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Skating on the Frog Pond, Boston Common.

(Flickr Creative Commons)

BOSTON -- Boston offers the second best quality of life in the U.S. and 34th in the world, according to a new study.

Mercer, a unit of Marsh & McLennan Companies, took into account 39 factors for the study that included political and social environment, medical and health services, housing, natural environment, recreation and schools and education.

With those metrics in mind, Vancouver is the report's highest ranking city in North America. San Francisco took the No. 1 spot in the U.S.

Honolulu, Chicago, and New York City are also named as top places.

Mercer, based in the United Kingdom, evaluated local living conditions in more than 440 cities worldwide. The goal of the study is to help companies decide where to locate headquarters or satellite locations.

"Managing safety and health issues is of utmost importance, especially for employees who relocate with a family," said Slagin Parakatil, principal at Mercer and head of the quality-of-living research. "Our surveys enable companies to take adequate precautions for them."

Check out out the full report here.

