Tokyo moved up three places from 13th to 10th in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) 2026 Global Liveability Index, marking the first time the Japanese capital has entered the top 10 in the annual ranking. It still ranked behind Osaka, however, which ranked seventh for the second consecutive year. The index assesses 173 cities around the world based on more than 30 qualitative and quantitative factors across five broad categories: education, stability, healthcare, infrastructure and culture and environment.
Global Liveability Index: Tokyo Outscores Osaka in Culture and Environment
Each city receives a score between 1 and 100 in each category. Tokyo and Osaka both achieved maximum marks in the stability, healthcare, and education categories, highlighting the strengths shared by Japan’s two largest metropolitan areas. The capital scored slightly higher than Osaka in culture and environment, receiving 89 points compared with Osaka’s 87. Osaka, however, performed better in the infrastructure category, helping it maintain a higher overall position in the rankings.
Topping the list for a second year in a row was Copenhagen. The Danish capital again finished ahead of Austria’s Vienna, which previously held the top spot for three consecutive years. Like Tokyo and Osaka, the two European cities received perfect scores in three categories. Rounding out the top 10 were three Australian cities — Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide — along with Zurich and Geneva in Switzerland and Vancouver in Canada.
War in Iran Reduces Livability Scores Across the Middle East
Nearly all of the bottom 10 cities in the index have been affected by war, poverty or both. Damascus in Syria was again ranked as the least livable city, preceded by Tripoli in Libya and Dhaka in Bangladesh. The conflict involving Iran significantly reduced livability scores across the Middle East, causing the region’s overall average score to drop to 61.2. For the first time, the Iranian capital of Tehran entered the bottom 10, dropping to 164th.
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Updated On July 9, 2026
