European cities dominate the rankings of locations with the best quality of living, according to Mercer’s 2008 Quality of Living survey. Zurich retains its 2007 title as the highest ranked city, followed jointly by Vienna (2), Geneva (2), then Vancouver (4) and Auckland (5).

The highest entry for the United States is Honolulu, appearing at number 28. The cities with the lowest quality of living ranking are Ndjamena (211), Khartoum (212), Brazzaville (213), and Bangui (214). Baghdad, ranking 215, retains its position at the bottom of the table.

The survey also identified those cities with the highest personal safety ranking based on internal stability, effectiveness of law enforcement and relationships with other countries. Luxembourg was top, followed by Bern, Geneva, Helsinki and Zurich, all equally placed at number 2. Chicago, Houston and San Francisco are noted amongst the safest cities in the US, all ranking at 53. Baghdad (215) was the world’s least safe city followed by Kinshasa (214), Karachi (213), Nairobi (212) and Bangui (211).

The rankings are based on a point scoring index, which sees Zurich scoring 108, while Baghdad scores 13.5. Cities are ranked against New York as the base city which has an index score of 100. Mercer’s Quality of Living survey covers 215 cities and is conducted to help governments and major companies place employees on international assignments.

Top 5 quality of living ranking for cities worldwide

Top 5 ranking cities by region

Quality of living

Top 5 cities - Asia Pacific	Top 5 cities - Americas	Top 5 cities - Europe
Auckland, New Zealand (tied for 5th) Sydney, Australia (10th) Wellington, New Zealand (12th) Melbourne, Australia (17th) Perth, Australia (21st)   The lowest ranking Asian city in the top 50 was Osaka (tied for 44th).	Vancouver, Canada (4th) Toronto, Canada (15th) Ottawa, Canada (19th) Montreal, Canada (22nd) Calgary, Canada (25th)   The lowest ranking Americas city in the top 50 was Seattle (50th).	Zurich, Switzerland (1st) Vienna, Austria (tied for 2nd) Geneva, Switzerland (tied for 2nd) Dusseldorf, Germany (6th) Munich, Germany (7th)     The lowest ranking European city in the top 50 was Lisbon (tied for 44th).

Personal safety

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Key features and benefits

To encourage employment mobility and keep abreast of the competition, you need reliable information to help you calculate fair, consistent expatriate allowances. Based on 39 factors within ten categories, Mercer’s Quality of Living Reports contain all the key elements you need to calculate hardship allowances for transfers to more than 350 cities worldwide.

“Hardship allowance” refers to premium compensation paid to expatriates who experience – or should expect to experience – a significant deterioration in living conditions in their new host location.

Our reports are based on annual responses to a questionnaire developed by international Mercer professionals, working closely with major multinational companies and other experts in the field.

• Tangible values for qualitative perceptions to establish an objective assessment of the quality of living for transfers to more than 350 cities worldwide.
• Carefully selected factors representing the criteria considered most relevant to international executives.
• A detailed outline of how we establish quality of living differentials between cities.
• A City-to-City Index Comparison that summarises the difference in the quality-of-living between any two cities.
• The final quality of living index and access to the detailed breakdown of the categories that form the resulting index.
• An online quality of living calculator allowing you to customise the QOL index to your specific needs.
• A score report summarising the quality of living differences for each of the 39 factors.
• Mercer’s recommended Quality of Living Allowance Grid that allows you to translate the quality of living index into percentage benefits and define competitive hardship allowances where applicable.
  

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Managing quality of living for expatriates

Defining quality of living

Mercer has designed an objective way of measuring quality of living for expatriates based on factors that people consider representative of quality of living. Our annual survey is based on detailed assessments and evaluations of 10 key categories and 39 criteria or factors, each having coherent weightings reflecting their relative importance.

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Discover Mercer's global mobility software tools

Global HRMonitor®   This web-based application acts as a single information source, supporting you in all aspects of managing your expatriate employees on a worldwide and/or regional basis.   The reports and built-in calculators allow you to customise the data to your own specific needs and to obtain the best return on investment from your international assignments.    Learn more

ExpatMonitorTM   An integrated expatriate compensation management tool designed to facilitate the management and the administration of international assignment compensation policies, trends and costs.   ExpatMonitorTM  is a web-based tool capable of recording and managing expatriate related compensation information.    Learn more

MercerPassport®   A valuable source of reference information that will help expatriates learn what it’s really like to live in another country.   MercerPassport® provides the whole family with a clear understanding of how to appreciate and adapt to life in a new location, as well as essential practical guidance about moving abroad and acclimating to a new home.     Learn more