Melbourne, Australia is very excited that it scored 97.5 out of 100 in the Economist’s annual most liveable cites survey knocking Vancouver out of top place.

The Economist designs the rankings for  employers to use when assigning hardship allowances as part of job relocation but they have developed a life of their own with the rankings capturing the attention of people in the street and politicians.

The indexes also ignore other issues like the cost of living in those cities, sustainability, and equity and other factors. For example housing costs in Melbourne are now some of the highest in the world when then Australian dollar’s strength is accounted for.

Having said that I agree with the Economist’s ranking of Melbourne. It is for me the most livable city in the world taking into account its Cultural aspects, Safety, Public Transport and aesthetically pleasing street layout, buildings, parks, river and bay. I have listed my top ten cities below.

The Economist 2011 list:

1.  Melbourne 97.5 
2.  Vienna 97.4 
3. Vancouver 97.3
4. Toronto 97.2  
5. Calgary 96.6
6.  Sydney 96.1
7. Helsinki 96
8. Perth 95.9 
9. Adelaide 95.9 
10. Auckland 95.7

My Top Ten Liveable Cities:

Wellington

1. Melbourne, Vic, Australia – see above
2. Adelaide, SA, Australia – a city where you are ten minutes from anything: shops, beaches, forests. A good arts scene with amazing food. The Economist said 9th place, I say second.
3. Portland, OR, USA-  ticks all the boxes of big city facilities with small city fee; 
4. San Francisco, CA, USA -one of the most stunning and interesting cities on the planet
5. Reykjavik, Iceland – an unusual contendor- cool, fun and safe!
6. Seattle, WA, USA- Scenery, culture, jobs and transport all combine to create this delight
7. Washington, DC, USA  an amazing city apart from its astonishing crime rate
8. Paris, France- many Parisians would disagree but there is a lot to attract one to living in the capital of France. 
9. Wellington, New Zealand- I prefer New Zealand’s capital over the Economist’s choice (Auckland). A more compact and navigable city straddling stunning harbour and  hillsides with a great cultural scene
10. New Orleans, Louisana- seriously. Like nowhere else in the world, I could easily live here- tomorrow!

Where would you most think would be a great city to live in?