by Brianna Crandall — December 14, 2012—Updated 2012 Quality of Living rankings by city, along with new rankings by Infrastructure, have been released by Mercer, a global consulting firm in talent, health, retirement and investments and a subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Companies. European cities continue to dominate the top of both rankings.
Vienna retains the top spot as the city with the world’s best quality of living, according to Mercer’s survey. Zurich and Auckland follow in second and third place, respectively, and Munich is in fourth place, followed by fifth-ranked Vancouver. Düsseldorf dropped one spot to rank sixth, followed by Frankfurt in seventh, Geneva in eighth, Copenhagen in ninth, and Bern and Sydney tied for tenth place.
In the United States, Honolulu (28) and San Francisco (29) are the highest-ranking cities, followed by Boston (35). Chicago is ranked 42nd, while Washington, DC, is ranked 43rd. Detroit (71) is the lowest-ranking of the US cities that Mercer surveys.
Among the cities surveyed globally, those with the lowest quality of living are Khartoum, Sudan (217); N’Djamena, Chad (218); Port-au-Prince, Haiti (219); and Bangui, Central African Republic (220). Baghdad, Iraq (221), ranks last.
Mercer conducts this survey annually to help multinational companies and other organizations compensate employees fairly when placing them on international assignments. Mercer’s Quality of Living reports provide valuable information and hardship premium recommendations for many cities throughout the world. Mercer’s Quality of Living index list covers 221 cities, ranked against New York as the base city.
This year’s ranking separately identifies the cities with the best infrastructure based on electricity supply, water availability, telephone and mail services, public transportation, traffic congestion and the range of international flights from local airports. Singapore is at the top of this index, followed by Frankfurt and Munich in second place. Copenhagen (4) and Düsseldorf (5) fill the next two slots, while Hong Kong and London share sixth place. Port-au-Prince (221) ranks at the bottom of the list.
The highest-ranking US cities on the city infrastructure list are Atlanta (13), Dallas (15), Washington, DC (22), and Chicago (28).
