Hong Kong rebounds in expat liveability rankings but Singapore keeps crown as No 1 spot

Hong Kong has rebounded in liveability rankings for expatriates from Asia following two consecutive years of declines but is still way behind where it was a decade ago, with a worsening sociopolitical environment blamed for the slide, according to an annual survey.

The city last year recovered to 77th spot out of 500 locations polled from 92nd in 2022, but was still behind its 17th place in the rankings in 2013, human resources consulting firm ECA International revealed on Wednesday.

Singapore kept its decade-long crown as the most liveable place for expats.

“Hong Kong and mainland China were among the last places globally to lift restrictions, meaning they were relatively more challenging locations to live in during the final stages of the pandemic,” said Mark Harrison, general manager for Asia at ECA.

“With those restrictions belatedly lifted, both Hong Kong and mainland Chinese locations have seen improvements over the last 12 months.”

ECA attributed Hong Kong’s downward trend in the rankings over the last 10 years to the worsening sociopolitical environment, along with pollution, particularly air, and the impact of typhoons, which could have a major impact on infrastructure and residents’ ability to get around the city.