Johannesburg’s upward crawl to 108th place in the 2026 EIU Global Liveability Index signals a small step in the right direction, but the broader picture remains complex.
While the city managed to outperform its previous standing, the gap between South Africa’s commercial heartland and global leaders like Copenhagen, which retained the world’s top spot, underscores the ongoing infrastructure and stability challenges local urban centers face.
The improvement places South Africa’s economic hub higher on the list than it was last year, although Johannesburg remains some way outside the world’s most liveable cities.
The EIU’s Global Liveability Index 2026, based on a survey conducted in May 2026, assesses 173 cities across more than 30 indicators.
These are grouped into five key categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure.
The index measures how comfortable cities are to live in, with scores ranging from 1, considered intolerable, to 100, considered ideal. It assesses factors such as stability, healthcare, education, infrastructure, and culture and environment.
Copenhagen remains the world’s most liveable city
Copenhagen in Denmark has retained the title of world’s most liveable city for the second consecutive year, scoring 100 in three categories and more than 95 in the remaining two.
Vienna in Austria took second place, followed by Melbourne in Australia in third.
The top 10 most liveable cities in 2026 are:
- Copenhagen, Denmark
- Vienna, Austria
- Melbourne, Australia
- Sydney, Australia
- Zurich, Switzerland
- Geneva, Switzerland
- Osaka, Japan
- Adelaide, Australia
- Vancouver, Canada
- Tokyo, Japan
Australia, Switzerland and Japan each have two cities in the top 10, while Vancouver is the only North American city to make the list.
All 10 cities received perfect scores for education, while most also achieved a score of 100 for healthcare.
Asia gains ground as liveability shifts
Western Europe remains the strongest overall region for liveability, although its average score stagnated in 2026. Asia, meanwhile, recorded an improvement, with nine Asian cities now featuring in the top 20, compared with seven European cities.
Healthcare was one of the biggest drivers of improvement globally. The average healthcare score increased by 0.7 points, offsetting declines in stability and, to a lesser extent, culture and environment.
The average liveability score across all 173 cities remained unchanged at 76.1 out of 100.
The world’s least liveable cities
At the other end of the rankings, cities affected by conflict, instability and poverty dominate the bottom 10.
The 10 least liveable cities in 2026 are:
- Tehran, Iran
- Harare, Zimbabwe
- Kyiv, Ukraine
- Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
- Lagos, Nigeria
- Algiers, Algeria
- Karachi, Pakistan
- Dhaka, Bangladesh
- Tripoli, Libya
- Damascus, Syria
At the other end of the rankings, cities affected by conflict, instability, weak public services and economic hardship dominate the bottom 10.
Damascus remains at the bottom of the ranking as it continues to recover from years of civil war. Tehran is a new entry into the bottom 10, while Kyiv has slipped further down the index.
Harare is the second-lowest African city in the ranking and 165th out of 173 globally. Its overall score of 45 was weighed down particularly by weak healthcare, at 33, and infrastructure, at 36. Education was one of its stronger categories, with a score of 67.
The EIU says stability remains a major challenge across many of the lowest-ranked cities, while poor infrastructure, healthcare and other public services continue to weigh on living conditions.
What does the 2026 index tell us?
The latest rankings highlight a widening shift in global liveability. While established cities in wealthy countries continue to dominate the top positions, improvements in healthcare are helping several Asian cities climb the rankings.
For Johannesburg, the three-place rise to 108th offers a modestly positive picture, although the city still has considerable ground to cover before joining the world’s most liveable urban centres.
And in case you were wondering: Cape Town and Durban were not included in this year’s EIU Global Liveability Index, so Johannesburg is the only South African city ranked.
zamandosi.cele@nationalmg.co.za