what having a best friend really means.

UNKNOWN

Learn to remember you got great friends, don't forget that and they will always care for you no matter what. Always remember to smile and look up at what you got in life. 

MARILYN MONROE

Like many amazing things in life, our friendship came unexpectedly and I hope it’s here to stay until the end of our days.

UNKNOWN

It’s amazing to have someone in your life who makes you laugh so hard your stomach aches. What’s even more amazing is that the same person is there to wipe your tears and listen to your life’s drama over and over again. Thank you for being my friend.

UNKNOWN

You make me laugh a little louder, you make me worry a little less, you make my life a whole lot better.

UNKNOWN

Thank you for never looking at your schedule when I need you the most. Thank you for making me one of your priorities. Thank you for the friendship, love, and understanding. I am blessed to have you in my life.

UNKNOWN