• Vienna has retained its position at the top, ahead of Copenhagen, while the Australian cities of Melbourne and Sydney have bounced back up the rankings to third and fourth place.

• Asia-Pacific cities have made some of the biggest gains, accounting for eight of the top ten movers up the rankings as economies recovered from the pandemic. 

• Western European cities have slipped down the rankings, amid a rise in workers’ strikes and civil unrest. However, the region still accounts for four of the top ten.

This year’s edition of EIU’s Global Liveability Index finds that the average index score has now reached 76.2 out of 100, up from 73.2 a year ago. Healthcare scores have improved the most, with smaller gains for education, culture and entertainment, and infrastructure. Only stability has seen a marginal decline, reflecting instances of civil unrest in many cities amid a cost-of-living crisis, as well as an uptick in crime in some cities.

A free summary report can be downloaded here.

Vienna is once again the most liveable city in the world. The Austrian capital slipped in the rankings in 2021, during the pandemic, but rebounded to the top position in 2022. It retained its crown this year, thanks to its unsurpassed combination of stability, good infrastructure, strong education and healthcare services, and plenty of culture and entertainment.

Similar attractions helped Copenhagen (Denmark) retain its position in second place from last year. Melbourne and Sydney (Australia), which are now in third and fourth place, have moved up to fill spots claimed last year by western European cities. Three cities in Canada, two in Switzerland, and another two in Asia (a New Zealand and a Japanese city are joint tenth) make up the rest of the top ten positions.

The five most liveable cities in the world

Asia-Pacific cities have made some of the biggest gains in 2023, accounting for eight of the top ten movers up the rankings, helped by a shift towards normalcy after the pandemic. Wellington (New Zealand) soared by 35 places to 23rd place, Auckland (New Zealand) by 25, while Hanoi (Vietnam) moved up 20 spots. The New Zealand cities had seen a big tumble in 2022, when covid waves forced intermittent lockdowns. 

The Middle East has seen the average level of liveability continue to improve, largely owing to strong gains in healthcare and education ratings. The strongest performers were the cities of Riyadh and Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, both rising by five places. In the UAE, although Abu Dhabi did not go up the ranks, its scores improved to 80, helping it achieve the top-tier status of liveability.

“The removal of covid-related restrictions has overall boded well for global liveability in 2023. Education has emerged stronger with children returning to schools alongside a significantly reduced burden on hospitals and healthcare systems, with some notable improvements in cities across developing economies of Asia and the Middle East. As the world’s political and economic axis continues to shift eastwards, we expect the cities in these regions to move slowly up our liveability rankings.“

UPASANA DUTT, HEAD OF LIVEABILITY INDEX AT EIU

European cities dominate the list of the top ten fallers down the rankings, which also includes two US cities–San Diego and Los Angeles. Edinburgh (UK), which entered our liveability survey for the first time in 2022 in a respectable 35th position, has now tumbled to 58th. Stockholm (Sweden) is the second biggest faller, down 22 places, while the US cities of Los Angeles and San Diego both fell by 17 places. All of these cities have not seen a particularly sharp decline in their index scores, but they have failed to make the gains that many other cities have made in the past year. As a result, they have been overtaken in the rankings.

Damascus (Syria) and Tripoli (Libya) are still at the bottom of the list, held back by social unrest, terrorism and conflict. However, while Damascus has seen no improvement since last year, scores for Tripoli and other cities in the bottom ten have improved as the pandemic recedes.

To find out how your city has fared, download the free summary report here.

The Global Liveability Index assesses which locations around the world provide the best and worst living conditions. Understanding the challenges presented to an individual’s lifestyle is essential for businesses, governments and academic institutions in shaping strategy and informing policy. From customisable data sets to comparable city profiles, explore EIU’s range of liveability products here.