The World’s Most Livable Cities of 2021

The effects of Covid-19 on global livability have been nothing short of catastrophic.

Over a year into the pandemic, the ongoing health emergencies, border restrictions, and lockdown measures continue to impact millions worldwide.

However, some places have managed the pandemic much better than others, allowing their residents to return to a sense of normalcy sooner than most.

New Zealand has received widespread praise for its handling of the crisis, so it’s no surprise that one of its cities has been named the world’s most livable city for 2021.

Auckland topped The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Global Liveability Index, which ranked 140 cities worldwide, thanks to its swift and effective response to the pandemic, allowing restrictions to be eased early on.

The annual ranking was skipped in 2020, but Austria’s Vienna—previously ranked number one in both 2018 and 2019—has fallen completely out of the top 10, now sitting at 12th place after being severely impacted by Covid.

Australia’s Top Spots

Perth was one of four Australian cities to make it into the top 10 of the liveability rankings.

Perth was one of four Australian cities to make it into the top 10. Paul Kane/Getty Images

New Zealand’s capital, Wellington, secured fourth place on this year’s list, tying with Japan’s Tokyo. Four Australian cities, which maintained strict border controls throughout the crisis, also made it into the top 10.

Adelaide, Perth, and Brisbane ranked third, sixth, and tenth, respectively, while Melbourne shared the eighth spot with Switzerland’s Geneva.

“The cities that rose to the top this year were largely those that implemented strict measures to curb the pandemic,” said Upasana Dutt from The Economist Intelligence Unit in a statement.

“New Zealand’s rigorous lockdown allowed the country to reopen quickly, giving cities like Auckland and Wellington the chance to return to lifestyles reminiscent of pre-pandemic times,” she added.

Tokyo wasn’t the only Japanese city near the top. Osaka, which ranked fourth in 2019, has moved up to second place this year.

While cities across the Asia-Pacific region have thrived, Canada, which had three cities—Calgary, Vancouver, and Toronto—near the top just two years ago, has now dropped out of the top 10 entirely. Vancouver, at number 16, is the highest-ranking Canadian city on the list.

As expected, the overall global livability score has fallen by seven points compared to pre-pandemic figures.

The index considers over 30 qualitative and quantitative factors across five major categories: stability (25%), healthcare (20%), culture and environment (25%), education (10%), and infrastructure (20%).

While the categories themselves remained unchanged this year, various indicators, including pressure on healthcare systems and restrictions on local sports events, influenced the scores for healthcare, culture and environment, and education categories.

The way each city managed the pandemic, the speed of vaccine rollouts, and the extent of border restrictions have all played a major role in shifting the rankings.

The Impact of Healthcare on Livability

The Japanese city of Osaka has climbed two spots, now securing the position as the second most livable city in the world.

Osaka’s rise in the rankings, moving up two places, has earned it the title of the second most livable city globally. Buddhika Weerasinghe/Getty Images

“The Covid-19 pandemic has significantly affected global livability,” says Dutt. “Cities worldwide are now far less livable than before the pandemic, with Europe, in particular, bearing the brunt of the impact.”

In Europe, Germany experienced the steepest drops in rankings, with the city of Hamburg plummeting 34 spots to land at 47th place on the list.

Despite ongoing social restrictions in Switzerland, two of its cities have seen improvements, with Zurich and Geneva moving up from 11th and 14th to 7th and 8th place, respectively.

Overall healthcare scores have declined due to the pandemic, with cities like Prague, Athens, and Jakarta—where case numbers were rising during the survey—scoring considerably lower than in previous years.

In contrast, Spanish cities Barcelona and Madrid performed well in the healthcare category, gaining nearly 25 points as their health systems experienced less pressure compared to the early waves of Covid-19 in 2020.

Honolulu, the capital of Hawaii, also saw a boost in its healthcare score, rising 33 points due to declining Covid case numbers and strong vaccination rates.

Honolulu was one of the biggest movers on the 2021 list, jumping 46 spots to 14th place. Houston also made a notable climb, rising 25 places to 31st, likely due to Texas being one of the first states in the US to ease public space restrictions.

Declining Conditions

Vienna, which held the top spot for two consecutive years, has fallen to 12th place.

Austria's Vienna, once the reigning champion for two years, has now slipped to 12th position. JOE KLAMAR/AFP via Getty Images

While there have been notable shifts near the top of the rankings, the cities at the bottom have remained largely unchanged.

Damascus once again occupies the bottom of the list, as the ongoing effects of the Syrian civil war continue to impact the city. It is followed closely by Lagos in Nigeria, Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea, and Dhaka in Bangladesh, which have maintained similar or identical rankings since 2019.

These cities have consistently ranked poorly over the years, primarily due to instability from ongoing civil unrest, military conflicts, and other significant challenges.

The report highlights that conditions in these cities have worsened even further in the last year, particularly in healthcare, which has been severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

While the rollout of vaccines and the easing of restrictions in some nations has brought hope, the pandemic is far from over, with India currently grappling with a devastating outbreak.

“The situation in the world’s most impoverished cities is expected to worsen if they don’t secure enough vaccines to curb the spread of new Covid-19 variants,” the report states. “Overburdened healthcare systems, like those in India, may face even greater pressure.”

This suggests that we may see even more significant shifts in next year’s rankings, with some cities that have fallen behind potentially regaining their previous positions.

The report states that the speed at which livability improves across regions will depend on how effectively health risks related to the pandemic are managed, through measures such as vaccination, testing, contact tracing, and quarantine protocols.

“Unless major setbacks occur, like the emergence of vaccine-resistant variants, we can expect improvements in scores for culture and environment,” the report adds.