A port city in the south of Spain has some of the happiest expats in the world, according to the latest Internations report on where people are thriving in their lives abroad.
Malaga, Spain, was named the No. 1 city for expats this year, based on responses from over 12,000 individuals living in 172 countries or territories.
Malaga is the best-rated city worldwide for local friendliness, where 89% of expats say the locals are particularly friendly toward foreigners, compared with 65% of expats who say the same globally. The coastal city is also known for its good weather, leisure options, affordable housing and manageable cost of living. It scores lowest (but still well above average) for its working abroad factors — newcomers say the local job market isn’t great, however it also claims the top spot for supporting a good work-life balance.
Two other Spanish cities round out the top three: No. 2 Alicante, which stands out for its available and affordable housing, and No. 3 Valencia, which tops the list for having outstanding health-care options.
Here are the top 10 cities where expats enjoy their new lives away from home:
1. Malaga, Spain
La Farola de Malaga and Cathedral seen at sunset.
Malaga, Andalusia, Spain.
Henryk Sadura | Moment | Getty Images
- 88% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 79% are happy with the cost of living
- 67% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 69% are satisfied with their job overall
- 80% are happy with their work-life balance
- 80% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
2. Alicante, Spain
Sunny promenade with palm trees in Alicante city, Spain travel pphoto
Arcady_31 | Istock | Getty Images
- 92% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 78% are happy with the cost of living
- 59% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 52% are satisfied with their job overall
- 70% are happy with their work-life balance
- 80% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
3. Valencia, Spain
Iglesia de los Santos Juanes and the Central Market of Valencia.
Abrill_ | Istock | Getty Images
- 91% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 86% are happy with the cost of living
- 67% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 64% are satisfied with their job overall
- 79% are happy with their work-life balance
- 90% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
4. Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates
Man visiting middle eastern Dhayah Fort in north Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates on the desert mountain top at sunset. Caucasian man traveling to Middle East
Stefan Tomic | E+ | Getty Images
- 79% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 59% are happy with the cost of living
- 63% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 78% are satisfied with their job overall
- 67% are happy with their work-life balance
- 81% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
5. Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
An Emirati woman paddles a canoe past skyscrapers in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2019.
Christopher Pike | Bloomberg | Getty Images
- 74% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 45% are happy with the cost of living
- 42% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 68% are satisfied with their job overall
- 54% are happy with their work-life balance
- 88% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
6. Madrid, Spain
Madrid, Spain
Jorg Greuel | Stone | Getty Images
- 85% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 57% are happy with the cost of living
- 59% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 64% are satisfied with their job overall
- 69% are happy with their work-life balance
- 85% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
7. Mexico City, Mexico
- 90% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 58% are happy with the cost of living
- 65% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 76% are satisfied with their job overall
- 75% are happy with their work-life balance
- 57% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
8. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
- 81% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 74% are happy with the cost of living
- 59% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 66% are satisfied with their job overall
- 65% are happy with their work-life balance
- 68% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
9. Bangkok, Thailand
- 85% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 73% are happy with the cost of living
- 54% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 66% are satisfied with their job overall
- 77% are happy with their work-life balance
- 80% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
10. Muscat, Oman
Landscape view of the ancient buildings stretches along the harbor overlooks mountainous rocky formations, Muscat, Oman – December 02, 2018
Emad Aljumah | Moment | Getty Images
- 71% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 55% are happy with the cost of living
- 68% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 64% are satisfied with their job overall
- 62% are happy with their work-life balance
- 61% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
Global average
- 72% of expats are happy with their life abroad overall
- 44% are happy with the cost of living
- 43% say it’s easy to make local friends
- 64% are satisfied with their job overall
- 63% are happy with their work-life balance
- 70% are satisfied with the cost of medical care
The ranking, released by the online community Internations, analyzed 49 global cities across five main areas: quality of life (like health care and leisure options), ease of settling in (like how easy it is to make friends and feel welcome), working abroad (including the local job market and work-life balance factors), personal finance (accounting for the cost of living), and an overall “expat essentials” index that evaluates things like the ease of completing administrative tasks and finding housing.
Survey responses were gathered in February and released in November.
At the very bottom of the list is Milan, Italy, where expats say it’s a challenge to deal with bureaucracy, open a local bank account, secure a visa and find housing. One-third of expats in Milan say they aren’t happy with their social life (versus 25% who feel the same globally) and don’t feel at home (versus 20% globally).
The other global cities that rank poorly for expats who live abroad include Rome, Vancouver, Hamburg, Berlin and Dublin.
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