Do knowledge workers have a higher level of subjective well-being (SWB) when compared to other types of employees and if it is so, why? Using the fifth round of the European Social Survey, we explore cross national differences in the effect of occupation on SWB. Specifically, we examine the mediating role of income, autonomy and work-life conflict and overall job satisfaction in the links between occupation and SWB. We find that knowledge workers have higher life satisfaction than service and manual workers but only in countries with a less developed knowledge economy. Job satisfaction and income partially explain these differences. The intervening effect of work autonomy is less straightforward. In the knowledge economies, work autonomy is strongly related to SWB but the differences between professionals and manual workers are not large. In less developed countries, knowledge workers have higher level of work autonomy than other types of occupations, but it is less important for their life satisfaction. The negative mediating impact of work-life conflict has not been confirmed, but an alarming tendency of less balanced life of professionals in comparison with blue collar workers in the knowledge economies have been observed.