Rating of cities in the world in terms of quality of life

Methodology

The Mercer list is based on the results of an annual comparative study of 231 cities in the world. The assessment is based on data on 39 criteria, such as the political and social environment; economic indicators; the presence of certain restrictions (for example, censorship); health system quality; quality of the education system ; affordability and cost of housing; cultural life, climate and the likelihood of natural disasters. New York was accepted as a reference point with 100 points in the rating of the quality of life in cities.

Results

According to the rating, Vienna is recognized as the most comfortable city to live in ^[2] .

In 2019, most of the European cities were at the top of the rating, with the exception of two - Auckland and Vancouver . In the top ten are three German and three Swiss cities. San Francisco was the first of the American cities (34th place), Kobe - the first of the Japanese (49th). Baghdad closed the list (231st). Of the last 25 cities, 17 are in Africa.

Moscow and St. Petersburg took 167 and 174 places respectively.

In 2009, the capital of Russia was mentioned in three negative categories: “Least Friendly City” - 3rd place; “The worst kitchen” - 2nd place; “The most poorly dressed residents” - 3rd place ^[3] .

Methodology

The analytical division of The Economist magazine, which prepares reports and ratings, the Economist Intelligence Unit , uses a collection of sources, including the Mercer study, to compile a list of “ Worlds Most Liveable Cities ”. When calculating points, the availability of goods, life safety, the level of education and health, cultural and environmental attractiveness, and the effectiveness of infrastructure are taken into account. At the same time, climatic conditions, as well as the cost of living, are not taken into account.

Usually the highest positions are awarded to the cities of Austria, Australia, Japan and Canada. In 2011, Melbourne climbed from second to first place in the ranking, becoming the best city on the planet, and Vancouver took the third place in five years in a row due to a decrease in infrastructure indicators.

After the publication of the 2011 rating, the magazine received many reviews, the authors of which linked the fall of Vancouver with accidents on the Malahat Highway, connecting Victoria , Nanaimo , Vancouver , Kamloops and Revelstoke . However, representatives of the magazine wrote a rebuttal, which said that the problems on the Malahat highway are only part of the worsening situation on the roads near Vancouver ^[6] .

The Economist Intelligence Unit is criticized by The New York Times for its English-centricity:

The Economist clearly connects livability with the use of English.

Original text

The Economist clearly equates livability with speaking English.

- The Best Place to Live?

Results

In the top ten there are three Australian, three Canadian, two Japanese and two European cities. The highest place among Asian cities is occupied by the Japanese metropolis of Osaka (3rd place). The capital of Japan, Tokyo , shares 7th place with Canadian Toronto .

In Europe, Geneva (11), Paris (16) also received high marks, and London , which climbed one place, took 53rd position. Among US cities , the highest places were taken by Honolulu (26), Pittsburgh (29) and Los Angeles (44). New York took 56th place.

The worst cities in the world (in decreasing order of rating) were named Lagos , the largest city in Nigeria and Africa ; Dhaka , capital of Bangladesh ; Damascus , the capital of Syria .

St. Petersburg and Moscow took 77 and 81 places respectively. ^[7]

Since 2007, Monocle Magazine annually publishes a list of the best cities in the world to live in. The rating of 2018 was named “The List of the most liveable cities” ( The Most Liveable Cities Index ) ^[9] ; 25 best cities of the world were published in it - the first place was given to Munich. In the ranking of 2009 - Zurich , 2011 - Helsinki ^[10] , and in 2013 and 2014 - Copenhagen ^[11] .

The most important criteria were safety (crime rate); involvement in the world community; climate and number of hours of sunshine; quality of buildings; development of transport infrastructure; tolerance; good ecology; design; conditions for business; legislation and health.

Not included in the top ten, but the cities were highly rated: Stockholm , Paris , Auckland , Barcelona and Singapore .

• Quality of Life Index