FACTBase Bulletin 43 - Investigation into the Reliability of Liveability Indices

This research was initially conducted to understand how Perth fares in each of these studies and also to gain insight into the relationship between the various rankings and the population sizes of each of the top cities.

Key Findings

• This bulletin outlines the nuances between 5 different liveability indexes: The Economist Intelligence Unit Global Liveability Survey 2014; Monocle Quality of Life Survey 2014; Mercer 2012 Quality of Living Worldwide City Rankings Survey; Numbeo Quality of Life Index 2014 Mid Year and A.T. Kearney 2014 Global Cities Index and Emerging Cities Outlook and where Perth places amongst these rankings in comparison to other Australian cities.
• Perth featured in three of the 5 liveability surveys and had a variability of 20 rankings between each score (from 9 to 29).
• Some complications to defining liveability include the fact that the concept of liveability means very different things to a range of demographics (such as single, young professionals, families, etc) and the fact that these liveability rankings are linked to particular cultural values in a given location.
• The relationship between low populations and higher liveability indexes is not necessarily valid, with there being no correlation between cities of low populations and high liveability rankings.
• Liveability surveys provide some insight into the general comfort of a city, yet there should be caution when placing emphasis on these rankings to guide policy development and decision making.