New Indicators for the Happy City Index 2026
In the previous edition, we introduced HEALTH as a new theme, a significant step in adapting the Index to the evolving challenges of our changing world. This decision highlighted our commitment to ensuring that the Index reflects the priorities shaping the well-being of cities and their residents today and in the future.
The upcoming edition will continue to build on the six established themes:
- CITIZENS
- GOVERNANCE
- ENVIRONMENT
- ECONOMY
- HEALTH
- MOBILITY
Together with 26 areas and 82 indicators, these themes remain the backbone of the Index. However, based on ongoing research, the latest results, and the pressing challenges cities face globally, we have refined and updated the structure. These improvements will allow us to present the most accurate and meaningful assessment yet of how cities around the world are addressing urban development.
Our goal is clear: to provide reliable, comparable and trustworthy data that enables us to rank cities fairly and shine a spotlight on those leading with the most effective urban policies. Above all, the Happy City Index continues to place the citizen and their happiness, both today and for generations to come, at the centre of attention.
| Number | THEME | AREA | INDICATOR NAME | DETAILS OF INDICATOR | LEVEL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CITIZENS | EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM | INFRASTRUCTURE FOR LIFELONG LEARNING | Proximity of municipal institutions providing formal adult education. | local |
| 2 | CITIZENS | EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM | FORMAL LONGLIFE LEARNING RATE | The percentage of adults aged 25-64 participating in any form of formal education over the course of a year. | local |
| 3 | CITIZENS | EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM | KNOWLEDGE CENTRE | The existence of a higher education institution with an international reputation, highly ranked globally. | local |
| 4 | CITIZENS | EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM | AFFORDABILITY OF HIGHER EDUCATION | The cost of higher education (only university tuition fees) compared to the average annual salary. | national |
| 5 | CITIZENS | EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM | NURSARY CARE SYSTEM | The number of children in the first-year nursery cohort compared to the number of nursery places available in the city for first-year children. | local |
| 6 | CITIZENS | EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM | HIGHER DEGREE | Population of the city with a master's degree. | local |
| 7 | CITIZENS | EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM | FOREIGN LANGUAGE COMPETENCE | Percentage of the population who know at least one foreign language. | national |
| 8 | CITIZENS | EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM | DIGITAL LITERACY | Digital skills indicators. | national |
| 9 | CITIZENS | INCLUSIVE POLICIES | INCLUSIVE INFRASTRUCTURE | Percentage of public buildings accessible at least for persons with mobility impairments. | local |
| 10 | CITIZENS | INCLUSIVE POLICIES | SUPPORT FOR ELDERLY PEOPLE | Percentage of population 65+ benefiting from municipal home care. | local |
| 11 | CITIZENS | INCLUSIVE POLICIES | HOMELESSNESS | Number of homeless people per 10.000. | local |
| 12 | CITIZENS | INCLUSIVE POLICIES | LINGUISTIC ACCESSIBILITY OF MUNICIPAL SERVICES | Municipal services available in a foreign language. | local |
| 13 | CITIZENS | INCLUSIVE POLICIES | INTERNAL MIGRATION | Internal migration rate. | local |
| 14 | CITIZENS | INCLUSIVE POLICIES | INCLUSIVE EDUCATION | Share of foreign-citizenship pupils in public schools. | local |
| 15 | CITIZENS | INNOVATION AND CREATIVITY OF RESIDENTS | SUPPORTING INNOVATION | Municipal R&D expenditure. | local |
| 16 | CITIZENS | INNOVATION AND CREATIVITY OF RESIDENTS | INVOLEVEMENT IN CREATIVE INDUSTRY | Share of people working in creative industries. | national |
| 17 | CITIZENS | HOUSING | HOUSING AFFORDIBILITY INDEX - PURCHASE | The ratio of the median house price to the median household income. | local |
| 18 | CITIZENS | HOUSING | HOUSING AFFORDIBILITY INDEX - RENT | Percentage of rental costs as a proportion of household income. | local |
| 19 | CITIZENS | HOUSING | HOUSING SUPPLY RATE | Number of new dwellings completed per 1,000 inhabitants per year. | local |
| 20 | CITIZENS | ACCESS TO CULTURE | CULTURE - INFRASTRUCTURE | Number of cultural institutions (museums/theatres/cinemas) per 100,000 inhabitants. | local |
| 21 | CITIZENS | ACCESS TO CULTURE | CULTURE FINANCING | City budget for culture per capita: The amount a city allocates for cultural development, calculated per resident. | local |
| 22 | CITIZENS | ACCESS TO CULTURE | NETWORK OF MUNICIPAL LIBRARIES | Number of libraries per square kilometre. | local |
| 23 | GOVERNANCE | INVOLVEMENT OF RESIDENTS IN DECISION MAKING PROCESSES | SUPPORT FOR NGO | Percentage of the city’s budget allocated to projects run by NGOs. | local |
| 24 | GOVERNANCE | INVOLVEMENT OF RESIDENTS IN DECISION MAKING PROCESSES | PARTICIPATORY BUDGET | Participatory Budgeting Turnout Rate. | local |
| 25 | GOVERNANCE | INVOLVEMENT OF RESIDENTS IN DECISION MAKING PROCESSES | CIVIL SOCIETY DENSITY | Number of active NGOs per 100,000 inhabitants. | local |
| 26 | GOVERNANCE | INVOLVEMENT OF RESIDENTS IN DECISION MAKING PROCESSES | LOCAL ELECTIONS | Voters turnout at last city elections. | local |
| 27 | GOVERNANCE | TRANSPARENCY IN OPERATION AND OPENNESS OF DATA | OPEN DATA | Providing city data through an city open data portal. | local |
| 28 | GOVERNANCE | TRANSPARENCY IN OPERATION AND OPENNESS OF DATA | QUALITY OF OPEN DATA | Number of Open data sets available in tabular and machine-readable formats. | local |
| 29 | GOVERNANCE | ACCESSIBILITY OF PUBLIC E-SERVICES | FAULT REPORTING SYSTEM | System for reporting faults in the city through e-services. | local |
| 30 | GOVERNANCE | ACCESSIBILITY OF PUBLIC E-SERVICES | E-PAYMENTS | Electronic payment system for municipal services. | local |
| 31 | GOVERNANCE | ACCESSIBILITY OF PUBLIC E-SERVICES | E-SERVICES | Ability to hold conversations with officials via communication platforms or to book appointments online. | local |
| 32 | GOVERNANCE | CONSCIOUS STRATEGIES | STRATEGY OF DEVELOPMENT | Existence of an up-to-date city development strategy. | local |
| 33 | GOVERNANCE | CONSCIOUS STRATEGIES | SMART GOVERNANCE | Existence in the strategy of a vision, a description of talent acquisition methods, a focus on development that meets residents' needs, support for innovation, and performance tracking. | local |
| 34 | GOVERNANCE | CONSCIOUS STRATEGIES | AI FOR CITIZENS | The city’s strategic documents foresee the introduction and growing role of artificial intelligence, applied in ways that consistently respect the principle of ‘citizen first’ and respond to residents’ needs. | local |
| 35 | ENVIRONMENT | MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES | RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES | Number of school buildings equipped with renewable energy installations. | local |
| 36 | ENVIRONMENT | MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES | ENERGY COUNSUMPTION | Final Energy Consumption per Capita. | local |
| 37 | ENVIRONMENT | ANTI-POLLUTION | PARTICULATE MATTER LESS THAN 2.5 MICROMETRES | Annual average concentration of particulate matter (PM2.5) in micrograms per cubic metre of air (µg/m³). | local |
| 38 | ENVIRONMENT | ANTI-POLLUTION | GREEN MOBILITY | Green mobility share (non-motorized individual traffic). | local |
| 39 | ENVIRONMENT | ANTI-POLLUTION | CO2 EMISSION | CO₂ emissions per capita (tonnes per person per year). | local |
| 40 | ENVIRONMENT | WASTE, WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT AND RECYCLING | WASTE MANAGEMENT | Amount of waste produced per resident. | local |
| 41 | ENVIRONMENT | WASTE, WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT AND RECYCLING | SEWEGE | Percentage of the population that is served by sewage treatment facilities. | local |
| 42 | ENVIRONMENT | WASTE, WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT AND RECYCLING | WATER USAGE | Per Capita Water Consumption. | local |
| 43 | ENVIRONMENT | WASTE, WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT AND RECYCLING | RECYCLING | Recycling rate. | local |
| 44 | ENVIRONMENT | PROTECTION OF BIODIVERSITY | ACTIONS PROTECTING BIODIVERSITY | Share of protected natural areas in total city area (%). | local |
| 45 | ENVIRONMENT | PROTECTION OF BIODIVERSITY | STRATEGIES FOR BIODIVERSITY | Existence of a biodiversity conservation strategy or its inclusion in the city strategy. | local |
| 46 | ECONOMY | GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT AND PRODUCTIVITY | GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT | GDP per capita. | national |
| 47 | ECONOMY | GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT AND PRODUCTIVITY | ANNUAL GROWTH | GDP - growth. | national |
| 48 | ECONOMY | BUSINESS INNOVATION | EXPENSES FOR R&D | Research and Development costs in per cent of GDP. | national |
| 49 | ECONOMY | BUSINESS INNOVATION | PATENTS | Number of patents granted per 100,000 inhabitants. | local |
| 50 | ECONOMY | ENTREPRENEURSHIP | ACTIVE COMPANIES | Number of businesses per 1,000 residents. | local |
| 51 | ECONOMY | ENTREPRENEURSHIP | NEW BUSINESS | Number of new businesses per 1,000 residents. | local |
| 52 | ECONOMY | EMPLOYMENT | UNEMPLOYMENT | Percentage of people in the labour force who are without a job, but are actively seeking work and available to start. | local |
| 53 | ECONOMY | EMPLOYMENT | YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT | Percentage of young people (aged 15–24) in the labour force who are without a job, but are actively seeking work and available to start. | local |
| 54 | ECONOMY | LABOUR MARKET FLEXIBILITY | EARNINGS / COSTS OF LIVING | Percentage deviation in earnings relative to the national average. | local |
| 55 | ECONOMY | LABOUR MARKET FLEXIBILITY | FINANCING OF MATERNITY OR PATERNITY LEAVE PERIOD | The number of months receiving pay for a mother or father during maternity lor paternity leave (more than 50% of salary). | national |
| 56 | HEALTH | MENTAL HEALTH | MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT | Number of mental health professionals (psychiatrists, psychologists) per 100,000 inhabitants. | local |
| 57 | HEALTH | MENTAL HEALTH | WEELBEING AT SCHOOL | The number of students per school psychologist in primary schools. | local |
| 58 | HEALTH | MENTAL HEALTH | MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS | The number of suicide attempts per 1,000 residents. | local |
| 59 | HEALTH | MENTAL HEALTH | COMMUNITY CENTRES | Number of community centres per 100,000 inhabitants. | local |
| 60 | HEALTH | MENTAL HEALTH | HATE SPEECH | Existence of a strategy to prevent and address hate speech or cyberbullying, or its inclusion in the city’s broader development strategy. | local |
| 61 | HEALTH | SAFETY | AVALIBILITY OF TREATMENT | Number of doctors per 1,000 residents. | local |
| 62 | HEALTH | SAFETY | HEALTHCARE CAPACITY | Total number of healthcare facility beds per 1,000 inhabitants. | local |
| 63 | HEALTH | SAFETY | MEDICAL INSURANCE | Percentage of population with medical insurance. | national |
| 64 | HEALTH | SAFETY | SAFETY IN PUBLIC PLACES | Number of recorded incidents of violence in public places. | local |
| 65 | HEALTH | NUTRITION | OBESITY | Obesity rate. | local |
| 66 | HEALTH | NUTRITION | TYPE 2 DIABETES | Percentage of adult residents diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. | local |
| 67 | HEALTH | NUTRITION | CHILD FOOD SECURITY - SCHOOL MEALS | Percentage of pupils in public schools enrolled in free or subsidized school meal programs, provided and funded (fully or partially) by the city or public institutions. | local |
| 68 | HEALTH | AVAILABILITY OF GREEN AREAS | PARKS | Number of parks per square kilometre. | local |
| 69 | HEALTH | AVAILABILITY OF GREEN AREAS | GREEN SPACE | Green space per capita (m²/person). | local |
| 70 | HEALTH | WORK-LIFE BALANCE | WORKING HOURS | Average number of working hours per week. | national |
| 71 | HEALTH | WORK-LIFE BALANCE | VACATION DAYS | Average number of vacation days. | national |
| 72 | HEALTH | WORK-LIFE BALANCE | LIFE EXPECTANCY AT BIRTH | Life expectancy rate. | local |
| 73 | MOBILITY | COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES IN TRANSPORT | E-PAYMENT IN TRANSPORT SYSTEM | Existence of an electronic payment system for municipal transport services. | local |
| 74 | MOBILITY | COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES IN TRANSPORT | ITS-TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT | Share of signalised intersections with smart traffic management (%). | local |
| 75 | MOBILITY | ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT | PUBLIC TRANSPORT NETWORK | Public transport network km per resident. | local |
| 76 | MOBILITY | ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT | AIR TRANSPORTATION AVALIBILITY | Distance to the nearest airport offering international flights. | local |
| 77 | MOBILITY | ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT | AIRPORT ACCESS MODES | Existence of a public transport system providing access to the airport. | local |
| 78 | MOBILITY | ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT | PUBLIC TRANSPORT PASSANGERS | Annual public transport ridership per capita (number of trips per resident per year). | local |
| 79 | MOBILITY | ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT | ADAPTATION OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT TO THE NEEDS OF PEOPLE OF DISABILITIES | Percentage of public transport vehicles fully adapted for the needs of people with mobility impairments. | local |
| 80 | MOBILITY | ACCESSIBILITY AND EFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT | ROAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS | Number of road traffic accidents per 1,000 residents. | local |
| 81 | MOBILITY | OPENNESS OF TRANSPORT DATA | TRANSPORT DATA OPENNESS | Availability of open data on public transport. | local |
| 82 | MOBILITY | OPENNESS OF TRANSPORT DATA | TRIP PLANNER | Existence of a journey planner that includes various types of public transport or all available modes within the city. | local |