More and more businesses all over the world are starting to realize that if they want to attract and retain the best talents, they need to have their headquarters and offices in places where employees will get the chance to enjoy a high quality of life.
Whether you are a business owner planning to expand your venture, or you are looking to settle for good somewhere new, here are the best and worst cities for quality of life.
Best Cities for Quality of Life
If you are given the chance to live anywhere in the world, where should you go? Of course, you need to go to cities that offer a good quality of life. Below are some of the top cities that continue to attract businesses and families alike.
- Vienna, Austria
The capital of Austria grabs the first spot when it comes to quality of life. Vienna is known far and wide for its picturesque gardens, historic churches, and Baroque castles. This also has a rich and interesting musical heritage being the home of Beethoven and Mozart. The city also hosts global organizations including OPEC and United Nations.
- Zurich, Switzerland
The largest city of Switzerland lands in the second spot for the best cities that offer good quality of life. Zurich is most popular for its Old Town, waterfront promenades, art galleries, and museums. The headquarters of the football governing body FIFA, UBS, and Credit Suisse are all located in the city.
- Vancouver, Canada
Vancouver is a Canadian city that takes great pride in its rainforests, mountains, and waterways. Locals and tourists alike can engage in fun activities including fishing, camping, snowboarding, hiking, and birdwatching. PlentyOfFish, Lululemon, and Sony Pictures Imageworks have Vancouver-based headquarters.
- Munich, Germany
The third-largest city in Germany, Munich features famous museums, historic buildings, beer halls, and a plethora of other attractions. BMW, Allianz, and numerous multinational companies also have their headquarters in Munich.
- Auckland, New Zealand
The largest city in New Zealand offers residents and tourists an amazing opportunity to visit museums and art galleries, enjoy local cuisine and wine, travel to neighboring islands, and climb volcanoes.
Worst Cities for Quality of Life
If the world was perfect, all cities would also be perfectly livable. Unfortunately, the world is far from being perfect and the following are some of the worst cities for quality of life:
- Baghdad, Iraq
Baghdad continues to be the top city in the world with the worst quality of life. Continual violence and several wars made the city suffer from serious infrastructural damage, not to mention that it still deals with ISIS threats.
- Bangui, Central African Republic
The CAR remained extremely unstable since it earned its independence in 1960 from France. The area is constantly filled with violent sectarian clashes.
- Sana’a, Yemen
A ruthless civil war severely damaged the capital of Yemen. The recent cholera outbreak further exacerbated the problems of the country as the disease affected over 1 million people.
- Port Au Prince, Haiti
Years after Haiti has been torn apart because of an earthquake, the capital of the country is still on its way to recovery. There is widespread poverty in the area and fatal gang violence plague most parts of the city.
- Khartoum, Sudan
The capital of Sudan is North Africa’s center for ISIS recruitment, on top of the fact that it also deals with major problems with infrastructure. The city has also experienced a major fuel shortage.
