Melbourne stays no. 3 for liveability

Melbourne remains the third most liveable city in the world, according to the latest rankings by the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Ranking 140 global cities on 30 criteria covering stability, healthcare, culture, environment, education and infrastructure, the think tank of The Economist magazine gives Melbourne a score of 97.5 out of a possible 100.

Vancouver and Vienna remain no.1 and no.2, scoring 98.0 and 97.9 respectively.

Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, was rated the most unliveable city in the survey, with a total score of just 37.5. Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh, tied with Algiers as the second worst, followed by Port Moresby.

The EIU highlighted the poor scores of cities hosting upcoming sporting events. Johannesburg, home of the 2010 soccer World Cup, ranked just equal 92nd with a score of 69.1 - the same as Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, the main hosts for the 2014 World Cup. New Delhi, host of this year's Commonwealth Games, ranked 113th with a score of 58.6.

Top 8 cities
1. Vancouver
2. Vienna
3. Melbourne
4. Toronto
5. Calgary
6. Helsinki
7. Sydney
8. Perth and Adelaide