Yahoo Finance The world's most liveable cities revealed
Copenhagen in Denmark and Bern in Switzerland have been ranked as the most “liveable” cities in the world, according to an annual study.
Global mobility experts, ECA (Employment Conditions Abroad) International looked at a variety of liveability factors including health services, housing and utilities, access to a social network and leisure facilities, infrastructure, climate, personal safety, political tensions and air quality to create the list.
Copenhagen and Bern took the top spot thanks to having clean air, good facilities, and low crime rates.
They were followed by The Hague in the Netherlands, Geneva in Switzerland, Eindhoven in the Netherlands, and Stavanger in Norway.
Read more: The best and worst cities to live and work as an expat in 2020
Several UK cities came in lower down the rankings with only Edinburgh making it into the top 20, coming in at number 19, tied with Stockholm in Sweden. Aberdeen wasn’t far behind at number 21.
London came in at number 47, alongside Belfast, Northern Ireland, due to low personal safety and pollution scores.
Cardiff made it to 24, with Manchester at 39, and Glasgow at 55.
Neil Ashman, senior location ratings analyst at ECA International, said: “Pollution, crime rate and terrorism threats are among the factors that affect the liveability of major UK cities such as London, Manchester, Belfast and Glasgow.”
Dublin held on to its place within the top 10, remaining at number nine. The record number of Irish passport applicants last year will be able to benefit from the Irish capital’s strong culture and infrastructure scores as well as low crime rates and good air quality.
Northern Europe dominated the top of the ranking with places such as Scandinavia, the Netherlands and Switzerland offering excellent transport links, a high standard of healthcare, and long-term political stability.
Read more: Top cities to live and work in the UK revealed
Four cities in the Netherlands placed in the top 20 with Eindhoven, a design and technology hub, climbing one place this year, making it into the top five. In Switzerland, four major cities also featured in the top 20.
Canada was revealed as the most liveable country outside Europe for UK expats, with the cities of Toronto and Vancouver the highest ranked non-European locations on the list.
