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Data report

Vol. 2026 / 04

Updated MethodologyHigh confidence

Best Countries to Live in 2026: 95 Ranked by Data (Free Index)

The Global Relocation Index for people planning a move in 2026. Seven decision dimensions, named datasets and curated inputs, zero paywall.

Scope: 95 countries · 7 dimensions

License:CC BY 4.0Commercial licence →Methodology →
CSV

The index ranks fit for a typical mover using weights we chose; it is not a judgment on countries. Read our weighting method.

Press headline · permalink

Singapore ranks #1 of 95 in the WhereNext 2026 Global Relocation Index, ahead of New Zealand and Switzerland — 4 European countries make the top 10

Copy with attribution: “Singapore ranks #1 of 95 in the WhereNext 2026 Global Relocation Index, ahead of New Zealand and Switzerland — 4 European countries make the top 10” — WhereNext, as of 2026-08-21

This report includes a quality-of-life dimension of the GRI alongside cost, education, and career factors. For the canonical quality-of-life question, see the 2026 Quality of Life Index derived from the same scoring modules.

This is the 2026 edition of the Global Relocation Index. Browse the permanent annual-edition archive.

At a glance — 2026 Global Relocation Index

Countries scored
95
Top of the index
Singapore · 72/100
Global average
49/100
Europe average
60/100
Updated
2026-04-16
License
CC BY 4.0 (free re-use)

The WhereNext Global Relocation Index 2026 measures which countries offer the strongest overall relocation fit. We score 95 countries on cost of living, safety, healthcare quality, education, career opportunity, lifestyle appeal, and infrastructure. Quality of life is one dimension of the GRI; the dedicated Quality of Life Index is the canonical source for that narrower question.

Compute your own weighted country ranking with the free Relocation Quiz.

Quick answer

The 2026 Global Relocation Index ranks Singapore #1 (72/100), New Zealand #2 (70), and Switzerland #3 (69). The composite score weights 7 dimensions: cost of living, safety, healthcare, education, career, lifestyle, and infrastructure — derived from World Bank ICP 2021, World Bank life expectancy, IEP Global Peace Index, OECD PISA, UNDP HDI, and WhereNext curated language-access scores. European countries average 60/100; the global average is 49/100.
Want this ranking weighted to your priorities?Start a free case and save your ranking lens →

What is the Global Relocation Index?

Quick answer

The Global Relocation Index is a live, comparable ranking of 95 countries across cost, safety, healthcare, education, career, lifestyle, and infrastructure. Its composite is calculated by the WhereNext scoring engine from sources including World Bank ICP 2021, World Bank life expectancy, IEP Global Peace Index, OECD PISA, UNDP HDI, and WhereNext curated language-access scores; download the source data to inspect the current rows.

How is the Global Relocation Index computed?

Quick answer

Each country's score is a seven-dimension composite, not a single survey result: the engine normalizes source metrics and applies the published relocation weights. A country can therefore rank highly overall while still having a lower individual dimension, so compare the component scores when one condition—such as cost or career—dominates your move.

Which country ranks #1 and why?

Quick answer

Singapore ranks #1 in the current index at 72/100 because its weighted seven-dimension composite is the highest of all 95 scored countries. That is a fit ranking under our chosen weights, not a judgment on the country or a visa-eligibility result; use the live WhereNext relocation-index dataset to compare the dimensions that matter to you.

Which countries moved the most in the ranking?

Quick answer

This edition is a current-score snapshot, so it does not calculate year-over-year movers from a prior edition. Use the current rank and component scores for a lookup answer; a movement claim needs a like-for-like historical release rather than an inferred change.

How is this index different from the Rumavi Global Relocation Index 2026?

Quick answer

WhereNext's Global Relocation Index was first published on 7 March 2026 (version 2026.1) and ranks 95 countries on 7 dimensions from 7 institutional source groups, publishes every country's dimension scores, offers the data as CSV and JSON under CC BY 4.0, and logs corrections publicly at /changes. The Rumavi Global Relocation Index 2026 was published on 1 July 2026 by Rumavi Pte Ltd (Singapore); it ranks 192 countries and territories across 24 metrics re-weighted for six personas, with its full source map available on request; see the methodology. The two are independent indices with different country sets, metrics and weights; a country's rank in one does not carry to the other.

7 ways to weight the same index

  • For digital nomads, Malta ranks #1 (69/100), followed by United Arab Emirates and Portugal — see the full digital nomads ranking.
  • For retirement, Malta ranks #1 (70/100), followed by Portugal and Slovenia — see the full retirement ranking.
  • For families, Singapore ranks #1 (71/100), followed by New Zealand and Hong Kong — see the full families ranking.
  • For career relocation, United Arab Emirates ranks #1 (71/100), followed by Malta and Singapore — see the full career relocation ranking.
  • For entrepreneurs, United Arab Emirates ranks #1 (69/100), followed by Malta and Singapore — see the full entrepreneurs ranking.
  • For low taxes, Malta ranks #1 (71/100), followed by New Zealand and Singapore — see the full low taxes ranking.
  • For remote workers, Malta ranks #1 (68/100), followed by United Arab Emirates and Portugal — see the full remote workers ranking.

Get notified when relocation rules change

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Key facts

  • #1: Singapore 72/100 composite — top of the global ranking across 7 dimensions.
  • #2: New Zealand 70/100 composite; strongest dimension: Safety.
  • #3: Switzerland 69/100 — close to the top tier on most dimensions.
  • Europe avg: 60/100 Highest regional average: Europe (60/100).
  • Global avg: 49/100 across all 95 countries in the dataset; CC BY 4.0 open data.

Retirement readiness — Singapore

Seven dimensions scored 0-10 from the sources named on each row. Composite = weighted mean (visa 20% · healthcare 20% · tax 15% · safety 15% · climate 10% · language 10% · cost 10%).

Updated · WhereNext corridor registry (visa pathway + claim confidence) · WHO 2024 UHC service-coverage index + JCI accreditation directory · US Treasury bilateral income-tax treaties index · IEP Global Peace Index 2025 · Köppen-Geiger climate classification + WHO air-quality database · EF English Proficiency Index 2025 · Numbeo Cost of Living Index 2026-Q1

Retirement readiness scores for Singapore — 7 dimensions weighted to composite
DimensionWeightSingaporeSource
Visa ease20%4.0WhereNext corridor registry (visa pathway + claim confidence)
Healthcare access20%9.0WHO 2024 UHC service-coverage index + JCI accreditation directory
Tax complexity15%8.0US Treasury bilateral income-tax treaties index
Safety15%9.0IEP Global Peace Index 2025
Climate10%6.0Köppen-Geiger climate classification + WHO air-quality database
Language10%9.0EF English Proficiency Index 2025
Cost of living10%2.0Numbeo Cost of Living Index 2026-Q1
Composite1.006.9Weighted mean (see weights column)
Explore interactively with custom weights

Key Findings

The WhereNext 2026 Global Relocation Index ranks 95 countries across 7 dimensions using named datasets. Singapore leads at 72/100, followed by New Zealand (70) and Switzerland (69). The global average composite score is 49/100, with European countries averaging 60/100.

Countries Analyzed

95

Across 6 regions

#1 Overall

Singapore

Score: 72/100

Source records

24

Datasets and curated inputs listed below

Global Average

49/100

Median: 52/100

Top 10 Countries to Move to in 2026

The top 10 countries to move to in 2026 are Singapore, New Zealand, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, Ireland, Malta, Canada, Australia, Hong Kong, Netherlands — ranked by WhereNext's composite score across cost of living, safety, healthcare, education, career, lifestyle, and infrastructure from named datasets.

Ranked by composite score across all 7 dimensions. Higher = better overall relocation fit.

1ST
Singapore

Asia · ~$2,250/mo · Strength: Education

72/100
Cost of Living
47
Safety
96
Healthcare
97
Education
100
Career
95
Lifestyle
75
Infrastructure
81
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living47
Safety96
Healthcare97
Education100
Career95
Lifestyle75
Infrastructure81

Singapore has these strengths: top-tier education, world-class healthcare, exceptionally safe. At ~$2,250/month, it ranks #1 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Asia: Hong Kong (68), South Korea (67)

2ND
New Zealand

Oceania · ~$2,950/mo · Strength: Safety

70/100
Cost of Living
21
Safety
100
Healthcare
88
Education
91
Career
92
Lifestyle
86
Infrastructure
89
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living21
Safety100
Healthcare88
Education91
Career92
Lifestyle86
Infrastructure89

New Zealand has these strengths: exceptionally safe, strong job market, top-tier education. Watch out for higher cost of living. At ~$2,950/month, it ranks #2 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Oceania: Australia (68), Fiji (26)

3RD
Switzerland

Europe · ~$4,000/mo · Strength: Safety

69/100
Cost of Living
0
Safety
100
Healthcare
100
Education
88
Career
91
Lifestyle
66
Infrastructure
100
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living0
Safety100
Healthcare100
Education88
Career91
Lifestyle66
Infrastructure100

Switzerland has these strengths: exceptionally safe, world-class healthcare, excellent digital infrastructure. Watch out for higher cost of living. At ~$4,000/month, it ranks #3 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Europe: Ireland (69), Malta (69)

4TH
United Arab Emirates

Middle East · ~$2,150/mo · Strength: Career

69/100
Cost of Living
49
Safety
94
Healthcare
95
Education
66
Career
100
Lifestyle
72
Infrastructure
94
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living49
Safety94
Healthcare95
Education66
Career100
Lifestyle72
Infrastructure94

United Arab Emirates has these strengths: strong job market, world-class healthcare, exceptionally safe. At ~$2,150/month, it ranks #4 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Middle East: Qatar (59), Kuwait (52)

5TH
Ireland

Europe · ~$3,350/mo · Strength: Safety

69/100
Cost of Living
5
Safety
100
Healthcare
95
Education
90
Career
89
Lifestyle
83
Infrastructure
87
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living5
Safety100
Healthcare95
Education90
Career89
Lifestyle83
Infrastructure87

Ireland has these strengths: exceptionally safe, world-class healthcare, top-tier education. Watch out for higher cost of living. At ~$3,350/month, it ranks #5 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Europe: Switzerland (69), Malta (69)

6TH
Malta

Europe · ~$2,050/mo · Strength: Healthcare

69/100
Cost of Living
53
Safety
90
Healthcare
95
Education
59
Career
86
Lifestyle
94
Infrastructure
95
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living53
Safety90
Healthcare95
Education59
Career86
Lifestyle94
Infrastructure95

Malta has these strengths: world-class healthcare, excellent digital infrastructure, great lifestyle appeal. At ~$2,050/month, it ranks #6 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Europe: Switzerland (69), Ireland (69)

7TH
Canada

Americas · ~$2,850/mo · Strength: Infrastructure

68/100
Cost of Living
23
Safety
88
Healthcare
90
Education
91
Career
84
Lifestyle
78
Infrastructure
96
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living23
Safety88
Healthcare90
Education91
Career84
Lifestyle78
Infrastructure96

Canada has these strengths: excellent digital infrastructure, top-tier education, world-class healthcare. Watch out for higher cost of living. At ~$2,850/month, it ranks #7 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Americas: Chile (54), Uruguay (54)

8TH
Australia

Oceania · ~$3,350/mo · Strength: Healthcare

68/100
Cost of Living
5
Safety
82
Healthcare
95
Education
90
Career
91
Lifestyle
87
Infrastructure
92
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living5
Safety82
Healthcare95
Education90
Career91
Lifestyle87
Infrastructure92

Australia has these strengths: world-class healthcare, excellent digital infrastructure, strong job market. Watch out for higher cost of living. At ~$3,350/month, it ranks #8 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Oceania: New Zealand (70), Fiji (26)

9TH
Hong Kong

Asia · ~$2,350/mo · Strength: Healthcare

68/100
Cost of Living
42
Safety
76
Healthcare
100
Education
93
Career
77
Lifestyle
76
Infrastructure
95
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living42
Safety76
Healthcare100
Education93
Career77
Lifestyle76
Infrastructure95

Hong Kong has these strengths: world-class healthcare, excellent digital infrastructure, top-tier education. At ~$2,350/month, it ranks #9 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Asia: Singapore (72), South Korea (67)

10TH
Netherlands

Europe · ~$2,750/mo · Strength: Infrastructure

68/100
Cost of Living
27
Safety
84
Healthcare
88
Education
78
Career
92
Lifestyle
82
Infrastructure
100
Show as table
DimensionScore
Cost of Living27
Safety84
Healthcare88
Education78
Career92
Lifestyle82
Infrastructure100

Netherlands has these strengths: excellent digital infrastructure, strong job market, world-class healthcare. Watch out for higher cost of living. At ~$2,750/month, it ranks #10 overall for relocation in 2026.

Also in Europe: Switzerland (69), Ireland (69)

Alternative path · vetted relocation consultant

Get a free relocation-consultant intro

Your budget is a starting point. Tell us your route and timing and a human will review it for one vetted relocation consultant.

Free and no obligation. We're still building our provider network for this category — a real person reviews every request, and if we find a match that clears our vetting standard, you approve the introduction before anything is shared. No timeline is promised. Never a list sold to many providers.

Best Countries by Category

WhereNext's 2026 index scores each country across 7 dimensions: cost of living, safety, healthcare, education, career opportunity, lifestyle, and infrastructure. Iceland is a safety joint leader, Hong Kong a healthcare joint leader, and Egypt an affordability joint leader; tied scores share the lead.

Top 5 countries in each dimension. Different priorities produce different winners.

Best for Cost of Living

World Bank ICP 2021 price levels, with a curated cost index where unavailable. Lower cost scores higher.

  1. 1.Egypt100
  2. 2.Myanmar100
  3. 3.India100
  4. 4.Sri Lanka100
  5. 5.Nepal100

Best for Safety

Global Peace Index, with curated safety overrides and a country template where unavailable.

  1. 1.Iceland100
  2. 2.New Zealand100
  3. 3.Switzerland100
  4. 4.Slovenia100
  5. 5.Ireland100

Best for Healthcare

World Bank life expectancy, with the seed healthcare index where country data is unavailable.

  1. 1.Hong Kong100
  2. 2.Kuwait100
  3. 3.Switzerland100
  4. 4.Sweden100
  5. 5.Italy100

Best for Education

OECD PISA scores, with curated PISA estimates where measured scores are unavailable.

  1. 1.Singapore100
  2. 2.Taiwan100
  3. 3.Japan100
  4. 4.South Korea100
  5. 5.Estonia100

Best for Career

World Bank labour-force participation, GNI per capita, unemployment, and regulatory quality, with a country template where unavailable.

  1. 1.Qatar100
  2. 2.United Arab Emirates100
  3. 3.Kuwait100
  4. 4.Iceland100
  5. 5.Bahrain100

Best for Lifestyle

UNDP HDI, curated climate comfort, curated language access, and curated visa friendliness.

  1. 1.Malta94
  2. 2.Cyprus91
  3. 3.Australia87
  4. 4.New Zealand86
  5. 5.Portugal84

Best for Infrastructure

World Bank internet use and fixed broadband, with a country template where unavailable.

  1. 1.Denmark100
  2. 2.South Korea100
  3. 3.Norway100
  4. 4.Switzerland100
  5. 5.Netherlands100

Regional Comparison

Europe averages 60/100 across 37 countries. Europe has the highest regional average at 60/100, led by Switzerland (69/100). Asia covers 19 countries with an average of 43/100. See the full Asia ranking for the regional breakdown.

RegionCountriesAvg ScoreTop CountryTop Score
Europe3760Switzerland69
Middle East852United Arab Emirates69
Oceania445New Zealand70
Americas1644Canada68
Other244Turkey44
Asia1943Singapore72
Africa928Mauritius52

What This Means For You

Your ideal relocation destination depends on your priorities: budget-conscious expats can compare Egypt (cost-dimension joint leader, ~$700/month), safety-focused families can compare Iceland (safety joint leader, 100/100), and career-driven professionals can compare Qatar (career joint leader, 100/100).

Different goals call for different regions. Here's how each region stacks up based on common relocation priorities.

Europe

37 countries analyzed, average score 60/100. Switzerland leads the region at 69/100.

Most affordable: Moldova (~$950/mo)

Middle East

8 countries analyzed, average score 52/100. United Arab Emirates leads the region at 69/100.

Most affordable: Jordan (~$1,300/mo)

Best healthcare: Kuwait (healthcare: 100/100)

Oceania

4 countries analyzed, average score 45/100. New Zealand leads the region at 70/100.

Most affordable: Papua New Guinea (~$1,550/mo)

Best healthcare: Australia (healthcare: 95/100)

Americas

16 countries analyzed, average score 44/100. Canada leads the region at 68/100.

Most affordable: Colombia (~$1,000/mo)

Other

2 countries analyzed, average score 44/100. Turkey leads the region at 44/100.

Safest: Georgia (safety: 43/100)

Asia

19 countries analyzed, average score 43/100. Singapore leads the region at 72/100.

Most affordable: Sri Lanka (~$750/mo)

Best healthcare: Hong Kong (healthcare: 100/100)

Africa

9 countries analyzed, average score 28/100. Mauritius leads the region at 52/100.

Most affordable: Egypt (~$700/mo)

Best healthcare: Tunisia (healthcare: 59/100)

Full Ranking: All 95 Countries

The complete 2026 Global Relocation Index ranks all 95 countries from Singapore (#1, score 72/100) to Myanmar (#95, score 12/100). The median country scores 52/100. Free CSV and JSON downloads are available via the WhereNext open API.

Composite score is a weighted average across all 7 dimensions, adjusted by data confidence. Cost is inverted (higher = cheaper). All scores 0-100.

#CountryScoreCostSafetyHealthEduCareerLifeInfra
1Singapore72
47
96
97
100
95
75
81
2New Zealand70
21
100
88
91
92
86
89
3Switzerland69
0
100
100
88
91
66
100
4United Arab Emirates69
49
94
95
66
100
72
94
5Ireland69
5
100
95
90
89
83
87
6Malta69
53
90
95
59
86
94
95
7Canada68
23
88
90
91
84
78
96
8Australia68
5
82
95
90
91
87
92
9Hong Kong68
42
76
100
93
77
76
95
10Netherlands68
27
84
88
78
92
82
100
11South Korea67
45
61
98
100
88
62
100
12Portugal66
56
96
92
76
61
84
89
13Denmark66
10
90
90
78
83
78
100
14Slovenia66
56
100
90
74
73
74
82
15Japan66
29
90
100
100
83
49
82
16Iceland66
0
100
93
60
100
70
94
17Austria65
32
96
88
82
78
73
83
18Estonia65
58
80
73
100
72
70
93
19Finland64
21
92
90
84
73
74
87
20United Kingdom64
22
71
85
93
81
76
96
21Luxembourg64
0
94
95
71
80
72
95
22Sweden64
15
71
100
79
80
76
95
23Belgium64
32
82
90
82
67
74
98
24Czechia64
70
88
78
82
78
64
83
25Germany64
37
78
81
79
83
72
96
Show all 95 countries (70 more) ↓
#CountryScoreCostSafetyHealthEduCareerLifeInfra
26Taiwan64
71
69
76
100
84
59
84
27Norway63
0
73
95
71
89
75
100
28Spain62
48
78
100
74
53
73
90
29Italy60
44
73
100
81
55
69
77
30Poland60
82
80
68
87
69
67
69
31Hungary60
77
86
59
75
67
64
87
32Qatar59
48
76
92
53
100
55
67
33Lithuania59
73
80
61
79
70
66
76
34Cyprus58
51
51
88
41
81
91
87
35Croatia58
74
80
71
74
52
78
70
36Slovakia58
64
78
68
75
63
65
81
37France57
38
43
95
75
66
65
92
38Latvia56
66
82
58
69
59
65
77
39Greece55
59
63
88
54
34
78
88
40Chile54
68
63
85
54
45
73
76
41Malaysia54
90
88
59
41
67
60
67
42Uruguay54
59
69
68
53
52
75
83
43Montenegro53
85
76
66
51
33
73
80
44Kuwait52
58
63
100
34
100
40
55
45Albania52
84
71
76
53
39
68
63
46Bulgaria52
86
80
54
43
53
65
76
47Bahrain52
73
39
85
40
100
56
73
48Saudi Arabia52
71
43
71
38
88
38
99
49Romania52
88
65
58
50
50
65
82
50Mauritius52
85
84
42
50
50
81
65
51United States51
18
6
71
85
83
72
90
52Costa Rica49
67
61
83
46
34
63
66
53Vietnam49
97
69
47
57
64
44
59
54Israel48
0
0
95
60
84
76
75
55Oman48
73
61
78
31
75
48
64
56Argentina48
86
55
63
31
50
69
72
57Serbia47
85
55
54
51
39
65
73
58Thailand47
92
41
58
46
63
60
65
59China46
62
31
66
85
55
35
92
60Moldova45
95
63
29
47
63
53
63
61Turkey44
99
0
63
81
42
60
66
62Georgia44
99
43
47
44
36
66
70
63Peru44
79
39
66
37
58
63
47
64Panama43
71
51
76
29
61
53
45
65Mexico42
78
39
51
41
53
58
60
66Bosnia and Herzegovina42
86
65
66
22
16
58
70
67Jamaica41
70
55
31
38
53
72
63
68North Macedonia41
75
65
58
25
14
62
76
69Brazil39
82
22
54
40
39
57
64
70Mongolia39
78
73
34
44
39
35
55
71Jordan38
81
55
66
32
0
52
57
72Dominican Republic38
89
45
42
13
50
54
54
73Colombia36
92
0
66
40
38
53
53
74Trinidad and Tobago36
55
53
41
31
58
75
67
75Indonesia35
92
55
29
26
53
41
33
76Ecuador35
79
4
64
29
47
53
47
77Sri Lanka35
100
57
64
19
17
55
22
78Morocco35
82
59
53
10
0
56
54
79Philippines34
86
41
20
24
42
60
43
80Cambodia33
90
43
25
22
61
42
30
81Guatemala30
84
47
36
9
41
47
22
82Laos29
97
61
17
0
47
31
25
83Tunisia28
81
53
59
18
0
57
42
84Egypt27
100
35
31
12
13
44
43
85Ghana26
88
53
0
9
33
51
30
86Fiji26
67
63
7
22
30
65
35
87Bangladesh26
95
31
49
0
36
31
12
88India26
100
16
34
24
25
47
22
89South Africa23
75
24
0
31
0
75
40
90Nepal21
100
37
24
3
0
43
14
91Rwanda21
100
33
10
0
20
58
0
92Kenya19
89
12
0
1
41
64
0
93Nigeria17
90
0
0
6
58
41
0
94Papua New Guinea15
73
49
0
0
23
36
0
95Myanmar12
100
0
5
0
27
22
0

Score distribution

Global mean 49 · Europe mean 60

95 countries; mean 49; Europe mean 60; the viewed distribution is the composite-score spread across the ranked countries.

Methodology

The WhereNext Global Relocation Index methodology scores 95 countries across 7 weighted dimensions — cost (weight 25), safety (60), healthcare (60), education (50), career (55), lifestyle (50), and infrastructure (55) — using named datasets including the World Bank, OECD PISA, Global Peace Index and UNDP HDI, with confidence-adjusted normalization.

The WhereNext Global Relocation Index is a multi-dimensional scoring system designed specifically for people considering international relocation. Unlike single-metric rankings (cost-only or safety-only), this index evaluates each country across 7 dimensions that matter most to expats, remote workers, retirees, and families planning a move abroad.

Scoring Dimensions

  1. Cost of Living (weight: 25): Inverted cost from World Bank ICP 2021 Actual Individual Consumption price levels, with a curated cost index where unavailable. Lower cost = higher score. Intentionally lower-weighted because “cheapest” rarely means “best.”
  2. Safety (weight: 60): Global Peace Index, with curated safety overrides for Mexico and the UAE and a country template where unavailable.
  3. Healthcare (weight: 60): World Bank life expectancy, with a seed-index fallback where the source series is unavailable.
  4. Education (weight: 50): OECD PISA scores (reading, math, science), with curated PISA estimates where measured scores are unavailable.
  5. Career (weight: 55): World Bank labour-force participation, GNI per capita (PPP, capped), unemployment (ILO-modelled series), and Worldwide Governance regulatory quality, with a country template where unavailable.
  6. Lifestyle (weight: 50): UNDP HDI (30%), curated climate comfort (25%), curated language access (20%), and curated visa friendliness (25%).
  7. Infrastructure (weight: 55): World Bank internet use (IT.NET.USER.ZS) and fixed broadband (IT.NET.BBND.P2) adoption indicators, with a country template where unavailable.

Confidence Scoring

Each country receives a data-confidence score (0.50–0.92) based on source coverage and freshness. Countries with fewer data points receive a confidence penalty, pushing uncertain scores toward the middle of the distribution rather than artificially inflating or deflating them.

Limitations

No index captures the full complexity of relocation decisions. This ranking does not account for: personal language skills beyond English, specific profession demand by country, individual health conditions, family composition, political/cultural affinity, or the subjective “feel” of a place. Use our interactive explorer to customize weights for your priorities.

Data Sources

The WhereNext 2026 Global Relocation Index aggregates data from named datasets including the World Bank PPP Conversion Factors, World Bank life expectancy, OECD PISA scores, Global Peace Index (IEP), UNDP HDI, and World Bank internet-use, broadband, labour-force, and economic indicators.

Scores combine named datasets with WhereNext curated inputs. Source records below show the dataset and retrieval date where available.

As of 2026-04-16.

Use This Data

Embed our relocation data on your website, access it via API, or cite it in your research. WhereNext's composite scores are free to cite with attribution.

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API Endpoints

/api/data/relocation-index/api/data/relocation-index/csv

Cite As

WhereNext Global Relocation Index 2026, getwherenext.com/data/global-relocation-index-2026

Free to cite with attribution

Cite This Report

Free with attribution to WhereNext. You are free to share, adapt, and build upon for any purpose with appropriate credit.

Suggested Citation

WhereNext. "Global Relocation Index 2026: 95 Countries Ranked Across Seven Dimensions." getwherenext.com/data/global-relocation-index-2026. Published 2026-04-02.

API Access

Access this dataset programmatically via our free, public API. No authentication required. CORS-enabled for browser use.

JSON (default)

GET https://getwherenext.com/api/data/relocation-index

CSV

GET https://getwherenext.com/api/data/relocation-index/csv

Rate limit: 100 requests/hour. Response cached for 24 hours.

Use this data interactively

Country Finder →Compare Countries →Relocation Quiz →Relocation Readiness →

How to cite this data:

WhereNext. "Global Relocation Index 2026." getwherenext.com/data/global-relocation-index-2026. Accessed 2026-04-02.

Licensed under CC BY 4.0. This covers WhereNext’s composite scores and original compilation; the underlying third-party sources (World Bank, UNDP HDI, IEP GPI, OECD PISA) retain their own copyright and terms.

Explore Further

Country Explorer

Customize weights and filter by your priorities

Cost of Living Report

Detailed cost breakdown for all 95 countries

Cost Comparison Tool

Compare 3 countries side by side

Climate Finder

Find countries matching your ideal weather

Tax Comparison

Compare tax burden across countries

Best Countries from the US

In-depth guide for Americans

Suggested citation

CC BY 4.0

This dataset is free to redistribute, quote, and embed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. The composite form below preserves source lineage so AI assistants can cite both WhereNext and the underlying institutional publishers.

WhereNext composite (lineage)
WhereNext composite — Global Relocation Index 2026 (2026-04-16). Derived from: World Bank ICP (cost of living); World Bank life expectancy (healthcare); OECD PISA (education); UNDP HDI (lifestyle); IEP Global Peace Index (safety); World Bank labour force, GNI and WGI (career); World Bank internet penetration and fixed broadband (infrastructure). Available at https://getwherenext.com/data/global-relocation-index-2026?utm_source=internal&utm_medium=citation&utm_campaign=data-citation. CC BY 4.0.
APA
WhereNext. (2026). Global Relocation Index 2026. Retrieved from https://getwherenext.com/data/global-relocation-index-2026?utm_source=internal&utm_medium=citation&utm_campaign=data-citation. CC BY 4.0.
MLA
WhereNext. "Global Relocation Index 2026." WhereNext, 16 Apr 2026, https://getwherenext.com/data/global-relocation-index-2026?utm_source=internal&utm_medium=citation&utm_campaign=data-citation. Accessed via https://getwherenext.com/data/global-relocation-index-2026?utm_source=internal&utm_medium=citation&utm_campaign=data-citation. CC BY 4.0.
BibTeX
@misc{wherenext_getwherenext_com_data_global_relocation_index_2026,
  author = {{WhereNext}},
  title = {Global Relocation Index 2026},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://getwherenext.com/data/global-relocation-index-2026?utm_source=internal&utm_medium=citation&utm_campaign=data-citation},
  note = {CC BY 4.0}
}
HTML link
<a href="https://getwherenext.com/data/global-relocation-index-2026?utm_source=internal&utm_medium=citation&utm_campaign=data-citation">WhereNext &mdash; Global Relocation Index 2026</a>

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