Lisbon is the best city in the world for people considering a move abroad, according to a new ranking by immigration consultancy Global Citizen Solutions, which evaluated destinations based on factors ranging from personal safety and health care to cost of living and how easy it is for newcomers to integrate into local communities.
The ranking examined 35 cities worldwide, including Tel Aviv, which placed 17th. Cities were scored on criteria including personal safety, health care, environmental quality, English-language proficiency and affordability. The study also incorporated two less common indicators: urban mobility and social integration.
The social integration index measured how welcoming cities are to newcomers, evaluating the friendliness of local residents, the ease of making friends and the openness of the culture to outsiders. Data for each category was drawn from public databases, with cities receiving scores on a scale of 0 to 100.
Lisbon topped the list with an overall score of 88.49. Portugal’s capital scored highly across most categories and was recognized as one of the more affordable cities in the ranking, as well as one of the least polluted in terms of air quality. Portugal also offers several immigration pathways, including investor visas and visas for digital nomads.
Amsterdam ranked second, earning strong marks for personal safety, health care quality and air quality. The Dutch capital also benefited from widespread English proficiency and a transportation system that makes it easy to navigate without a car. However, it was also among the most expensive cities included in the study.
Melbourne, Australia, ranked third and was highlighted as one of the cities with the cleanest air. Vienna placed fourth, receiving particularly high scores for health care, reasonable living costs and English proficiency.
Barcelona rounded out the top five, followed by Singapore in sixth place, Auckland, New Zealand, in seventh, Tokyo in eighth, Copenhagen in ninth and Seoul in 10th.
Tel Aviv ranked 17th overall with a score of 72.51, placing just below Montevideo and just above Bangkok.
The ranking also identified the most affordable cities in the survey. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, was the least expensive destination, followed by Nairobi, Bali and Tbilisi. However, all four cities placed in the lower portion of the overall rankings, partly because of weaker health care systems and more limited public transportation options.
Zurich was ranked as the most expensive city in the index, followed by Oslo and Tel Aviv.
In a separate measure of social integration, San José, Costa Rica, ranked first, followed by Mexico City, Bali, Rio de Janeiro and Bangkok.