Rishon Lezion has the best quality of life of any major city in Israel, the Central Bureau of statistics reports, followed by Rehovot, Ramat Gan, Kfar Saba, Petah Tikva, Netanya and Ashkelon. In the middle range of the ranking were Tel Aviv-Yafo followed by Haifa and Beit Shemesh, and in the bottom range were Bnei Brak, Beersheva, Ashdod, Holon, Jerusalem and Bat Yam.
Kfar Saba has the longest life expectancy and Tel Aviv has the highest employment rate. Rishon Lezion and Petah Tikva have the lowest percentage of residents who feel lonely and isolated.
This latest data can be found in the Central Bureau of Statistics “Quality of Life Indicators in the Largest Cities for 2021.” According to the Central Bureau of Statistics definition, the purpose of the 51 different indicators is “to present a multidimensional measurement of well-being and quality of life, taking into account all economic, social and environmental factors.”
Last year Kfar Saba topped the ranking for the city with the highest overall mark in all the 51 quality of life categories but this year it has been overhauled by Rishon Lezion. According to the survey 93.3% of Rishon’s residents expressed satisfaction with their home compared with the national average of 86.8%, and 92.5% expressed satisfaction with their neighborhood, compared with the national average of 84%. Some 72.4% of Rishon residents have higher education qualifications compared with the national average of 50.8%> Average life expectancy of 84.2 years in Rishon Lezion is one of the highest in the country.
In terms of life expectancy Kfar Saba was ranked first with an average 85.1 years while Bat Yam has the lowest life expectancy of 81.1 years. Bat Yam was ranked last in overall quality of life in Israel’s 16 biggest cities.
Tel Aviv has the highest employment rate of 70.7% of people over 15, followed by Ramat Gan 68%, and Rishon Lezion 67.1%. The lowest employment rate was 45.7% in Jerusalem, the second lowest was 47.4% in Bnei Brak and third lowest was Beit Shemesh with 52.4%.
Tel Aviv also topped the rankings in terms of gross income per household, which was an average of NIS 22,806 per month. In Jerusalem the average monthly gross household income was an average NIS 14,232 and in Bat Yam NIS 9,596.
The Central Bureau of Statistics data is divided into regions and cities, focusing on the country’s 16 largest cities.
In terms of movement between 2020 and 2021 Jerusalem leapfrogged Bat Yam, leaving it in last place, Beersheva slipped from the mid-range of rankings to the lowest range and Tel Aviv-Yafo slipped from the highest range rankings to the mid-range. Holon fell from the mid-range to the lowest range while Ashkelon moved up from the lowest-range to the mid-range.
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on January 3, 2023.
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