As the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic ease, more residents are moving to other cities – 50% of urban residents have already moved to a new city, and 48% are considering this change in the future. These are the conclusions of the latest Boston Consulting Group (BCG) report.

• London and New York take the top two spots as the most desirable cities to live in in 2022, followed by Shanghai, Beijing and Los Angeles.

• Warsaw is the only city in Central and Eastern Europe in the ranking

• 48% of respondents are considering moving to a new metropolitan area.

The report entitled Cities of Choice: Are People Happy Where They Live? draws on surveys of more than 50,000 residents in 79 cities around the world to understand what motivates city dwellers to move or, conversely, to stay.

“Moving is now easier than ever. The task for local authorities is to understand what makes residents happy in order to keep existing ones and attract new ones,” said Vladyslav Butenko, managing director and senior partner of BCG, co-author of the report. “To achieve this, the authorities must be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the cities they govern.”

The report divides cities into four categories – megacities, large cities, mid-sized cities and emerging cities – based on their socio-economic profiles. To become a leader in BCG Cities of Choice, cities must demonstrate excellence in areas such as economic opportunity, quality of life, social capital, engagement with government and speed of change.

• Megacities – London and New York are ranked first and second among the most desirable megacities, repeating last year’s figures. While the two cities scored well on economic opportunities, quality of life, social capital and engagement with government, they scored lower on speed of change, signaling that they could be downgraded in the coming years. However, as a group, metros, defined as those with more than 10 million residents, have shown below-average rates of economic development.

• Large cities – among cities with an urban population of more than 3 million people, Washington, Singapore and San Francisco lead the way. While large cities score better on engagement with government, they are not as good on social capital and speed of change.

• Mid-sized cities, defined as cities with an urban population of less than 3 million, fared best, with 18 of the 28 cities earning above-average overall scores. Copenhagen, Vienna and Amsterdam occupy the top three places and are distinguished by high quality of life indicators.

• Developing cities – characterized by high rates of growth and urbanization, they can be defined by a high rate of change, but with a lower quality of life. Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi lead this group.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the evaluation of cities

The survey results show that the pandemic has had a negative impact on city ratings in 2022, with only eight cities receiving higher ratings from their own residents than in 2021.

Residents were less optimistic when they rated their cities on quality of life criteria. Residents also said they found fewer opportunities for career growth and less confidence in their professional achievements.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has become a strong test for most cities. In fact, many cities have not yet fully recovered from this situation,” said Hans-Paul Bürkner, BCG chairman emeritus and co-author of the report. “The authorities must answer the question: what are the imperatives in the future for city dwellers to live happily in these cities? People have changed, so cities must change as well.”

The report can be read here