Liveability Index 2022

EIU’s Global Liveability Index rebounds as pandemic eases

While the lifting of lockdowns has seen an uptick in scores across locations tracked by the index, liveability conditions in some eastern European cities have been negatively impacted amid the war in Ukraine.

  • Vienna has regained its customary position at the top of EIU’s Global Liveability Index. European and Canadian cities dominate the top ten, while New Zealand and Australian cities, which triumphed last year, have tumbled by comparison.
  • The average liveability index for 2022 shows a significant rebound since last year, as scores for culture, education and healthcare rise in most cities following the lifting of covid-related restrictions. 
  • However, the index remains below pre-pandemic levels as stability deteriorates in several eastern European cities following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. We had to exclude Kiev (Ukraine) from our survey, while Moscow and St Petersburg (Russia) saw their rankings fall.

This year’s edition of EIU’s Global Liveability Ranking finds that Vienna is the most liveable city in the world, with Copenhagen, Calgary, Zurich and Vancouver rounding out the top five. The Austrian city has rebounded to the top position, as in the pre-pandemic years of 2018 and 2019, scoring highly on all five metrics: education, healthcare, culture and environment, stability and infrastructure. 

Globally, the average index has rebounded to 73.6 (out of 100), up from 69.1 a year ago, as scores for culture and environment, education and healthcare improve. However, the index remains below the average of 75.9 reported just before the pandemic. The scores for infrastructure remain broadly stable, but stability has deteriorated in many cities, owing largely to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. While Kiev had to be excluded from the rankings, cities in Russia saw their rankings fall sharply. Moscow fell by 15 places, while St Petersburg fell by 13 places.

“The covid-19 pandemic adversely affected global liveability in 2021, but we have seen a marked improvement in most cities in this year’s index with the reopening of shops, restaurants and museums. Education has emerged stronger with children returning to schools alongside a significantly reduced burden on hospitals and healthcare systems. This has allowed the fundamental attractions of cities such as Vienna to reemerge, making it the most liveable city again after 2018 and 2019 when it had topped the rankings.”

upasana dutt, head of the liveability index

The number of cities in this year’s index has increased from 139 to 172 (excluding Kiev in both these numbers), to add many fast-growing business destinations.

To find out how your city has fared, download the 2022 free summary report here.

Alongside the free summary report, EIU offers a range of liveability products that help 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 solutions here.