Herzliya has the best quality of life of Israel's 18 biggest cities, the Central Bureau of statistics reports, overhauling Kfar Saba, which was in top spot last year. Bat Yam and Jerusalem are anchored at the bottom as the Israeli cities with the worst quality of life, while Tel Aviv and Haifa are midway in the table.
The quality of life rankings take into account 60 different parameters including both objective criteria and subjective feelings of satisfaction related to quality of life. Examples include level of education, Internet use, children's weight, feelings of depression, loneliness, housing conditions and satisfaction with the home, satisfaction with public transport, green areas, satisfaction from life, satisfaction with income, cancer and illness in the family, noise pollution, trust in people, trust in the government, quality of drinking water, and much more.
Due to this, the resulting ranking of the cities is not similar to that obtained using precise indicators, but rather constitutes a weighting of all parameters, in accordance with the overall average quality of life in the country.
Israeli cities with a high overall score in the quality of life indicators for 2023 were Herzliya, Kfar Saba, Ramat Gan, Rehovot, Rishon LeZion and Beit Shemesh. Cities with a medium overall score in the quality of life indicators were Haifa, Petah Tikva, Netanya, Holon, Hadera, Bnei Brak and Tel Aviv.
What do the leading cities have in common?
Netanya was found to be the most typical Israeli city in terms of quality of life in so far as its overall mark was closest to the average. Ashkelon, Beersheva, Ashdod, Jerusalem and Bat Yam received the lowest marks.
What do the leading cities have in common? Herzliya leads in most quality of life indicators, including median household income from work, lowest housing density, percentage of employed people satisfied with income, life satisfaction, sense of ability to cope with problems, general trust in others, and satisfaction with the economic situation.
Kfar Saba leads in satisfaction with the residential area, percentage of eligibility for matriculation, post-secondary and higher education, life expectancy, satisfaction with parks and green spaces in residential neighborhoods, satisfaction with cleanliness in the neighborhood, and feeling appreciated by family members.
Ramat Gan leads in the percentage of employed people whose job matches their field of study, the lowest rate of deaths in traffic accidents, the lowest rate of infant mortality, and life satisfaction.
Rehovot leads in trust in the healthcare system, in the sense of being able to influence government policy, and in the use of online government services (e-Gov).
Rishon LeZion leads in the quality of drinking water and in the lowest percentage of residents feeling discriminated against.
So what is not good about the quality of life in Tel Aviv? Mainly the painful reality of housing. The city has the lowest percentage of affordable housing and expenditure on housing is higher than in other cities. Also in the parameters of trust in the government and the sense of being able to influence government actions - Tel Aviv scores low places, as well as in noise pollution.
In Jerusalem, the percentage of involuntary part-time employees was higher than in other places, the median income from work of a household reached two-thirds of the general average, and it also has problems with affordable housing. Also in indicators of personal security, deaths in traffic accidents, life expectancy, and more - the city scored badly.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on January 13, 2025.
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