Sydney has just lost another round in its ongoing rivalry against Melbourne, with the southern city taking out the title for the World’s Most Liveable City. Victorians will be jumping for joy at the news that their state capital has been awarded the title for the seventh year running. It landed the crown in 2011, kicking Canada’s Vancouver from the top post and maintaining its stronghold ever since.

Considering that it is home to the world’s best pastry, and two of the world’s best restaurants, it’s not a shock that Melbourne has again taken the accolade. The New York Times recently called Lune the home of the world’s best croissants, and Melbourne’s Attica and nearby Brae took out two of the notches in the World’s 50 Best awards earlier in 2017.

Of course, it’s not just food that counts towards the title – it’s a sophisticated survey held by The Economist Intelligence Unit that looks at stability, culture, environment, education, infrastructure, and healthcare, assessing which locations around the globe provide the best living conditions.

This year Melbourne continued to hold onto its 97.5 ranking (out of 100) from 2016, but Sydney lost points due to increasing concerns over terrorism, slipping out of the top 10.

The world’s most liveable cities:

• Melbourne (97.5)
• Vienna (97.4)
• Vancouver (97.3)
• Toronto (97.2)
• Calgary (96.6)
• Adelaide (96.6)
• Perth (95.9)
• Auckland (95.7)
• Helsinki (95.6)
• Hamburg (95.0). 

While only two Australian cities sat in the top 10, overall Australasia ranked well on the scale. Australia and New Zealand locations accounted for one-third of the top 20 most liveable cities. It’s an accolade all Australian cities (including Sydney) should be proud of, says survey editor Jon Copestake. “Seven years at the top of the ranking is something that many Melburnians will no doubt take pride in. But it is worth noting how tight things are at the top of the ranking. The scores of the top 20 cities ranked, including all the cities that we include from Australia and New Zealand, are separated by just 3.9 percentage points. Every city in the top 50 sits comfortably in the top tier of liveability,” he says.

Melbourne is, of course, ecstatic with the win. Lord Mayor Robert Doyle has already released a statement regarding the news. “There will always be naysayers and whingers, and of course we are not perfect. No great world city is, but we should be very proud of the work we all do together to make Melbourne the best city in the world,” he says. “We do not take this title for granted and work constantly to ensure we are protecting and enhancing our livability for future generations.”