Best Places to Live in 2026
Ranked from 12,377 cities on 29 livability metrics — cost, safety, healthcare, transport, and more.
Ranked from the best-measured cities — rich city-level data (not country estimates), 200,000+ population, active conflict zones excluded — built on World Bank, WHO, OECD, UNESCO, UNODC, Eurostat, Ookla Speedtest, OpenAQ, and GDELT. Not crowdsourced. Updated 2026-09-09.
Key findings — 2026-09-09 snapshot
- As of the 2026-09-09 snapshot, Singapore is the most livable city measured, scoring 85/100 across 29 metrics.
- The global top 10 all score between 83 and 85 out of 100.
- No US city ranks in the global top 10; the highest-ranked US city is New York City at 78/100.
- The safest city measured is also Singapore, with a safety score of 96/100.
- Berlin (Germany) is the best-value major city — 85/100 livability at below-average cost.
🏆Highest overall livability
The best all-round places to live, scored across all 29 metrics.
🛡️Safest cities
Lowest violent-crime and strongest institutional safety.
🏥Best healthcare
Life expectancy, physician access, and universal-coverage strength.
💰Best value
Highly livable and affordable — quality of life without the price tag.
🚇Best public transport
Cities where you don't need a car.
🎓Best for education
Schooling quality and access, PISA-anchored.
Best places to live, by state & country
AlabamaAlgeriaAngolaArgentinaArizonaAustraliaAustriaAzerbaijanBangladeshBelarusBelgiumBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBrazilCaliforniaCanadaChileChinaColoradoConnecticutCubaCzechiaDominican RepublicEgyptEl SalvadorFinlandFloridaFranceGeorgiaGermanyGhanaGuatemalaGuineaHondurasHungaryIllinoisIndiaIndianaIndonesiaItalyIvory CoastJapanJordanKansasKazakhstanKentuckyKenyaLouisianaMadagascarMalaysiaMassachusettsMichiganMissouriMoroccoNepalNevadaNew JerseyNew YorkNew ZealandNorth CarolinaNorwayOhioOklahomaOmanOregonParaguayPeruPhilippinesPolandPortugalRomaniaSenegalSerbiaSouth AfricaSouth KoreaSpainSri LankaSwedenSwitzerlandTaiwanTajikistanTanzaniaTennesseeTexasThailandThe NetherlandsTunisiaTurkeyUgandaUnited KingdomUnited StatesUtahUzbekistanVietnamVirginiaWashingtonZambia