Vienna has once again topped the Economist Intelligence Unit’s list of most liveable cities. Out of 173 cities around the globe, Vienna earned the highest rating from the research and analysis group based on factors such as infrastructure, culture and entertainment, education, stability, health care, and environment.
It’s not the first time that Austria’s capital has earned the title. It was named the most liveable city in the world in 2018, 2019, and 2022, though the EIU did point out one downside to living in Vienna – a relative lack of major sporting events.
Copenhagen, Denmark held onto the #2 spot on the EIU’s Global Liveability Index for the second year in a row, followed by Melbourne and Sydney in Australia in third and fourth place, respectively. Other cities in the top 10 include Calgary, Vancouver, and Toronto in Canada and Zurich and Geneva in Switzerland. Osaka, Japan and Auckland, New Zealand tied for the #10 spot.
Out of all the categories covered by the Global Liveability Index, only stability saw a slight decline worldwide due to strains caused by the cost-of-living crisis, increasing crime rates, and more civil unrest. On the other hand, health care scores saw the biggest gains, due in part to fewer pressures from Covid-19. Overall, the average liveability score was at a 15-year high of 76.2 out 100, an increase of 3 points over last year.
More about the Global Liveability Index:
- Notably, some major European cities dropped down the rankings, such as London, Edinburgh, and Stockholm, whereas many cities in Asia, Oceania, and the Middle East made significant gains.
- At #25, Honolulu, Hawaii was the highest-ranking U.S. city on the list, up six spots from 2022. However, Los Angeles and San Diego both dropped 17 spots from last year, down to 57th and 61st place, respectively.
- At the bottom of the list were cities whose residents endure war, terrorist attacks, deprivation, and serious civil unrest, such as Algiers, Algeria; Tripoli, Libya; and Damascus, Syria. Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, was also among the lowest-scoring cities this year, due to the ongoing war that began with Russia’s invasion in February 2022.
