In a survey conducted by British media outlet Time Out among Gen Z respondents aged 18 to 29, Tokyo was ranked the “most livable city in the world.” On 5ch, some questioned the result citing Tokyo’s overcrowding, while others praised the low cost of living driven by the weak yen. But what stood out most were posts casting doubt on the survey’s credibility altogether, pointing to a separate ranking released around the same time by the UK’s Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), which placed Tokyo only 10th and Osaka 7th.
Gen Z places a high value on community-building and everyday experiences as key elements of city life. According to one survey, outdoor activities and “third places” are top priorities for Gen Z residents. A city that makes it easy to casually connect with others is where Gen Z feels most at home.
Gen Z is often stereotyped as “detached” or “lacking social skills,” but that label may be unfair.
To find out which cities are most livable for Gen Z, British outlet Time Out surveyed residents aged 18 to 29 around the world, asking about everything from affordability to nightlife.
Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here
They're probably writing this based purely on imagination.
Or just vibes.
How does Porto end up ranked #2…
Kind of like those prefectural charm rankings, huh. (Japan's annual "most attractive prefecture" survey, notorious for bizarre results)
Do Gen Zers around the world even know what life in Tokyo is actually like?
With the yen this abnormally weak,
prices look cheap to foreigners,
yet the service level is world-class.
Japanese service workers should be allowed to push back harder when a customer is clearly being unreasonable.
Japan is a nation of complainers, and because the deep-rooted "the customer is God" mentality persists, most companies fail to protect their employees.
It's not genuine heartfelt service — it's just the product of Japanese corporate peer pressure that crushes individual agency.
Foreigners who act however they please should just get thrown out of the store.
Because foreign tourists started coming, lowering the standard of service has become the norm, and it's Japanese people who end up getting the short end of the stick.
What's that supposed to mean?
In illustrations aimed at overseas audiences, Mt. Fuji is always drawn looming huge right behind the Tokyo skyline, so people probably think it's super close to Tokyo.
In reality you have to fight through hellish traffic on the Tomei or Chuo Expressway, and it takes half a day to actually get there.
Tokyo (Okutama, the Izu Islands, the Ogasawara Islands) (all technically part of Tokyo Metropolis, despite being remote mountains and islands)
Rooftop barbecues.
I thought it was one of those wasei-eigo words that only makes sense in Japan (Japanese-coined pseudo-English).
Pretty sure it actually originated in America.
If anything, Japan just imported the term.
Asked it where the most livable place in Japan is, and it said Shizuoka City, #1.
Is it maybe reading the room a little too much?
i.imgur.com/2mfGQn1.png
Seems like Hamamatsu has higher salaries than Shizuoka City, though.
Maybe everything outside manufacturing is dragging it down.
It's angling for Akari-chan points. (likely a nod to a local Shizuoka mascot/character)
Lol, it just typed out exactly what you were thinking.
Do foreigners like this ever think about taking what's good about Japan back home and making their own country better too?
🟢World's Most Livable Cities ranking announced — two Japanese cities make the top 10
(The Economist's research arm, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), 2026.07.08)
◆ Top 10 Most Livable Cities in the World
1. Copenhagen (Denmark)
2. Vienna (Austria)
3. Melbourne (Australia)
4. Sydney (Australia)
5. Zurich (Switzerland)
6. Geneva (Switzerland)
7. Osaka (Japan)
8. Adelaide (Adelaide)
9. Vancouver (Canada)
10. Tokyo (Japan)
That's probably closer to the truth, but this survey is really just "clueless Gen Zers around the world listing their personal fantasy of the coolest city to live in."
Aside from Osaka, most of these are a huge hassle to actually move to from abroad.
Osaka really has seen a surge of foreigners.
Downtown is packed with Chinese tourists,
and the residential areas are full of people from all kinds of countries with different skin tones.
At night the city's full of white people wandering around.
Safe enough that you can go jogging at night lol
It's less about reliability and more just a list of self-consciously trendy/"woke" cities.
I don't get why Osaka made the cut, but
>>82
Ah, that makes sense.
https://x.com/search?q=livable%20eiu%20japan&src=typed_query&f=live
Looks like it's basically decided by cost of living…
That's exactly the point.
Why would someone who doesn't know the world pick Tokyo?
It means the internet is flooded with information pushing Japan, to the point that even AI is recommending people go to Japan.
That's the dangerous part.
It's journalists writing this stuff,
so if you slip a journalist some cash, you can make it say whatever you want.
*This article is compiled from excerpts and summaries of the 5ch (News Speed+) thread “Tokyo Ranks #1… Gen Z’s Top 20 “World’s Most Livable Cities” Ranking (Overseas Reactions)”.
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