"it's stated that only 2% of Americans say they are satisfied with life, compared to 17% of Germans"

This isn't actually what the original study says, it was quoted in a confusing way by this article. 2% is the number of Americans who "refrain from offering detailed responses, responding instead that they are satisfied with life, that they feel fulfilled, or something else broadly general but still positive." [0]

So 17% of Germans find life fulfilling but don't particularly feel inclined to share their reasoning.

The percentage of Americans who find meaning from some source is clearly much higher, although I'm having a hard time finding that number.

[0] https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2021/11/18/general-rather...