The “best place” to live is entirely subjective.
The best place for you might be a nightmare for me, and vice versa.
It all depends on your likes, dislikes, interests, and your goal for moving to a new place.
That said, there’s always a rush to nominate the best places when a new year rolls around, so I’m going to take a crack at it. Here’s my addition to the best countries to live in 2018 lists!
Best Quality of Life Cities
These are not budget destinations, but if quality of life is your goal and you can afford them, consider:
- Vienna, Austria
- Zurich, Switzerland
- Auckland, New Zealand
- Munich, Germany
- Vancouver, Canada
- Dusseldorf, Germany
- Frankfurt, Germany
- Geneva, Switzerland
- Copenhagen, Denmark
- Sydney, Australia
- Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Wellington, New Zealand
- Berlin, Germany
- Bern, Switzerland
- Toronto, Canada
- Melbourne, Australia
- Ottawa, Canada
- Hamburg, Germany
- Luxembourg
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Brussels, Belgium
- Perth, Australia
- Montreal, Canada
- Stuttgart, Germany
- Nuremburg, Germany
- Singapore
- Adelaide, Australia
This list is courtesy of Mercer, a human resources firm that helps companies place workers in positions abroad, so their focus is on the best quality of life for workers placed in overseas jobs.
Numbeo compiles statistics, and came up with their own quality of life index. Here’s how they arrived at it:
Quality of Life Index (higher is better) is an estimation of overall quality of life by using an empirical formula which takes into account purchasing power index (higher is better), pollution index (lower is better), house price to income ratio (lower is better), cost of living index (lower is better), safety index (higher is better), health care index (higher is better), traffic commute time index (lower is better) and climate index (higher is better).”
Their top 10 picks include:
- Denmark
- Finland
- The Netherlands
- Switzerland
- Austria
- Germany
- Australia
- New Zealand
- United States
- Sweden
One thing Numbeo does not take into account is healthcare. Access to quality, affordable healthcare knocks the United States off any quality of life list.
Climate
Climate can make or break you when you live in a new place. And unlike many other aspects of daily life, it’s with you all the time.
If you can’t stand the cold, you’re going to be miserable in many of these top quality of life countries, no matter how many other benefits there are. If you wilt in the heat and humidity of the tropics, your quality of life will be lousy in Panama or Vietnam.
Here’s my totally non-scientific list of popular locations for Anywhereists from the US and Canada, based on climate.
Tropical (heat and humidity)
I happen to love the tropics. Color me crazy, but I thrive in heat and humidity, so these countries interest me a lot.
- Panama
- Vietnam
- Malaysia
- Thailand
- Mexico
Year-round spring
These are places where you won’t need heat or air conditioning. They include places like:
- Medellin, Colombia
- Boquete, Panama
- San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
- Ecuador (non-coastal areas)
Four seasons (hot and cold)
- Portugal
- Spain
- France
- Italy
- Malta
If you’re on a tight budget. . .
If you’re a retiree on a fixed income, or you’re starting an Anywhereist business on a shoestring, consider these countries:
- Cambodia
- Vietnam
- Bolivia
- Peru
- Panama (outside of Panama City, which is no longer a budget destination)
If you’re a digital nomad
WiseBread put together this list of the 10 hot spots for digital nomads.
Chiang Mai, Thailand. Sometimes called the “digital nomad capital of the world,” Chiang Mai is affordable, with plenty of cafes, coworking spaces, and fast wifi.
Portland, Oregon. This isn’t a budget destination, but it’s got plenty to offer the digital nomad who loves outdoor activities.
Bali, Indonesia. The place to be if you’re also a yoga enthusiast.
Lisbon, Portugal. You’ll find lounges, coffee shops, and coworking spaces throughout the city.
Mexico City, Mexico.
Malta. If you like Europe, it’s more affordable than many European cities and has lots of high-speed wifi.
Cape Town, South Africa. Lots of coworking spaces, but they’ve got a serious water crisis on their hands right now.
Sofia, Bulgaria. It’s Europe on the cheap.
Buenos Aires, Argentina. Lots of free public wifi and cafes, and you can brush up on your tango while you’re there.
Medellin, Colombia. Free public wifi throughout the city, and lots of internet cafes.
If you need a budget destination as a digital nomad, consider these as well:
- Berlin, Germany
- Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Budapest, Hungary
- Belgrade, Serbia
- Ubud, Bali
- Tailinn, Estonia
And according to this blog, Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, Mexico and Ubud, Bali are your best choices if you’re a beach bum!
For Families
Expat.com did some research and came up with list of the 10 best cities for expat families. They considered quality of life, health, safety, education, leisure, and work-life balance and came up with these cities:
- Copenhagen, Denmar,
- Oslo, Norway
- Zurich, Switzerland
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Hamburg, Germany
- Vancouver, Canada
- Basel, Switzerland
- Toronto, Canada
- Stuttgart, Germany
- Munich, Germany
Again, all places that get pretty cold, but some people like that.
Here’s what the leading expat magazines say
Two leading expat magazines, Live & Invest Overseas and International Living, both produce “best of” lists of retirement havens.
International Living based its 2018 list on 12 criteria, including buying or renting, retiree benefits, visas and residence, cost of living, ease of fitting in and making friends, entertainment and amenities, healthcare (both quality and cost), healthy lifestyle, development (good roads, internet, etc.), climate, and a category they call “governance.”
Here’s the list from International Living:
- Costa Rica (high scores in healthcare and healthy living)
- Mexico
- Panama (highest score in retiree benefits)
- Ecuador
- Malaysia
- Colombia
- Portugal
- Nicaragua [given recent events in the country, I no longer recommend it]
- Spain
- Peru
- Italy
- Honduras (specifically Roatan)
- Malta
- Thailand
- France
- Cambodia (highest score in cost of living)
- Belize
- Bolivia
- Ireland
- Uruguay
- Phillipines
- Dominican Republic
- Vietnam
- Indonesia (specifically Bali)
The list from Live & Invest Overseas doesn’t include Costa Rica at all, and does include a few other countries.
They note that the easiest and fastest residency to obtain is in Mexico, where they recommend San Miguel de Allende, Mazatlan, Playa del Carmen, Guanajuato, and of course, the expat conclave at Lake Chapala.
They rank Portugal, specifically the Algarve region, as the #1 retirement destination for the fourth year in a row, citing its easy residency, great weather, cost of living, top-notch healthcare, and affordable real estate.
They believe France offers the best quality of life in the world.
Malaysia has the easiest residency in Asia (though not the cheapest), and has excellent healthcare.
Vietnam is a very peaceful country, and “the cheapest place on earth to live well.”
So what’s the best place for YOU?
These lists are fun, and interesting. I always like to see what an organized ranking system comes up with. But ultimately, choosing the best place to live is about as scientific as choosing your ideal mate. Everything can look great on paper, but if the chemistry isn’t there, it’s not likely to work out well.
Now that you’ve enjoyed this roundup of “best of” recommendations, here’s how you can figure out what’s best for you.
Year round Spring. San Miguel de Allende can be really chilly in January at altitude.
Amazing that not one only word about Brazil