World’s Most Liveable Cities in 2025: Discover the Cities With the Top Quality of Life

The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has released its Global Liveability Index for 2025, assessing 173 cities worldwide across five categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. This year, Copenhagen has taken the top position, ending Vienna’s three-year run as the world’s most liveable city. The Danish capital earned high scores in stability, education, and infrastructure, narrowly surpassing Vienna, which saw a decline in its stability rating following recent security incidents. The average global liveability score for 2025 remains steady at 76.1 out of 100, unchanged from 2024. While year-on-year improvements were recorded in healthcare, education, and infrastructure, these were offset by a continued decline in stability, driven by rising geopolitical tensions, civil unrest, and increased security threats in several regions.

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Western Europe continues to dominate the upper tier of the rankings. Despite this, the region has seen a dip in stability scores, reflecting a rise in terrorism threats, political protests, and social tensions. The Asia-Pacific region also features prominently among the top-ranked cities, although it continues to show the widest range of scores, from highly ranked locations such as Melbourne and Osaka to lower-scoring cities affected by political instability. North American cities, while generally high-performing, experienced a slight decline in healthcare scores, particularly in Canada.

Conversely, improvements in healthcare, education, and infrastructure, especially in Gulf countries, offset these declines. Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia, showed the biggest improvement, moving up 13 spots, while Calgary, Canada, saw the sharpest fall, dropping from 5th to 18th amid mounting pressure on the national healthcare system. At the lower end of the index, Damascus, Syria, remains the least liveable city, followed by Tripoli, Libya. Cities across the United Kingdom, including London, Manchester, and Edinburgh, also declined in the rankings due to reduced stability scores.

Read on to discover the ranking of the most liveable cities in the world in the year 2025.

Top Ten Most Liveable Cities in 2025

1. Copenhagen, Denmark

2. = Vienna, Austria

2. = Zurich, Switzerland

4. Melbourne, Australia

5. Geneva, Switzerland

6. Sydney, Australia

7. = Osaka, Japan

7. = Auckland, New Zealand

9. Adelaide, Australia

10. Vancouver, Canada

Read below for the world’s least liveable cities in 2025.

164. Caracas, Venezuela
165. Kyiv, Ukraine
166. Port Moresby, PNG
167. Harare, Zimbabwe
168. Lagos, Nigeria
169. Algiers, Algeria
170. Karachi, Pakistan
171. Dhaka, Bangladesh
172. Tripoli, Libya
173. Damascus, Syria

News via The Economist.