Japan’s capital climbed two spots from last year and came in at number two in the London-based magazine’s eighth annual rankings. Kyoto and Fukuoka also made the top 10 list, which is created based on quality of life measures including crime rate, public transportation, culture and economy.
“For the first time there are three Japanese cities in the top 10, with Tokyo — giddy at the prospect of the 2020 Olympics — rising to number two,” the magazine said. Monocle praised the “Big Mikan,” as the capital is sometimes known, as an “exception to the rule” that has all the economic and cultural benefits of a mature megalopolis without the urban decay.
Copenhagen topped the list, with Melbourne, Stockholm and Helsinki rounding out the top five.
On Japan’s ancient capital of Kyoto, which ranked ninth, the magazine said it isn’t “just a museum piece, it is truly a 21st century city.” Tenth-place Fukuoka was cited as “best example of a small city that is charting its own course.”
The Monocle ranking differs from similar rankings by other organizations. In 2013, the Economist Intelligence Unit ranked Melbourne number one and didn’t include any Japanese cities in its top 10 list.
Global human resources and financial services company, Mercer, places Vienna at the top of its list in 2014 and doesn’t include any Japanese cities either.
While all these surveys take factors such as emergency services and murder rates into account, Monocle editor Andrew Tuck states on the magazine’s website that it also looks at other aspects to see if a city is “responding to what modern residents want.”
“We think there are other things, the softer things,” Mr. Tuck said in a video recording. “For example, can you get a glass of wine at 1 o’clock in the morning? Or is there a place to go do your supermarket shopping on a Sunday?”
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