Toronto Ranks Fourth Most Liveable City in the World

The Intelligence Unit at The Economist (EIU) released a new report ranking 140 cities in the world from best to worst, based on liveability.

For the fourth time in a row, Melbourne, Australia snagged the top spot, followed by Vienna, Vancouver, Toronto, and Calgary. That’s right folks - three Canadian cities are amongst the top five! (Okay, so Calgary actually tied for fifth with Adelaide, Australia, but it still counts as fifth)

The EIU scores each city by taking a number of factors into consideration, including culture, stability, quality of health care, environment, infrastructure, and education. According to the report, the most liveable cities were low density, mid-sized cities in wealthier countries.

“This can foster a range of recreational activities without leading to high crime levels or overburdened infrastructure,” says the report. “Eight of the top 10 scoring cities are in Australia and Canada, with population densities of 2.88 and 3.40 people per square kilometres respectively.”

While it’s amazing that Canada has so many liveable cities in the top 10, the report claims that the world’s average liveability has decreased by 0.7 percent since 2009, and over 50 cities experienced decreases in the last five years.

So, take a moment today to realize how lucky you are that you live in Toronto, and if you don’t live in the city, maybe now’s the time to start looking for a new home!