General Competitiveness

Renowned British cultural publication Time Out recently released its ranking of the “Top 10 Safest Cities in the World for Female Digital Nomads,” with Taipei City securing the top spot. Surpassing other well-known cities such as Penang, Venice, Chiang Rai, and Kaohsiung, Taipei has become the leading destination of choice for female digital nomads worldwide.
The Swiss Institute of Management Development (IMD) published the 2024 Smart City Index in April 2024. Taipei ranked 16th globally and 5th in Asia.
Taiwan was ranked #9 among 67 countries and 4th in Asia on the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2024 published by the Swiss Institute of Management Development (IMD). There were 7 indicators in which Taiwan ranked among the top 3 in the world. Among them, ” IT & media stock market capitalization ” ranked first; secondly, ” Total R&D personnel per capita ” and ” Agility of companies ” ranked 2nd; 4 indicators “Educational assessment PISA – Math “, ” Higher education achievement “, ” Total expenditure on R&D (%) “, ” High-tech exports (%) “, ranked third.
Taiwan was ranked #18 on the IMD World Talent Ranking 2024 published by the Swiss Institute of Management Development (IMD).
Taipei was ranked #8 on the 2024 IMD World Competitive Yearbook, and was ranked top 1 in the economies with a population of more than 20 million for the fourth consecutive year.
A.T. Kearney published the Global Cities Outlook 2024. This ranking was based on the assessment of private welfare, economy, innovation, and governance. Taipei was ranked the 41st.
According to the report of the Global Power City Index (GPCI) 2024 published by Mori Memorial Foundation, Taipei holds 50th place. Three items were promoted among six major dimensions. Among them, Taipei’s “Accessibility” was the best, taking 15th place. Taipei City Government has actively established an “innovative ecology system” to develop innovative energy and continuously and stably promote global power based on the core value of “sustainable living”.
Taiwan was ranked #50 on the Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) published by the Europe INSEAD Business School, Portulans Institute and Human Capital Leadership Institute.
According to the 2018 Global Competitiveness Report published by the World Economic Forum (WEF), Taiwan’s ranking was pushed forward to 13. Of the various factors, its “Innovation Ability” was first among Asian countries and 4th worldwide.
The Singapore financial analysis website, Value Champion, first published the “Top Millennial-Friendly Cites in the Asia-Pacific” in February 2019. It scores and ranks 20 major cities in the Asia-Pacific area from three major perspectives including employment prosperity, affordability of living costs, and the quality of life, based on the data analysis of economic scholars, the world economic forum, and world health organization such as institutions. Taipei City received 6th place and surpassed Seoul, Sidney, Beijing, and Shanghai. Among them, the performances in terms of evaluation from “affordability of living costs” and “quality of life” were great and the city continuously heads towards livability and sustainability.
According to the 2019 Global Entrepreneurship Index (GEI), Taiwan ranked 18th among 137 countries and 4th in Asia. Its global ranking in terms of Entrepreneurial Attitude was 25th, 22nd for Entrepreneurial Ability, and 7th in terms of Entrepreneurial Aspirations. Its overall performance even led such major nearby competitors as Korea and China.
Business Insider: The most high-tech cities in the world 2017: Taipei was the highest rated city in Asia and ranked the 5th globally in 2017. It’s higher than Seoul, Tokyo and Singapore.
No.51 Global Talent Competitiveness Index 2021 / INSEAD, The Adecco Group and Tata Communications: Taipei was included in the Global Competitiveness Index (GTCI) published in January 2021 by the collaboration of the Europe INSEAD Business School, Adecco Group and Tata Communications with great performance, ranking 46th globally after Seoul, surpassing such famous Asian cities as Bangkok, Yokohama, Nagoya and so on.

Financial and Economic Competitiveness

IESE Business School in Spain released IESE Cities in Motion Index in 2024. Taipei ranked 27th in the world and 5th in the Asia-Pacific region.
The Heritage Foundation in the U.S. released the 2024 Index of Economic Freedom in March 2024. Taiwan ranked 4th in the world and 2nd in the Asia-Pacific region.
2023 Index of Economic Freedom: Taiwan rank 4th globally, and 2nd in Asia-Pacific.
Comparing 28 indexes of the social, environment, and economic side, Arcadis, a British consulting company, assessed 100 cities, and published the Sustainable Cities Index 2024, where Taipei was the 62nd in overall rankings and 12th in Asia, which is better than Washington, Houston, and Kuala Lumpur.
Financial Times 2019/20 fDi Intelligence: Asia Future Cities Ranking: Taipei ranked 7th overall.
UK think-tank Z/Yen’s 2024 Global Financial Centers Index 35: Taipei ranked 73rd globally, and 19th in Asia.

Daily Living and Travel Competitivenes

Time Out, a well-known British magazine, announced the ” Cities with the Best Nightlife in 2024″ in August 2024. Taipei ranked 2nd in Asia and 12th in the world for its nightlife that can meet the needs of different age groups.
The Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS) awarded Taipei City the “International Blue Carbon City Gold Award” in November 2024. As an inland city not facing the sea, Taipei City had successfully achieved protection and management of mangroves by virtue of its excellent wetland ecosystem management. Taipei became the first inland city in the world to win this award.
UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) in collaboration with Gallup and the Wellbeing Research Centre in the Oxford University, announced the World Happiness Report 2024 in March 2024. Taiwan ranked 31st globally and 2nd in the Asia-Pacific region.
The global database website NUMBEO released the ranking of the 2024 Mid-Year Global Health Care Index. Taipei ranked second in the world among 218 cities with a score of 86.6.
The global database website NUMBEO released the ranking of the 2024 Mid-Year Safety Index by City. Taipei ranked 5th in the world among 320 cities with a score of 83.7.
Vancouver-based branding advisor Resonance Consultancy has published its Top 100 Best Cities in the World for 2024 Ranking in November 2023. The rating indicators include safety, culture, transportation, education, and economy. Taipei City ranked 42nd overall and 6th in Asia. Taipei City ranked 9th in restaurants and food, and 12th in shopping.
Time Out, a well-known British magazine, revealed The 40 coolest neighborhoods in the world in November2023, and Zhongshan District in Taipei City ranked 34th for its rich entertainment, diverse food and various styles of architecture.
According to the ranking published by the well-known global magazine CEOWorld in May 2024, which focuses on national health care systems, Taiwan was ranked top 1 again following 2023.
According to Liveability ranking and overview 2022 published by The Economist Intelligence Unit, Taipei Taiwan ranked at 53rd globally.
The expat website, InterNations, in Munich, Germany published an annual report known as the “Expat Insider”. In this report, Taiwan was rated as the top five“The Best and Worst Places for Expats in 2023”. This year, over 12,000 expats responded to a survey on 53 countries from the perspective of quality of life, employment conditions, ease of settling in, personal finance, and the basic needs of expats. According to the report, Taiwan was ranked #5, #2 for quality of life, and top 1 in terms of healthcare.
According to the 2022 city safety report of the “The Economist Intelligence Unit,” Taipei stands 53th with regard to assessment based on digital, health, individual, and infrastructure indicators.
The biggest expat website, InterNations, announced its “Expat Insider City Ranking: The best and worst cities for expats in 2022,” with Taipei ranking straight at the top in the areas of solid medical care, convenient transportation, friendly personnel exchange, energetic business prospects, and affordable living costs.
According to QS Best Student Cities 2025 published by QS, Taipei was ranked 26th in the world. With a climbing international reputation, convenient and diversified living, and affordable living costs, students highly evaluate Taipei City and are keen to stay for employment after graduating.
MERCER has announced its Quality of Living City Ranking 2024. The rating indicators include political and social environment, economy, and culture, with a total of ten major categories and 39 indicators. Taipei City ranked 85th overall and 8th in Asia, defeating such major cities as Kuala, Lumpur, Busang, Shanghai, and Bangkok.
MasterCard Worldwide Asia Pacific Destinations Index 2019: Taipei attracted up to 7.4 million international tourists. Taipei City ranked the 14th overall and the 6th in Asia.