The pandemic has shaken up the rankings of the world's most liveable cities, a study released showed, with metropolises in Australia, Japan and New Zealand leaping ahead of those in Europe.

Auckland tops The Economist's annual survey of the world's most liveable cities in 2021 followed by Osaka and Tokyo in Japan, Adelaide in Australia and Wellington in New Zealand, all of which had a swift response to the Covid pandemic.

“Auckland rose to the top of the ranking owing to its successful approach in containing the Covid-19 pandemic, which allowed its society to remain open and the city to score strongly,” the Economist Intelligence Unit said.

In contrast, “European cities fared particularly poorly in this year's edition.” Vienna, previously the world's most liveable city between 2018-20, fell to 12th.