The 10 best cities in Asia for expats

04.12.2024 - 09:15 / insider.com

If you're considering moving to Asia, a new report can help determine which city would be the top choice.

Mercer, a human resource consulting service, recently released its yearly Quality of Living City Ranking, which ranks 241 cities across five continents. The ranking process considers factors such as political stability, healthcare, education, infrastructure, and socio-cultural environment.

In an era of remote work, the ranking also considered the cost of living in different cities.

Mercer said that the most "successful destinations" were those that "blend flexible governance around mobile talent with a high quality of life and an affordable cost of living."

Although many European cities were featured high on the list, with Zurich maintaining its top spot, 12 Asian cities made the top 100 this year. Singapore was the only city in Asia to make the top 50, at 30th position.

Take a look at the top 10 cities in Asia:

Abu Dhabi recently ranked second, with Dubai taking first place, among the most popular locations for executive nomads, according to the Executive Nomad Index by real estate firm Savills.

The capital of the UAE is known for its modern skyline and shopping megacenters. Expats make up more than 80% of its population, per InterNations, a Munich-based expat network.

Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, is tied with Abu Dhabi at 85th. Between 2019 and 2021, Taiwan was ranked first out of 59 destinations in the InterNations Expat Insider survey for the job security expats enjoy and the state of the local economy.

Alex Teachey, a New Yorker who moved to Taipei in 2020, previously told BI that he enjoys the city for its affordability.

"I live a 20-minute bike ride from my office — I never could have afforded anything remotely similar if I'd stayed in New York City," he said.

Known for its glitzy skyscrapers and modern architecture, Dubai is also an expat hotspot. According to the Dubai Statistics Center, 92% of its 3,655,000-person population are non-Emirati.

Expats in Dubai previously told BI that they liked the city for its convenience and ease of making friends. "There are so many interesting and new people to meet here with different perspectives than we're used to," said Kiran Ali, who relocated to the city with her family earlier this year.

Seoul, the capital of South Korea, clearly has more to offer than just K-pop. With a population of 9.4 million, the city is popular for expats seeking affordability and a rich culture.

Besides Seoul, Busan was the second city in South Korea to make the top 100, ranking 100th.

Hong Kong is known for being a global financial center with a thriving food scene. It is also one of the most densely populated cities in the world, with an overall density of around