HOME Visas Visa to Greece Visa to Greece for Russians in 2016: is it necessary, how to do it

Rating of the most convenient cities to live in

27.07.2023

The 10 best cities to live in according to the Global Liveability Ranking have been named.

30 quantitative and qualitative indicators in five categories were taken into account by experts, according to which they assessed living conditions.

These are: stability, healthcare, culture/environment, education and infrastructure. The ranking looked at 140 cities around the world.

In general, the top ten cities differ little from last year.

Since this rating does not use such a criterion as the cost of living, Global Finance analysts also took the results of other studies - Mercer Quality of Living Survey 2015 and Monocle's Quality of Life Survey 2015. They used data from all three ratings and compiled their own ranking of the top ten for city life.

On 10th the place was the capital of Canada Toronto. The city regularly ranks highly in indicators such as standard of living, cost of living, business conditions, democracy and food security. This is a city with an actively developing suburb. Although Toronto has the second largest public transportation system in North America, traffic congestion remains a major problem for the more than 6 million people who commute into Toronto every day from the suburbs.

9th took the place Berlin. Since the fall of the wall separating the city and the two world political systems, the German capital has earned a reputation as a tech hub that attracts startups. At the same time, the city has a relatively low cost of living. Berlin is a city with an active nightlife and a high level of tolerance. There is stunning architecture and a lot of green spaces. The quality of life is at a very high level, while the atmosphere of life in Berlin is relaxed and

8th rating line. Quality of life in Munich at the highest level, but the cost of living is also quite high (even by German standards). The city has more than 20 large parks and a population of just over 1.3 million people. Green spaces give Munich a small-town feel, even though the city is a major centre. There are no high-rise buildings in the city center, and the public transport system works perfectly. The annual holiday, Oktoberfest, attracts many beer lovers from all over the world to Munich.

7th got the place Tokyo, which notes the "paradoxical mixture of the city's enormous size and the constant feeling of peace and quiet." The city's population is 13.3 million, but all these people live here comfortably. In particular, thanks to the developed public transport system (primarily we are talking about the metro). Public transport is clean, safe and fast. Against the backdrop of rush and bustle, a feeling of calm and purity is preserved, where ancient traditions coexist and harmoniously intertwine with modern life. At the same time, the cost of living here is quite high, as are salaries.

New Zealand's largest city Auckland located on 6th line. On par with its Australian competitors, Auckland boasts beautiful bays and beaches that are great for outdoor fun.

5th place - at the Swiss Zurich. Two rivers flow through the city, and there is also a lake here, which creates a feeling of peace and serenity. This is a real center of art: Zurich has more than 50 museums and more than 100 art galleries. Zurich is a clean and well-run city. It scores highly for safety, crime-free, low strike rates and no public transport delays. At the same time, Zurich ranks 4th in the ranking of the most expensive cities.

4th place - Sydney. It has great weather most of the year, lots of green space, beautiful beaches and great food. Sydney is Australia's largest city, home to 4 million people. The cost of living here is very high, but housing costs are still much lower than other major cities - New York, London and Hong Kong.

On 3m another Australian metropolis - Melbourne. 4 million people also live here. The population is multinational and diverse. This is the culinary capital of Australia, with a huge variety of national cuisines and cultural traditions.

Canadian Vancouver appeared in the ranking second. The weather here is great most of the time. This is a very green city in which urban development has not been able to disturb the charm and beauty of nature. Thus, 1001 acres of Stanley Park not only limits the growth of the city, but also gives it charm. There are plenty of other entertainment options including museums, nightlife, restaurants and shopping opportunities. And while the average cost of living is not very high compared to other cities around the world, housing is quite expensive by Canadian standards.

well and the best for life the city of the Earth is recognized Vein. The capital of Austria, with its beautiful architecture, castles, operas and cultural institutions, is one of the favorite destinations for tourists from all over the world. It has a high employment rate and low crime rate. The level of healthcare is also high, while housing costs are moderate. If we talk about the public transport system, the fare is only 1 euro per day as part of an annual pass.

Every year, experts evaluate cities around the world on many parameters, such as medicine, level of culture and education, infrastructure, ecology, etc. The following are best cities to live in the world 2016— top 10 rating.

10. Hamburg (95 points)

The list of the best cities to live in 2016 opens with the German Hamburg, which received 95 points out of 100.

In terms of population density, Hamburg is second only to Berlin; the number of city residents is more than 1 million 800 thousand people. Hamburg is known for its museums, the most famous of which is the Hamburg Kunsthalle, as well as its theaters. For lovers of walks, more than 120 parks were built in Hamburg. Additionally, the botanical garden is open all year round and contains much of the flora of Asia and Europe. Another attraction is the artificial lake Alster, as well as the nearby “health path”. Hamburg is considered the largest of all port cities in Europe, its industry includes oil refineries, shipyards, and factories for processing raw materials supplied from abroad.

9. Helsinki (95.6 points)

Helsinki is the ninth most livable city. It is the capital of Finland and the largest city in the country with a population of 600 thousand inhabitants. Helsinki is currently experiencing a period of rapid development as large numbers of people migrate there from neighboring provinces. This is a cozy city, with many small cafes and comfortable hotels. Visitors here are treated with great attention and care.

8. Auckland (95.7 points)

Auckland was included in the top ten best cities to live in 2016. It is the most populous city in New Zealand. More than 1.3 million people live within its borders, which is 32% of the population of the entire country. One of Auckland's main sources of income is attracting foreign students to study, since the city is home to a large number of universities and other educational institutions. People from all over the world come here to study. Often students study in parallel not only in English courses, but also in technological institutes or universities.

7. Perth (95.9 points)

The city of Perth was also recognized as one of the best places to live. It is located in the southwestern part of Australia. The number of residents is about 2 million people, which is about 75% of the total population of the state. Another name is “City of Lights”. This city became famous in 1962, when local residents en masse turned on all the lights as the American spaceship Friendship flew overhead. Perth has also become home to such actors as Heath Ledger and Toby Schmitz. The founders and members of such musical groups as Make Them Suffer, Karnivool, Knife Party, Tame Impala came from this city.

6. Adelaide (96.6 points)

On the 6th line is one of the best cities to live in Australia - Adelaide. This large city is located in the state of South Australia and is also its administrative center. It is the fifth most populous city with 1.2 million inhabitants. In the center of this city, many gardens have been erected, which has a positive effect on its appearance and ecology. Adelaide was previously known as a zone of religious freedom, civil rights, and progressive politics. Today the city is better known for its festivals, wines and sporting achievements.

5. Calgary (96.6 points)

Calgary occupies the middle of the ranking of the best cities to live. This is a fairly famous city in Canada; according to the latest statistics, it is inhabited by 1.1 million people. The main business is tied to industry, agriculture, and tourism. Of all the sports, football and hockey are the most popular. Calgary is located in a temperate latitude, but the weather is largely determined by the altitude and how close the Rocky Mountains are. Therefore, this area can have quite cold winters, but the warm Chinook wind can raise the temperature to +15 degrees Celsius in just a couple of hours. Such changes pose a health hazard to visitors who are not accustomed to this lifestyle. Despite this, Calgary is developing very actively and its suburbs are growing literally by the hour.

4. Toronto (97.2 points)

Toronto is the largest metropolis in Canada and at the same time the administrative center of the province of Ontario. Almost half of the city's population consists of immigrants from distant countries. For example, about 10% of Toronto's total citizens are from India. The most interesting feature of the city is the active support of the emigrant culture, so assimilation is not as pronounced as in other places with a large number of newcomers. However, Toronto is one of the safest cities in the entire American continent, making it one of the best places to live.

3. Vancouver (97.3 points)

According to the authoritative British publication The Economist, Vancouver has been recognized three times as the world's best city to live. In 2016 he took third place, which is also not bad. Vancouver is located on the west coast of Canada. The city is home to 2.3 million people. The climate is quite mild and warm. Heavy precipitation occurs in spring, autumn and winter, with the exception of dry summers. Interestingly, more than half of Vancouver's citizens do not speak English as their first language, making the city the most linguistically diverse in all of Canada. Vancouver has a highly developed industry, with businesses in programming, biotechnology, and the film industry also gaining momentum. Thanks to the picturesque landscapes and a large number of different attractions, the city is often visited by tourists. Travelers are mainly interested in the gardens, Stanley Park, Queen Elizabeth Park, mountains, and the forests that surround the city. About a million tourists visit Vancouver every year on cruise ships heading to Alaska.

9. Vienna (97.4 points)

Second place in the ranking of the most favorable cities for living was taken by the capital of Austria - Vienna. The city's population is more than 1.8 million people, and taking into account the suburbs this figure increases to 2.3 million, which is almost 25% of the total population. Vienna is the center of economic and political life in Austria, the seat of the UN. The city regularly receives high marks in the areas of infrastructure, environmental protection, culture and safety. Vienna has long been famous for its music festivals. In addition, the real estate market in Vienna is constantly developing, unlike the rest of Europe, which has been in crisis for a long time.

1. Melbourne (97.5 points)

According to The Economist, Melbourne is the best city to live in the world for 2016. It is the second most important and largest city in Australia. The number of its inhabitants is more than four million, including the suburbs. Melbourne is also the cultural and sports capital of the country, as all major events take place here. The city's population is extremely diverse. People from all over the world have found their home in it, but there is no national discord in it. Melbourne's architectural style is modern, with a touch of Victorian. For lovers of fresh air, a large number of parks and gardens have been built in the city, so Melbourne has a good environment.

The reputable analytical company Economist Intelligence Unit has published a rating best cities in the world to live for 2017. The company's experts assessed them on 30 parameters - crime, education, military conflicts, healthcare, infrastructure, education, ecology, diversity of cultural life...

According to tradition, we will start from the last, 10th place. So…

10th place. Hamburg, Germany, 95 points

It is the second largest city in Germany (after Berlin), the seventh largest in the European Union and the most populous non-capital city in the European Union. It is the largest port in Germany, the second largest in Europe, and ranks ninth in the world.

The remains of the first buildings on the territory of modern Hamburg are dated by archaeologists to the 5th-6th centuries AD and belong to the era of the Great Migration.

The city has retained certain features of medieval buildings. Hamburg is home to 60 museums and 17 universities.

Central Town Hall:

Hamburg also ranks first among European cities in terms of the number of bridges (according to various sources, from 2300 to more than 2500). The city has more bridges than Venice (400), Amsterdam (1200) and London combined.

9th place. Helsinki, Finland, 95.6 points

It is the capital and largest city of Finland, the administrative center of the province of Uusimaa. Located in the south of the country, on the shores of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea.

The city was founded on June 12, 1550 by the Swedish king Gustav Vasa. The city's elevation changes are significant and rocks are a common part of the landscape. There are waterfalls on the rivers within the city.

Helsinki is home to 8 universities and 6 technology parks. Bicycle lovers are also welcome here - the total length of bike paths in Helsinki is more than 1000 km. By the way, the Helsinki tram system is one of the oldest electrified tram networks in the world.

8th place. Auckland, New Zealand, 95.7 points

It is New Zealand's largest city with a population of approximately 1.3 million people, accounting for a quarter of the country's total population. The city is located within the Auckland Volcanic Region. Within its boundaries are the craters of 49 extinct monogenic volcanoes.

Today Auckland is the economic and cultural center of New Zealand. The city is not rich in historical sights, but with its picturesque beauty Auckland strikes many hearts of those who come here for the first time. Although, some say that it is good, safe, clean, but boring.

One of the attractions is the Sky Tower with a height of 328 meters - the tallest building in the Southern Hemisphere:

Panorama of Auckland from the Sky Tower (clickable 2500 x 651 px):

7th place. Perth, Australia, 95.9 points

It is the largest city and capital of the state of Western Australia with a population of approximately 1,200,000 people, located on the shores of the Indian Ocean. It was founded on June 12, 1829 by Captain James Stirling shortly after the formation of the port settlement.

The city is considered one of the main economic centers of Australia. Gold, diamonds and nickel are mined here. It is here that the world's largest open deposits of gold and nickel are located in the Kalgoorlie region, as well as the world's largest diamond-bearing area, the Kimberley, which is the main competitor of the South African and Yakut diamond deposits.

Modern skyscrapers are a characteristic feature of the Perth cityscape:

Perth is called "The Pearl of Australia". Ancient buildings, a convenient pedestrian area in the center of Perth, and beautiful views of the river make Perth attractive to tourists.

One of the attractions is:

6th place. Adelaide, Australia, 96.6 points

The capital and largest city of the state of South Australia, the fifth largest city in the country with a population of more than 1.1 million people is the city of Adelaide. It is named after the queen - the wife of the King of Great Britain and Hanover, William IV, who sat on the throne from 1830 to 1837.

The city is located on the ocean. The central part of Adelaide is multi-storey, with several modern skyscrapers, and is small, while the rest of the city is one or two storey in nature. Perfect cleanliness, neatness and impeccable finishing of buildings are the hallmark of Adelaide.

King William Street is the widest street in the city:

Tourists are attracted here to Adelaide by Australia's third largest Kangaroo Island, a wildlife sanctuary with a colony of sea lions and a beautiful coastline for fishing.

5th place. Calgary, Canada, 96.6 points

In the foothills and prairies region, approximately 80 km east of the Canadian Rockies watershed.

The city is one of the sunniest in Canada - the sun shines there on average 2,400 hours a year.

Calgary is located in the transition zone between the foothills of the Canadian Rockies and the Canadian Prairies, so its topography is quite hilly. The elevation of downtown Calgary is approximately 1048 m above sea level.

Life in Calgary, one way or another, revolves around oil production. Its deposits were discovered at the beginning of the 20th century. Despite this, this city is considered by many organizations one of the cleanest in the world. For example, driving just 200 kilometers from the city you find yourself at the glacial Moraine Lake in Banff National Park:

Olympic Plaza. In the distance you can see a famous landmark - the Calgary Tower, 91 m high. It is designed in such a way that, swaying slightly in the wind, even with very strong gusts it maintains its stability:

Downtown Calgary, 2010 (clickable 2000 x 561 px):

4th place. Toronto, Canada, 97.2 points

And the administrative center of the province of Ontario. The city received its current name in 1834.

Toronto is Canada's most diverse city, with about 49% of its residents being immigrants.

3rd place. Vancouver, Canada, 97.3 points

Vancouver is located on the west coast of Canada, on the shores of a picturesque bay, at the foot of the Pacific coastline of the North American Cordillera.

It is the 3rd largest city in Canada with a population of 2,433,000 people and the largest population center in the province of British Columbia.

And the climate here is good, because it is part of a unique ecosystem - a temperate tropical forest, so the summers here are mild and not hot, and in winter it rarely snows.

One of the most picturesque cities in the country is surrounded by dense pine forest, snow-capped mountains and fjords. Clickable:

Stanley Park is a city park located in Vancouver, the largest city in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The park is an evergreen oasis on the border with the business center of the city. By the way, it is 10% larger than the area.

Annual ranking of the most comfortable cities in the world to live in. Australian Melbourne was recognized as the most comfortable city in the world to live in; the authors of the study named Damascus the worst for living. As for our capital, Minsk traditionally was not included in the rating.

The quality of urban life index is composed of 30 indicators, which are combined into five control groups that determine living conditions in the cities under study: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, infrastructure. In the final rating, points from 1 to 100 are awarded for each of 30 indicators, where 1 point corresponds to the worst living conditions, and 100 points to the best. The total score for each city is also formed on a 100-point scale, where 100 points is the maximum possible result. The current edition of the study presents a comparative analysis of 140 cities around the world.

In 2017, the leader in the ranking is Melbourne (Australia), which, according to the authors of the study, is the most comfortable city in the world to live in. Vienna (Austria) took second place, and Vancouver (Canada) took third place. The top ten best cities in the world in terms of quality of life are presented in the table and photo gallery below.

TOP 10 best cities to live in the world in 2017

City	Points	Stability	Healthcare	Culture and environment	Education	Infrastructure
Melbourne	97,5			95,1
Vein	97,4			94,4
Vancouver	97,3					92,9
Toronto	97,2			97,2		89,3
Calgary	96,6			89,1		96,4
Adelaide	96,6			94,2		96,4
Perth	95,9			88,7
Auckland	95,7		95,8			92,9
Helsinki	95,6			88,7	91,7	96,4
Hamburg	95,0			93,5	91,7

As a rule, the best cities for living in the world, according to the compilers of the rating, are medium-sized urban agglomerations in economically developed countries with low population density, such as Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. The comparatively low performance of large metropolitan areas such as London, New York, Paris and Tokyo is due to high security risks associated with increased crime rates and other threats, as well as high load on infrastructure. However, these shortcomings are partly compensated by higher wages, broad economic opportunities, a rich cultural life and a favorable location.

The worst cities in the world (in descending order of ranking) this year were Damascus (Syria), which ranks last due to the ongoing civil war in the country, Lagos (Nigeria) and Tripoli (Libya). It should be noted that this year for the second time Kyiv (Ukraine) entered the top ten, whose rating has been declining over the past few years due to political and economic destabilization in the country.

The ten worst cities in the world in terms of quality of life are presented in the photo gallery and table below.

136th place. Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. Photo: Flickr/UNDP Papua New Guinea

140th place. Damascus, Syria. Photo: Wikimedia Commons

TOP 10 worst cities to live in the world in 2017

City	Points	Stability	Healthcare	Culture and environment	Education	Infrastructure
Kyiv	47,8		54,2	48,6		42,9
Douala	44,0			48,4	33,3	42,9
Harare	42,6		20,8	58,6	66,7	35,7
Karachi	40,9		45,8	38,7	66,7	51,8
Algeria	40,9		45,8	42,6		30,4
Port Moresby	39,6		37,5			39,3
Dhaka	38,7		29,2	43,3	41,7	26,8
Tripoli	36,6		41,7	40,3		41,1
Lagos	36,0		37,5	53,5	33,3	46,4
Damascus	30,2		29,2	43,3	33,3	32,1

Every year, experts evaluate cities around the world on many parameters, such as the level of culture and education, safety, ecology, infrastructure, social security, etc.

The list of the best cities to live in 2016 opens with the German Hamburg, which received 95 points out of 100. In terms of population density, Hamburg is second only to Berlin; the number of city residents is more than 1 million 800 thousand people. Hamburg is known for its museums, the most famous of which is the Hamburg Kunsthalle, as well as its theaters. For lovers of walks, more than 120 parks were built in Hamburg. Additionally, the botanical garden is open all year round and contains much of the flora of Asia and Europe. Another attraction is the artificial lake Alster, as well as the nearby “health path”. Hamburg is considered the largest of all port cities in Europe, its industry includes oil refineries, shipyards, and factories for processing raw materials supplied from abroad.