Move aside, Tokyo. Osaka is the hottest Japanese city for 2025. The port city – always ever-so-slightly overshadowed by Tokyo – has cracked the top ten of the Economist Intelligence Unit's (EIU) Global Liveability Index 2025.
Released today, the Global Liveability Index 2025 ranked 173 cities worldwide based on over 30 factors over five broad categories: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure.
Remarkably, Osaka is the only Asian city to make it to the top ten. It ranked seventh worldwide with an overall score of 96, with full marks in the stability, healthcare, and education categories. It scored 96.4 in infrastructure and 86.8 in culture and environment. The rest of the top ten is dominated by cities from western Europe and Australia, with Copenhagen unseating Vienna as the most liveable city in the world.
Overall, the EIU notes a decline in stability scores in Asia due to intensified military threats in countries like India and Taiwan. But there are beacons of hope, cities that have shown marked improvement in this year's index.
Jakarta, Indonesia, moved up ten positions to rank 132 thanks to improved stability scores. Its security forces have been working hard to build resilience against terrorism and to quell domestic protests. A long-term challenge? Floods and other climate-related risks. In Thailand, Bangkok and Chiang Mai jumped six spots to rank 116 and 130, respectively. Hong Kong also moved six spots to rank 44, and Surabaya moved three spots to rank 150.
Check out the full Global Liveability Index 2025 report here and see why we think Osaka is the hottest Japanese city in 2025.
Top 10 most liveable cities in 2025:
- Copenhagen, Denmark
- Vienna, Austria
- Zurich, Switzerland
- Melbourne, Australia
- Geneva, Switzerland
- Sydney, Australia
- Osaka, Japan
- Auckland, New Zealand
- Adelaide, Australia
- Vancouver, Canada
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Plus: Two fabulous hotels in Asia made La Liste's World's Best Hotels 2025 list
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