Birmingham is one of the best places to live in the world if you want a good, safe quality of life.

The city is towards the top of a list of 231 countries which have all been ranked according to how safe they are and their quality of living.

Topping the list as the best place to live is Vienna, while Baghdad in Iraq is said to be the worst.

Birmingham comes in at number 49 in the list for quality of living and number 53 for personal safety.

(Image: flickr/Gerard Higgins)

The list has been produced by Mercer for its annual Worldwide Quality of Living report.

Lots of factors are considered for each city before their ranking is determined.

These include public transport, traffic congestion levels, the availability of housing, schools and its cultural scene.

The data was analysed between September and November 2018.

The report is used by international businesses when deciding where to base themselves or open new offices.

Its ranking in the Mercer report can be key in deciding how attractive a city is for businesses.

Vienna was judged to be the best city in the world for a good quality of life.

It retained its top spot for the 10th year running.

Also in the top five for good quality of life were Zurich in Switzerland, Auckland in New Zealand, Munich in Germany and Vancouver in Canada.

Bottom of this list was Baghdad in Iraq, Bangui in the Central African Republic, Sana'a in Yemen, Port Au Prince in Haiti and Khartoum in Sudan.

In the UK, the best city to live in was London (coming in at 41 in the worldwide list), followed by Edinburgh at 45 and Glasgow at 48, then Birmingham at 49.

This year, for the first time, Mercer also did separate rankings for personal safety.

This took into account a city's internal stability, crime levels, law enforcement, limitations on personal freedom, relationships with other countries and freedom of the press.

For personal safety, Luxembourg topped the list, followed by Basel and Bern in Switzerland, Helskinki in Finland and Zurich, also in Switzerland.

Bottom of the list was Damascus in Syria, Bangui, Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Baghdad and Karachi in Pakistan.

A spokesman for Mercer said: “Companies looking to expand overseas have a host of considerations when identifying where best to locate staff and new offices.

"The key is relevant, reliable data and standardised measurement, which are essential for employers to make critical decisions.

"From deciding where to establish offices to determining how to distribute, house and remunerate their global workforces.”

Show more

While London was the city with the highest quality of living in the UK, it was held back by its traffic and air pollution and crime levels.

Take part in our poll Go to our website

Tell us what you think of our city, join in the conversation on our Facebook page or write in the comments below.