In a study by The Economist of more than 140 cities, Melbourne has come out tops as the most livable city in the world. The second most populous city in Australia edged out the competition from Vienna, Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary, among others.
While Melbourne holds the title for most livable city, Canada and Australia stand as the best countries for quality of life. The two countries each hold spots in three of the top 10 lists, which saw a significant absence of cities from US and Asia. What helps determine the rankings, are five broad categories such as stability, healthcare, culture, environment and infrastructure.
One city that doesn’t make the cut for top ten most livable cities is Sydney. The reshuffling, that now sees Hamburg, Germany in the tenth spot, was attributed to the heightened perceived threat of terrorism. The top five in the list however, remain unchanged. The countless terror attacks last year caused Paris to experience a sharp decline, while growing unrest linked to the Black Lives Matter movement in the US may have driven the countries cities further down the list.
The study found several consistencies that helped qualify the cities as top-ranking countries. The cities that made the list were mid-sized cities in wealthier countries that had a relatively low population density. Other factors that helped in the ranking were the range of recreational activities, low crime levels and smart, stable infrastructure. In contrast, the top ten least livable cities see Syria at the top of the list closely followed by Tripoli, Libya, Lagos, Nigeria, Dhaka, Bangladesh and Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.
Here then is the list of most livable cities, followed by the least.
1. Melbourne, Australia
2. Vienna, Austria
3. Vancouver, Canada
4. Toronto, Canada
5. Calgary, Canada
6. Adelaide, Australia
7. Perth, Australia
8. Auckland, New Zealand
9. Helsinki, Finland
10. Hamburg, Germany
The top 10 least liveable cities
1. Damascus, Syria
2. Tripoli, Libya
3. Lagos, Nigeria
4. Dhaka, Bangladesh
5. Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
6. Algiers, Algeria
7. Karachi, Pakistan
8. Harare, Zimbabwe
9. Douala, Cameroon
10. Kiev, Ukraine
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