Methodology

Each category consists of the latest data available from reputable sources. This data is standardised using minmax normalisation:

NB: where lower numbers in the initial data correspond to a better score (for example, the time taken to learn the language), the numerator was adjusted to max⁡(x)-x_i to ensure the normalised data is consistent across all categories – a score of 10 is always the best result.

This value is then multiplied by 10 to create a score (between 0-10). Each city is then ranked based on their overall average score across the key categories below, including both city-level and country-level data, to create the global city index.

In the instance of country-level data, the country score is applied to each city within that country. For example, if Australia has a score of 8.81 for Happiness then Sydney, Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide all receive 8.81.

City Level Data Country Level Data Sunshine Hours Easy Language to Learn Average Vacation Days Happiness Score House Price to Income Ratio Peacefulness Index Quality of Living Score Migrant Acceptance Score Price of a Pint Education System Rating

In order to further refine the list, cities that are missing more than 2 data points (due to no data available) have been filtered out, leaving a list of 105 cities.