98out of 100: Copenhagen's score on the 2026 EIU Global Liveability Index, \
The Planet's Best Place to Live, Ranked
Every year the Economist Intelligence Unit puts numbers on something notoriously hard to quantify: where on earth is it actually best to live? The 2026 edition of the Global Liveability Index, published July 7, evaluates 173 cities across more than 30 indicators grouped into five categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. Copenhagen retained the top spot it claimed in 2025, becoming the first city to score 98 overall. Vienna, which held the top position for three consecutive years before Copenhagen dethroned it, sat in second again. Australia placed three cities in the top ten. Japan placed two. Vancouver was the sole North American city in the top ten, rising one place to ninth. The global average score stayed flat at 76.1 out of 100, because gains across Asia were offset by stability declines linked to the ongoing Iran war and its knock-on effects across the Middle East.
1. Copenhagen, Denmark
98.0 overall (100 stability, 100 education, 100 infrastructure)
2. Vienna, Austria
97.1 overall (three-year champion before 2025)
3. Melbourne, Australia
rose one place from 2025
4. Sydney, Australia
jumped two places (was 6th in 2025)
5. Zurich, Switzerland
dropped three spots after tying Vienna last year
6. Geneva, Switzerland
steady in sixth place
7. Osaka, Japan
retained seventh
8. Adelaide, Australia
Australia's third city in the top ten
9. Vancouver, Canada
sole North American city; rose from 10th
10. Tokyo, Japan
rose three places on improved culture scores
Copenhagen's perfect scores The Danish capital earned 100 out of 100 in three of the five categories: stability, education, and infrastructure. Its healthcare score is 96 and culture and environment is 95. No city in the index's history has previously scored 98 overall.
Asia's surge Nine Asian cities now rank in the EIU top 20, alongside seven European cities. Asia's average liveability score rose 0.3 points to 73.9, making it the most improved region in the 2026 edition. Nine Chinese cities rank in the top 20 of their respective regional bracket, with Fuzhou rising seven places to 93rd.
New York City recorded one of the largest single-year score gains of any city in the index, rising 1.2 points to 66th place overall. The EIU credited falling crime rates and reduced perceived risk of terrorist attacks. Honolulu remains the highest-ranked US city at 25th, despite dropping two places.
The Iran war's reach into the ranking. Tehran fell to 164th place, one of the steepest single-year drops in the index. Kyiv, Ukraine, fell further to 166th. Muscat, Oman dropped 14 places to 123rd. Kuwait City dropped 12 spots to 105th. Damascus, Syria remains last at 173rd with an overall score of 31.6, though its healthcare score improved following the 2024 change of government.
UK cities rebounded after a difficult 2025 that saw scores fall amid civil unrest. Manchester led at 52nd, its second consecutive year as the UK's highest-ranked city. London came in at 54th, Edinburgh at 64th. Ana Nicholls, EIU industry director, noted: "Copenhagen continues to lead, with New York achieving one of the largest year-on-year gains of any city in the index."
Does this ranking measure what livability actually means to most people?
The EIU index weights stability, education, infrastructure, healthcare, and culture across 173 cities and produces compelling data. But critics argue it systematically favours mid-sized, wealthy, cold-climate cities and tells you little about how it actually feels to live there on a median salary. Copenhagen is spectacular if you can afford it. Vienna ranks second despite a housing affordability crisis that has pushed young renters to the outer boroughs. Tokyo, ranked tenth, costs half as much to live in as any European city in the top five. Is the EIU index a genuine guide to the best places to live, or a ranking of the most comfortable cities for affluent professionals? Make the case.
