Listen to a Lisbon resident talk about his city and you’ll likely hear him list all that is wrong with it. He’ll complain about traffic, lack of parking space, too much urban decay, and city hall’s seemingly lackluster efforts to better the city. But if that same person spends some time elsewhere, especially at another major European city, you’ll find him singing a different tune upon his return. He’ll still point out what needs to be improved in his city, but he’ll also recognize that most of Lisbon’s problems are no different or any worse than in other cities, and that it’s in fact a great place in which to live.That conclusion was backed up by two Mercer group surveys recently which measured personal safety and quality of life around the world. It found that of the hundreds of cities in the world, Lisbon ranked 44th in quality of life. The Portuguese capital went up from 47th in the previous survey, and is along with Milan one of the cities that most bettered its standing. 

Of the world’s 10 best cities to live, 7 are in Europe, with the remaining 3 found in Canada, New Zealand, and Australia. Topping the list was Zurich, followed by Vienna, Geneva, Vancouver, Auckland, Dusseldorf, Munich, Frankfurt, Bern, and Sydney.

In Europe, other cities ranking better than Lisbon include Paris (at number 32), London (38), and Madrid just one spot above the Portuguese capital at number 43. Lisbon ranked higher than other cities such as Rome and Prague. It also did better than several American cities including New York and tied with Chicago which also ranked 44.
Unsurprisingly, at the very bottom of the list is Baghdad, and the remaining of the bottom 10 are all cities in Africa.

One factor that does not seem to have been part of the study is climate. Let’s not underestimate the fact that living without thermometers reaching the freezing point or not having to worry about snow storms, and with the Mediterranean summer heat cooled off by the breeze of the Atlantic, make Lisbon one of the world’s most valuable real estate. Live in Lisbon after living elsewhere and you’ll want to place the city somewhere in the top 5 in the world.

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