Overview
- Ottawa tops Canadian and North American cities in Numbeo’s 2026 quality-of-life ranking, scoring 198.1 out of 200 and placing 28th worldwide.
- Numbeo’s published sub-scores for Ottawa include purchasing power (162.4), safety (69), healthcare (68.7), cost of living (61.7), property price to income ratio (5.1), commute time (32.7), pollution (24.1), and climate (44.5).
- Mayor Mark Sutcliffe praised the result on X, calling Ottawa the most livable city in North America and urging residents to keep improving quality of life.
- The ranking’s methodology drew scrutiny as PressProgress highlighted Numbeo’s user-generated data model, Serbian base, and disclaimers about data accuracy, with social media users also disputing Ottawa’s commute and transit scores.
- Nanaimo follows as the next highest Canadian city with an overall score of 185.6, while Victoria ranks 34th globally, Quebec City 35th, and Vancouver 37th.