Vienna tops list of most liveable cities in EIU Index

Vienna was named the world’s most liveable city for the third year in a row, in EIU’s Liveability Index 2024, owing to the stability of the region, advances in healthcare, education, as well as infrastructure.

The survey assessed the quality of life in 173 cities across 30 parameters falling under five categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure.

Vienna churned out a perfect 100 in the first four categories, but fell short in culture and environment, scoring 93.5.

Three more western European cities made it to the top ten—Copenhagen, Zurich and Geneva—making it the most liveable region.

The 30 western European cities that made it to the full list scored an average of 92, but the region’s overall score dropped from 2023 over stability issues caused by protests and crime, the report said.

In India, Bangalore climbed the rankings, along with other Asian cities such as Singapore and Ho Chi Minh City, owing to advancements in either healthcare or education, the report added.

Cities in North America were best in terms of education and 25 areas in the list scored an average of 90.5. Infrastructure scores have, however, fallen significantly in the region owing to the housing crisis in Canada.

Severe housing shortage has dragged down infrastructure scores of several top cities, but Melbourne, Sydney, and Vancouver have clung on to their spots in the top ten, despite housing challenges.

Toronto, however, fell out of the rankings.

Out of all the five categories, stability saw the sharpest decline, marked by rising protests. Tel Aviv, in Israel, took the biggest tumble this year due to stability issues, dropping 20 spots owing to Israel’s war in Gaza.

Damascus (Syria), following years of a civil war that has crippled its economy, the report said, retained its position as the least liveable city among the 173 surveyed.

The biggest improvement was observed in Hong Kong, whose ranking rocketed from 61st to 50th, due to its gains in stability and healthcare.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Karachi and Bangladesh’s Dhaka found themselves at the bottom of the list, among other cities like Ukraine’s Kyiv and Nigeria’s Lagos.