Revealed: The World's 'Heaven' and 'Hell' Cities of 2026
Not all of the wealthiest cities are the best places to live. The Global Liveability Index 2026 from the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has ranked Copenhagen as the world’s most liveable city for the second year running, with a score of 98.0. At the other end of the scale, Damascus remains in last place with a score of 31.6, whilst several cities in the Middle East experienced sharp declines due to increased security risks. This year’s data shows that stability is increasingly becoming the most decisive factor.
Although the top positions remained relatively stable, some changes occurred within the list of most liveable cities. Following Copenhagen, the next spots were occupied by Vienna, Melbourne, Sydney, Zurich, Geneva, Osaka, Adelaide, Vancouver, and Tokyo. Vancouver was the only North American city to make the top ten, whilst Tokyo was the sole megacity to retain its position. According to the EIU, traffic congestion and crime rates tend to be challenges for very large population centres.
At the bottom of the ranking, Damascus was followed by Tripoli, Dhaka, Karachi, Algiers, Lagos, Port Moresby, Kyiv, Harare, and Tehran. Most of the lowest-scoring cities are located in regions facing armed conflict, political instability, or pressure on public services.
The most significant declines came from the Middle East. Muscat in Oman recorded the largest drop, falling 14 places to 123rd position. Other cities such as Doha, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Amman, Manama, and Kuwait City also lost ground compared to the previous year. The decline followed heightened security tensions in the region, including a series of Iranian drone attacks that affected perceptions of stability in the Gulf area.
Conversely, the list of cities that improved their rankings the most was dominated by China. Fuzhou, Wuxi, Nanjing, and Zhuhai all rose in this year’s index. The EIU attributed these improvements to better healthcare scores following years of government investment to expand medical facilities and improve healthcare access in various cities.
The index is not designed to determine the best tourist cities or those with the largest economies. The EIU developed the Global Liveability Index as a reference for companies to calculate hardship allowances for employees posted abroad. A total of 173 cities are assessed based on five groups of indicators: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. These indicators reflect how comfortable a city is for daily living, from safety to the quality of public services.
Most of the highest-scoring cities are not the world’s largest. Instead, many are medium-sized cities that are relatively stable, offer high-quality public services, and are able to consistently maintain security and infrastructure. In contrast, cities experiencing conflict or geopolitical pressure tend to fall, even if they were previously known as business hubs or expatriate destinations. The findings demonstrate that quality of life is not solely determined by economic growth; when stability is disrupted, the impact is immediately reflected in a city’s liveability.