Singapore retains pole position as no. 1 place for Asians to live for 10th consecutive year

• Singapore remains the most liveable city for Asian expatriates, with low crime rates among the attractions
• Removal of pandemic restrictions sees liveability of Hong Kong and mainland China improve over last 12 months
• Steady improvements over the last decade also see mainland Chinese cities become more liveable compared to ten years ago
• Hong Kong’s overall ranking falls in the last five years, but it remains in the top 10 most liveable Asian cities
• Parts of South East Asia rise up the rankings thanks to steady improvements over the last decade

Singapore has maintained its position as the most liveable city in Asia according to the latest annual Location Ratings Report from global mobility expert, ECA International (ECA).

“With excellent infrastructure and facilities, low crime rates and little exposure to socio-political tensions, Singapore remains a very attractive location for expatriates” said Mark Harrison, General Manager for Asia at ECA. “However, other locations in the region have improved and the gap between Singapore and other locations has fallen.”

ECA’s Location Ratings objectively evaluate cities around the world to form an assessment of the overall quality of living for expats in over 500 locations across the globe. The ranking is based on a variety of liveability factors including availability of health services; housing and utilities; isolation; access to a social network and recreational and leisure facilities; infrastructure; climate; personal safety; socio-political tensions and air quality. The impact of some of the factors assessed will vary according to the home location of the assignee.

“We have seen lots of small but significant improvements in areas such as transport infrastructure, health services and recreational facilities in several locations throughout South East Asia leading to these locations becoming more attractive” said Harrison. This pattern of incremental improvement has seen the likes of Jakarta (213^th to 196^th), Phnom Penh (200^th to 184^th) and Hanoi (160^th to 144^th) climb the rankings.

Mainland Chinese cities have climbed significantly in the rankings in the last ten years, despite losing some of their momentum during the Covid-19 pandemic. “The zero-Covid policy and associated restrictions caused many Chinese cities to fall in our rankings for a couple of years,” said Harrison, “but when we look at our current assessment compared to five or ten years ago, we can see that Chinese cities have risen notably in the rankings as living conditions have improved.” Some aspects of life continue to be challenging for expatriates, such as high levels of pollution, censorship, and suboptimal healthcare facilities. However, improvements in areas such as transport infrastructure and international schooling provision are the reason cities like Shenzhen (137^th this year compared to 152^nd ten years ago), Xi’an (163^rd this year compared to 176^th), and Wuhan (up from 160^th to 145^th) have improved in the rankings.

Hong Kong has improved its liveability since 2022 due to the removal of the final Covid 19-related restrictions. “Hong Kong and mainland China were among the last places globally to lift restrictions, meaning they were relatively more challenging locations to live in during the final stages of the pandemic,” said Harrison. “With those restrictions belatedly lifted, both Hong Kong and mainland Chinese locations have seen improvements over the last 12 months.”

Looking at the changes over the last ten years though, Hong Kong’s ranking in terms of liveability for Asian expatriates has fallen from 17^th globally in 2013 to 77^th now. “Since political demonstrations in 2014 and protests in 2019, elements of our assessment related to socio-political tensions and freedom of expression have worsened,” said Harrison. “However, Hong Kong still has excellent facilities, infrastructure, recreational options and low crime rates and remains an attractive location relative to many other locations in the region.” Hong Kong is behind only Singapore, Japan and Busan in Korea Republic in terms of ECA’s Asian rankings.

“The intrinsic risk of disruption caused by typhoons, relatively high levels of pollution and difficulties in obtaining suitable accommodation are factors which count against Hong Kong compared to locations such as Singapore,” added Harrison. Despite also facing challenges associated with natural disasters, Tokyo is the second most liveable city for Asian expatriates. Indeed, Tokyo has risen from 9th position in 2013 to become the second most liveable city in ECA’s latest assessment. “In 2013, people in Tokyo were still living with the after-effects, such as energy rationing, of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami of 2011,” said Harrison. “However, improvements in living conditions since then mean Tokyo is ranked only behind Singapore in terms of its liveability levels for expatriate staff.”

Elsewhere in Asia, Yangon (Myanmar) is the location which has fluctuated most in the rankings over the past 10 years. Between 2013 and 2018 there was a significant improvement in its rankings (from 225^th to 208^th) following the reinstatement of civilian rule and strong economic growth. However, this progress was reversed when the military seized power again in 2021 and Yangon is now back down in 229^th position, lower than it was 10 years ago.

Outside of Asia, cities in New Zealand and Australia are the most liveable for Asian expatriates (Wellington and Adelaide are ranked joint 2nd globally alongside Tokyo), with Eindhoven in the Netherlands being the highest rated European city (7th) and Vancouver, Canada the highest placed North American city (23rd). Locations which have risen most in ECA’s rankings in the period from 2013 to 2023 include Tbilisi in Georgia which has risen 53 places from 201st to 148th. 

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