City quality of life indices are lists of cities that are ranked according to a defined measure of living conditions. In addition to considering the provision of clean water, clean air, adequate food and shelter, many indexes also measure more subjective elements including a city's capacity to generate a sense of community and offer hospitable settings for all, especially young people, to develop social skills, a sense of autonomy and identity.
The reason some cities appear in one ranking but not another is often related to the different criteria used between rankings, but more commonly it is related the difference in weighting given to similar factors.
Global Liveability Index
Monocles Quality of Life Survey
Since 2006, the lifestyle magazine Monocle has published an annual list of top locations for quality of life. Important criteria in this survey are safety/crime, international connectivity, climate/sunshine, quality of architecture, public transport, tolerance, environmental issues and access to nature, urban design, business conditions, proactive policy developments and medical care.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
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|+ Monocles Quality of Life Survey 2025
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! Rank
! City
! Country/Region
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| 1
| Paris
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| 2
| Madrid
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| 3
| Athens
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| 4
| Barcelona
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| 5
| Vienna
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| 6
| Zurich
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| 7
| Mexico City
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| 8
| Lisbon
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| 9
| Tokyo
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| 10
| Tallinn
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|}
Mercer's Quality of Living Ranking
American global human resources and related financial services consulting firm Mercer annually releases its Quality of Living City Ranking, comparing 241 cities based on 39 criteria (including safety, education, hygiene, health care, culture, environment, recreation, political-economic stability, public transport and access to goods and services). New York City is given a baseline score of 100 and other cities are rated in comparison. The list is intended to help multinational companies decide where to open offices or plants and how much to pay employees.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
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|+ Mercer's Quality of Living Ranking 2024
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! Rank
! City
! Country/Region
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| 1
| Zürich
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| 2
| Vienna
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| 3
| Geneva
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| 4
| Copenhagen
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| 5
| Auckland
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| 6
| Amsterdam
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| 7
| Frankfurt
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| 7
| Vancouver
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| 9
| Bern
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| 10
| Basel
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| 11
| Munich
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| 12
| Sydney
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| 13
| Toronto
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| 14
| The Hague
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| 14
| Wellington
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| 16
| Düsseldorf
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| 17
| Luxembourg
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| 18
| Stockholm
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| 19
| Berlin
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| 20
| Montreal
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| 21
| Melbourne
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| 22
| Oslo
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| 23
| Ottawa
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| 24
| Perth
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| 25
| Calgary
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|}
Numbeo's Quality of Life Ranking
Numbeo is a crowd-sourced global database of reported consumer prices, perceived crime rates, quality of health care, among other statistics. The rankings are updated twice per year.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Numbeo's Quality of Life Index 2025
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Happy City Index 2026
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! Rank
! City
! Country/Region
|-
|1
|Copenhagen
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|-
|2
|Helsinki
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|3
|Geneva
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|4
|Uppsala
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|5
|Tokyo
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|6
|Trondheim
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|7
|Bern
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|8
|Malmö
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|9
|Munich
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|10
|Aarhus
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|11
|Zurich
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|12
|Barcelona
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|13
|Espoo
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|14
|Oslo
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|15
|The Hague
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|16
|Ballarat
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|17
|Aalborg
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|18
|Yokohama
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|19
|Lugano
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|20
|Reykjavik
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|21
|Jönköping
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|22
|Singapore
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|23
|Grenoble
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|24
|Stuttgart
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|25
|Paris
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|}
IMD's Smart City Index
Swiss-based International Institute for Management Development (IMD) publishes the Smart City Index, ranking what makes a city the most livable. Zurich, Oslo, Geneva, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi form the top 5 in 2025.