Travel Rankings: Are Happy, Sustainable Cities The Most Expensive?

22.12.2023 - 13:42 / forbes.com

World travelers are well aware of the most expensive cities in the world, particularly in 2023 when global prices rose on average by 7.4%. Three new surveys offer an insight into whether the most expensive cities merit the high price tags—are they the most sustainable and the ones offering the best quality of life?

The answer appears to be yes, for the most part. Singapore, one of the most expensive cities in the world as per the recent annual Economist Intelligence Unit, also ranks highly in a recent Quality of Life survey and in terms of Sustainability, as per the recent Global Destination Sustainability Movement survey.

Zurich in Switzerland also ranks highly in all three surveys; it's one of the cities with the highest cost of living but also offers a great quality of life.

The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) runs an index that tracks the prices of more than 200 goods and services in 173 cities worldwide and its recently released its annual survey hailing Singapore as the world’s most expensive city—the 9th time in the past 11 years and joint with Zurich.

Geneva and New York came joint third and Hong Kong came in as the fifth most expensive city in the world. The survey took place from mid August to mid September, placing Paris at number 7 and Copenhagen in 8th position. The two other U.S. cities in the top ten were Los Angeles (6th) and San Francisco (10th). Tel Aviv tied in joint 8th place (with research conducted before the Israel-Hamas war).

It's clear to say that the price tag is not the only consideration though—sustainability is increasingly an important consideration, as is the quality of life. Both of these factors are as important for tourists as they are for residents.

Singapore came 17th in the top 20 most sustainable cities in a recent report by the Global Destination Sustainability Movement reviewing 100 cities across the world. The city state intends to add 300 acres of new parks and tripling the number of cycle lanes.

Zurich in Switzerland came 12th in the most sustainable city list, with its ambitious plans to reduce its carbon emissions to one ton per person each year by 2050 and because 90% of its energy comes from renewable sources.

The big winners on the Top 20 list were cities in northern Europe—Gothenburg, Oslo, Copenhagen, Helsinki, Bergen, Aarhus, and Stockholm featured high in the top ten.

Mercer’s 2023 Quality of Living survey recently evaluated living conditions in more than 450 cities grouped around ten categories including medical and health, schools and education, public services and transport, recreation, housing and the economic, political and cultural environment.

This guide for companies helps set salaries for expats and found that Vienna Austria, and Zurich in