Haifa Ranks Among World's Happiest Cities in New Global Index
Haifa, Israel, has been included in the 2026 Happy City Index, ranking 187th out of 250 cities worldwide. It is the only Israeli city to be featured in this year's report, compiled by the London-based Institute for Quality of Life. This marks the sixth edition of the index, with the latest findings presented at the British Parliament.
The Happy City Index evaluates urban quality of life based on 64 measurable indicators across six categories: residents, governance, environment, economy, health, and mobility. These indicators include factors such as access to education and housing, life expectancy, unemployment rates, green spaces, public transportation, and the quality of city management. The research involved 466 researchers who analyzed approximately 150,000 data entries over five months.
Initially, over 3,400 cities were considered, with the final list of 250 cities determined through a rigorous selection and verification process. Kyiv was symbolically listed at 251st place without a formal ranking. The top three cities in the 2026 index were Copenhagen, followed by Helsinki, and Geneva.
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