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Expat Insider - The World Through Expat Eyes

Expat Insider 2017: Looking at the World through Expat Eyes

Now in its fourth year, Expat Insider is one of the largest surveys worldwide offering an in-depth analysis of expat life across the globe. More than 12,500 respondents representing 166 nationalities and living in 188 countries or territories answered our questions, providing unique insights into what it means to be an expat in 2017.

Our ranking of 65 destinations is based on how these countries were rated by their expat residents. For these ratings, we looked at more than 40 individual factors that influence an expat’s experience of living in a foreign country, from family life to finances. The picture that emerges is an interesting one, with some of the results differing noticeably from other country rankings.

Take a look at the world through expat eyes and explore the detailed results below.

Country Rankings and Topical Reports

Are you wondering about how welcome you'd feel in a specific country? Want to know where your money will take you the furthest? Or perhaps you're curious about which countries are best for your career?

Our country rankings list the best (and worst) among 65 destinations across the globe, focusing on essential topics: quality of life, ease of settling in, working abroad, family life, personal finance, and cost of living. We also compare results across the years, identifying the biggest winners and losers in 2017.

After 2016's focus on working abroad, this year we are taking a closer look at the Ease of Settling In Index, from local friendships and expat bubbles to feeling (un)welcome in a country and its culture.

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City Rankings

In addition, we asked specific questions about the cities our respondents live in: How do they find the local career opportunities? Is it easy to find housing? Do they feel at home in the city?

The Expat Insider 2017 city rankings reveal an in-depth analysis of 51 cities around the world. The rankings focus on the quality of urban living, getting settled, urban work life, as well as finance and housing — resulting in an overview of the best and worst cities for expats to live in.

Country & Regional Reports: Your Country Through Expat Eyes

We have taken a closer look at various expat destinations, featuring 16 in-depth country profiles, from Austria to the USA. We have also added four regional reports that cover Australia and New Zealand, the Arab Gulf states, four of the Nordic countries, and the Asian Tiger States.

Read on to find out what expat life is like around the world!

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Nationality Reports: Expats Around the World

As with the profiles on various countries or regions, we also wanted to portray the people who braved the unknown and are now living abroad. From sun-seeking British expats and globe-trotting French to romantic Irish and retired US Americans, our ten nationality reports give a closer look at expats around the world.

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