They may not have made the annual quality of life survey of the world's major centres, but Dunedin and Christchurch have not escaped comparison.
Earlier this week Mercer released the 2011 Quality of Life survey, in which the country's largest city, Auckland, ranked No 3 in the world behind Vienna and Zurich.
The only other New Zealand centre to receive a placing was Wellington, which was judged as the 13th best place to live, two spots behind Sydney - the highest ranked Australian city.
A Mercer spokeswoman said the survey included major world cities and capitals, but Dunedin and Christchurch were included in the company's 420-strong city database.
The survey analysed living conditions based on 39 factors, which were grouped in 10 categories, such as political and social environment, economic environment, socio-cultural environment, and health and sanitation.
The spokeswoman said Dunedin received almost perfect scores in five categories: political and social environment, economic environment, socio-cultural environment, medical and health considerations, and consumer goods and housing.
The city received an average score for its public service and transport, with the airport scoring low "given there are no international departures".
However both Air New Zealand and Pacific Blue fly across the Tasman from Dunedin.
The city also scored poorly for its recreation and natural environment largely due to its climate.
"Schools and education received a below-average score, as even though there is a good choice of private and public schools, there are no international schools in Dunedin," the report noted.
Christchurch received nearly perfect scores in seven categories: political and social environment, economic environment, socio-cultural environment, medical and health considerations, public services and transport, recreation, consumer goods and housing.
The city received an above-average score for schools and education with a good choice of private and public schools offering all levels of education, but had no international schools, the report noted.
Unlike Dunedin, Christchurch returned a near perfect score for its climate, but scored low for its "record for natural disasters".
Mercer's information product solutions leader, Georgina Harley, said organisations and governments rely on quality of living information when relocating employees internationally in order to compensate them fairly.
New Zealand remains an attractive destination for skilled workers who want a high quality of life coupled with economic and physical security.
In contrast to Europe and the United States, New Zealand has a relatively strong economic outlook which increases its appeal as a safe haven from economic uncertainty, she said.
Quality of life
Top:
1 Vienna, Austria; 2 Zurich, Switzerland; 3 Auckland, New Zealand; 4 Munich, Germany; equal 5 Dusseldorf, Germany, Vancouver, Canada; 7 Frankfurt, Germany; 8 Geneva, Switzerland; equal 9 Bern, Switzerland, Copenhagen, Denmark; 11 Sydney, Australia; 12 Amsterdam, Netherlands; 13 Wellington, New Zealand; 14 Ottawa, Canada; 15 Toronto, Canada.
Bottom:
217 Khartoum, Sudan; 218 Port-au-Prince, Haiti; 219 N'Djamena, Chad; 220 Bangui, Central African Republic; 221 Baghdad, Iraq.
Source: Mercer
