Highlights from the 2010 Quality-of-Living Survey

European cities dominate the top 10 ranking for Quality of living, with Canada, New Zealand and Australia also featuring Vienna scores highest for overall quality of living, Baghdad the lowest Calgary is the world's top in our Eco-city ranking, followed by Honolulu, with Ottawa and Helsinki in joint 3rd place

Vienna retains the top spot as the city with the world’s best quality of living, according to the Mercer 2010 Quality of Living Survey. Zurich and Geneva follow in second and third position, respectively, while Vancouver and Auckland remain joint fourth in the rankings.

European cities continue to dominate amongst the top 25 cities in the index. In the UK, London ranks at 39, while Birmingham is at 55 and Glasgow at 57. In the US, the highest ranking entry is Honolulu at position 31, followed by San Francisco at position 32. Singapore (28) is the top-scoring Asian city followed by Tokyo at 40. Baghdad, ranking 221, remains at the bottom of the list.

"Despite the economic downturn and companies’ efforts to contain costs, quality of living and hardship premiums remain important means of compensating expatriates for differences in living conditions. However, companies are more inclined to review the measurement of such allowances to ensure they are cost-effective," according to Slagin Parakatil, Senior Researcher at Mercer.

This year’s ranking also identifies the cities with the best eco-ranking based on water availability and drinkability, waste removal, quality of sewage systems, air pollution and traffic congestion. Calgary is at the top of this index (score 145.7), followed by Honolulu in second place (score 145.1) and Ottawa and Helsinki in joint third (score 139.9). Wellington in New Zealand (5), Minneapolis (6), Adelaide (7) and Copenhagen fill the next four slots, while Kobe, Oslo and Stockholm share ninth place. Port-au-Prince in Haiti ranks at the bottom of this table with a score of only 27.8 (see attached table).

Read more from the Press Release 26 May 2010

	Slagin Parakatil discusses the Quality of Living Survey results for 2010 "A high-ranking eco-city optimises its use of renewable energy sources and generates the lowest possible quantity of pollution. A city’s eco-status or attitude toward sustainability can have significant impact on the quality of living of its inhabitants. As a consequence these are also pertinent issues for companies that send employees and their families on long-term assignments abroad, especially considering the vast majority of expatriates are relocated to urban areas.”

Quality-of-Living Reports

Key features and benefits Based on 39 factors within ten categories, Mercer’s Quality of Living Reports contain all the key elements you need to calculate hardship allowances for transfers to over 280 cities worldwide. “Hardship allowance” refers to premium compensation paid to expatriates who experience – or should expect to experience – a significant deterioration in living conditions in their new host location.

Our reports are based on annual responses to a questionnaire developed by international Mercer professionals, working closely with major multinational companies and other experts in the field. Tangible values for qualitative perceptions to establish an objective assessment of the quality of living for transfers to over 280 cities worldwide. Carefully selected factors representing the criteria considered most relevant to international executives. A detailed outline of how we establish quality of living differentials between cities. A City-to-City Index Comparison that summarises the difference in the quality of living between any two cities. The final quality of living index and access to the detailed breakdown of the categories that form the resulting index. An online quality of living calculator allowing you to customise the QOL index to your specific needs. A score report summarising the quality of living differences for each of the 39 factors. Mercer’s recommended Quality of Living Allowance Grid that allows you to translate the quality of living index into percentage benefits and define competitive hardship allowances where applicable.

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