Europe’s Liveability Index

The Liveability Index gives Europeans an overview and ranking of the cost of living in 12 popular European countries — whether for exploring or moving within Europe's borders, or comparing the cost of living between one country and another.

This index makes it possible to prioritize key metrics and search for the country with the best ranking, then compare with other countries to see how they rank.

The Liveability Index shows how sectors affected by the cost-of-living crisis differ from country to country. This index works with rankings of between 1 and 10 (worst to best) for specific sectors. A total score out of 50 was calculated at the end, which determined the final rankings.

How we created the Liveability Index

We chose 12 key countries in Europe for comparison, targeting places where people might consider moving to. When curating the index, we picked countries based on their attractiveness for relocation, population size, and current political and social stability.

We looked at how much people spend on rent and electricity, ranked from the lowest to the highest. We compared salary increases with other countries and considered the current population density. We also factored in each country's general sense of residents' happiness.

How the countries performed

With a final score of 38.5 out of 50, Denmark claimed the top spot in our Liveability Index, making it the best country to live in when you compare the cost of rent, electricity, salary increases, population density, and the happiness score. In second place is Switzerland with 35.2, and Belgium came in third with a score of 34.8.

The three countries that ranked the lowest were the U.K., with 19.7, and Italy and the Netherlands, each scoring 20.4.

Individual Metric Rankings

Rental Cost

When looking at an average one-bedroom apartment, Belgium stands out for its affordable rental costs, while Italy has the highest percentage of salary spent on rent.

Electricity Cost

We looked at the average electricity consumption in each country and how much it costs per kWh. Austria shines with lower electricity costs, while Greece tops the list as the most expensive.

Salary Increases

When comparing salaries and how much they have been increasing, Belgium and Spain have better salary increase ratios compared to other countries.

Population Density

In terms of how populated each country is, Sweden has the best population density, and the Netherlands ranked the lowest on this metric.

Happiness Index

Using the Happiness Index from the World Happiness Report, Denmark claims the title of the happiest country, followed by the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Explore more data below

For comparing total scores or individual rankings, the table below displays rankings for all countries in each sector highlighted in this index.

Methodology

Country Selection & Scoring

We selected 12 key countries to compare across Europe where people may consider moving to. Countries were chosen for analysis based on their appeal for relocation, population size, and current political and social stability at the time of curating the index.

Rankings

Rankings were assigned based on 1) the percentage of monthly salary spent on rental costs, 2) the percentage of monthly salary spent on electricity, 3) the delta between inflation and salary increase percentages, 4) the concentration of people in each country per square kilometer.

Countries with the highest spend on utilities were assigned 1 and the lowest, 10. With salary increases, the highest delta was assigned a 1, where the lowest was assigned a 10. For population density, we looked at the amount of inhabitants per square kilometer. Those countries with the least inhabitants per square kilometer were assigned a 10, while those with the most were assigned a 1.

In general, 10 would be the best-ranked country for the category and 1, the lowest ranked.

Salary Information

Average salaries for each country were collected from the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) from 2018 to 2022. Salaries are measured in euros, current prices, and NCU (National Currency Unit). Information can be accessed here. Salaries in Danish krone, Swedish krona, Swiss francs, and Great British pounds were converted to euros on November 6, 2023.

Salary increases were calculated on the average salaries compared to the previous year’s salary.

Rental Information

Rental prices are based on rent in major cities or capitals in each country for a one-bedroom apartment. Information can be accessed here. U.K. rental prices can be accessed here. We used the rental price for each area of the major cities, as recorded in the Global Property Guide, and found a mean average of all of these.

Energy Pricing

We used the annual electricity consumption on average per capita with the most current cost compared to annual salary in the EU in the Consumption from 1000 to 2499 kWh - band DC. Pricing can be accessed here, and average usage can be accessed here.

Inflation Rates

Current average inflation rates were sourced from Statista.

Happiness Rating

Data was collected from the latest World Happiness Report. Respondents were asked to evaluate their current life using the image of a ladder, with the best possible life for them as a 10 and the worst possible as a 0. The number shown in the table is the average country score.

Citations

*Europeans Concerned by Cost of Living Crisis and Expect Additional EU Measures | News | European Parliament. 12 Jan. 2023

**Tackling Europe’s Cost of Living Crisis – Institute of Economic Affairs. Institute of Economic Affairs, 31 Jan. 2023

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