Copenhagen Tops 2026 Ranking of the World's Most Livable Cities

The summer travel season allows people to see some of the most beautiful cities and towns on the planet, with most experiencing the best weather these places will have over the course of a calendar year.

Millions travel around the world in search of new experiences and lifelong memories, but some may approach their travel plans through a more permanent lens. According to the Migration Policy Institute, 304 million people - roughly 3.7% of the world's population - live in a country other than the one they were born in.

As expats become more common around the planet, a new criteria for liveability has emerged. Different factors are at play to determine the most liveable cities in the world, and a new set of rankings has selected a notable European city as deserving of the top spot.

Which Cities Are The Most Livable?

Copenhagen, Denmark has been voted the world's most liveable city for the second year in a row, according to new rankings from the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). Over 170 cities were ranked on several different factors, from education and infrastructure to healthcare and culture.

Copenhagen took the top spot after receiving "perfect" grades in multiple categories, including stability, infrastructure and education.

The rest of the top ten consisted of the following cities:

• #1 - Copenhagen, Denmark
• #2 - Vienna, Austria
• #3 - Melbourne, Australia
• #4 - Sydney, Australia
• #5 - Zurich, Switzerland
• #6 - Geneva, Switzerland
• #7 - Osaka, Japan
• #8 - Adelaide, Australia
• #9 - Vancouver, Canada
• #10 - Tokyo, Japan

Honolulu, Hawaii was noted as the highest-ranking city in the United States, coming in at 25th overall. Honolulu was also the highest-ranking American city for the second straight year, dropping two spots from last year's ranking.

New York City improved three places to a ranking of 66th overall, owing to significant improvements in its stability score.

How Are The Livability Rankings Calculated?

A spokesperson for the EIU said that Copenhagen was once again voted into the top spot due to a “winning combination of excellent scores in stability and infrastructure, great culture and environment and high quality of public services."

Western Europe was deemed the world's most livable region, with an average score of 91.7. North America was slightly behind with an average livability score of around 90, receiving a perfect score for education and high scores in culture and infrastructure.

The EIU considers stability and culture as the most important factors in the livability rankings, giving each 25% of the weight toward the total score. Healthcare and infrastructure contribute 20% to the total score, and the remaining 10% is determined by education.

All ten of the top cities received perfect scores for education, and all but two (Copenhagen and Vancouver) received perfect scores in health.

source https://www.mensjournal.com/travel/the-worlds-most-livable-cities-revealed-in-new-global-ranking