Melbourne is officially the friendliest city in the world

It’s been quite the year for Melbourne, hasn’t it? Its restaurants and bars have earned acclaim. A Fitzroy street was named one of the coolest in the entire world. It was voted Australia’s most liveable city yet again. 

And now, as per Time Out, the Victorian city has been hailed as the world’s friendliest city. It was decided by expat insurance company William Russell, who ranked 23 global cities on factors including resident’s happiness, safety, LGBTQIA+ inclusivity, and highest-rated hotels.

Melbourne came out on top with a healthy score of 6.06. According to the ranking, the iconic Queen Victoria Market helped Melbourne to number one with a huge rating of 7.296.

“Often referred to as the ‘capital of cool’, the residents are known for their friendliness… Melbourne is a forward-thinking, rapidly-growing city, and it’s recognised for being a fully open, inclusive and competitive city, as well as a welcoming place for the LGBTQI+ community, who are often among the most marginalised communities around the world,” William Russell declared, pretty much hitting the nail on the head.

Coming in second was Paris with a still decent score of 5.99, with its fine dining scene scoring well, followed by Vienna with a score of 5.91, which is unsurprising given that the Austrian city is consistently named one of the world’s most liveable spots. Madrid and Brussels rounded out the top five.

And for Sydneysider readers, Melbourne’s great rival made it to number 13 in the ranking, with a considerably lower score of 4.62. Hasn’t William Russell seen how many great beaches the city has? New Zealand was also represented, with Auckland narrowly beating Sydney into 12th place with a score of 5.

You can check out the full list of the world’s friendliest cities here.

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