Islamabad has ranked ahead of several major global cities, including New York, London and Paris, in Numbeo’s 2026 Mid-Year Quality of Life Index.
Pakistan’s capital scored 140.7 points, surpassing Paris (138.8), New York (137.3) and London (135.8). It also performed better than Kuala Lumpur, Budapest and Johannesburg.
Among Pakistani cities, Islamabad secured the highest score, followed by Lahore with 98.4 points and Karachi with 76.1.
The capital performed relatively well in safety and affordability, recording a Safety Index of 69.2 and a Cost of Living Index of 25.3. In comparison, New York recorded a cost of living score of 100.0, followed by London at 88.2 and Paris at 78.6.
Islamabad also scored 63.7 in health care, 76.9 in climate and 41.5 in pollution. However, its Purchasing Power Index stood at just 43.7, highlighting a weaker performance in residents’ purchasing power.
Despite outperforming these major cities, Islamabad remained well behind the top performers in the global index. The Hague in the Netherlands led with 221.5 points, followed by Eindhoven with 210.7, while Seattle also scored considerably higher than Islamabad at 182.5.
Numbeo’s Quality of Life Index compares cities based on purchasing power, safety, health care, cost of living, housing affordability, traffic, pollution, and climate. The rankings are based on user-contributed data and surveys rather than official government statistics.
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