North America
United States ranks 10th overall out of 59 countries in the Relocate Index, with a composite score of 68.5 out of 100. It scores highest on english proficiency (100) and religious freedom (85), and lowest on purchasing power (36).
How far income earned abroad (remote work, pension, savings) goes at local prices. If you will earn a local salary, choose "Local salary" and the score switches to local income levels. Country averages, not your personal salary.
Two different questions hide behind "purchasing power". If your income comes from abroad, what matters is how cheap local prices are. If you will earn locally, what matters is how high local incomes are once local prices are taken into account. Relocator scores the first by default and switches to the second when you choose a local salary.
Income from abroad: purchasing_power = price level ratio vs the US, inverted and scaled from 0.10 (100) to 1.50 (0). Local salary: purchasing_power = GDP per person at local prices (PPP), log-scaled from 8,000 (0) to 160,000 (100) international dollars.
Limitation: Country averages only, no city prices. Price levels move with exchange rates, so a sharp devaluation can make a country look cheaper than it feels. Argentina's price level is from 2021, the latest year with both price and exchange-rate data. GDP per person is an average and says nothing about how income is shared.
How well courts, contracts and anti-corruption controls work, based on World Bank governance ratings. Street crime is scored under Safety.
Rule of law decides whether contracts are enforced, whether you can trust the police and courts, and how often officials expect a bribe. It does not measure everyday etiquette (queuing, littering, noise norms) because no reliable cross-country data for those behaviours exists.
Loose societies are more permissive of individual variation and rule-bending — a cultural preference, not a measure of quality.
Reflects waste infrastructure and enforcement capacity, which correlates strongly with national wealth — not a pure measure of citizen behaviour.
What survey respondents expect would happen to a lost wallet found by a stranger — perceived trust, not a measured return rate.
civic_culture = wgi_rule_of_law × 0.55 + wgi_corruption_control × 0.45 (both World Bank percentile ranks, 0 to 100).
Limitation: WGI combines expert, business and household surveys, so it reflects how institutions are perceived. It measures institutions, not how people behave day to day.
How likely you are to meet violent or street crime: the murder rate plus residents' reported worry about everyday crime. Country averages, not neighbourhood level.
Safety shapes where you walk at night and how freely your children move around. This score blends a hard measure (murders per 100,000 people, from UNODC) with residents' reported experience of everyday crime (Numbeo). It does not measure war or political risk.
safety = homicide_norm × 0.50 + (100 − numbeo_crime_index) × 0.50. homicide_norm is log-scaled: 0.3 or fewer homicides per 100,000 people = 100, 40 or more = 0. If one source is missing, the other is used alone.
Limitation: Homicide data is missing for Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam, so their score uses Numbeo alone. Numbeo is crowdsourced and its sample sizes vary by country. National averages hide large differences between cities and neighbourhoods. The Global Peace Index is shown as context but not scored, because it mostly measures conflict and militarisation.
How easily expats report settling in, combined with how much the culture values leisure and openness. A rough signal, not a measure of how people will treat you.
Warmth affects how quickly you build a social life. This score blends one cultural values survey (Hofstede indulgence) with an expat survey about settling in (InterNations). Both are thin, so treat this as a hint to explore, not a verdict.
warmth = IVR × 0.40 + internations_score × 0.60. Both sources required, no fallback.
Limitation: InterNations has about 260 respondents per country, mostly expats in professional jobs. Hofstede IVR dates from 2010 and measures cultural values, not friendliness to newcomers. Countries missing either source show no warmth score. Mismatch flag when abs(IVR − InterNations) > 30.
How 15-year-olds in the local school system do: test scores plus belonging, bullying and safety at school. It does not cover international schools.
For families, the school environment is often the deciding factor. This score comes from PISA, which tests and surveys 15-year-olds in each country's mainstream schools, mostly public. If your children will attend an international school, this score says little about their experience.
school_culture = pisa_academic × 0.25 + pisa_belonging × 0.30 + pisa_bullying_inv × 0.30 + pisa_safety × 0.15
Limitation: PISA 2022 is the latest scored edition. It samples local 15-year-olds only: no data on primary schools, international schools or expat children. 60% of the score is students' own reports of belonging and bullying, which vary with culture as well as with schools.
How well the national health system covers and treats the people who live there: service coverage (UHC), treatment outcomes (HAQ), and doctors, beds and nurses. It does not measure access for newcomers. The badge shows what it means for your budget.
The score combines which essential services the population can use (UHC), how well the system prevents deaths from treatable conditions (HAQ, 32 causes), and whether there are enough doctors, beds and nurses. These describe the system for residents, not how easily a newcomer gets in or how long the waits are. The badge tells you what to expect financially: public coverage, mandatory insurance, employer-dependent, or budget for private.
Your employer provides coverage. Verify it's in your offer — no employer means no coverage or very expensive self-purchase.
healthcare = UHC × 0.35 + HAQ × 0.35 + capacity × 0.30. capacity = physicians_norm × 0.40 + beds_norm × 0.35 + nurses_norm × 0.25.
Limitation: Data is several years old: UHC is from 2021, HAQ from GBD 2019, capacity from OECD 2022 (WHO for non-members). Scores are national averages; care in capital cities is usually better than in rural areas. Nothing here measures private insurance, wait times or cost.
Transport and logistics quality, and how widely people use the internet and fixed broadband.
Reliable transport and a good internet connection affect daily life in ways you stop noticing until they break. Half of this score rates ports, railways, roads and IT for moving goods; the other half is how many people are online and how many homes have fixed broadband.
infrastructure = logistics × 0.50 + digital × 0.50, where logistics = World Bank LPI infrastructure (1 to 5 scaled to 0 to 100) and digital = average of internet users (60% to 100% scaled) and fixed broadband per 100 people (0 to 50 scaled)
Limitation: The logistics half comes from freight professionals rating trade infrastructure (2023 edition), not residents rating daily life. Nothing here measures electricity reliability or internet speed. Taiwan has no World Bank data; Morocco has no recent logistics rating, so its score uses the digital half only.
Temperature, sunshine, and rainfall scored against your preferred weather type. Select your preference during onboarding or adjust in the ranking view.
Climate is personal: there is no objectively best weather. Your preference for warmth, seasons, rainfall, and sunshine drives this score. Unlike other dimensions, climate varies dramatically within large countries; for large countries you can select a specific city, and the default is the largest city by population.
Climate varies significantly across United States. Use the city selector at the top of the page to update this score.
climate = 100 − (|avg_temp − ref| × penalty) − rain_penalty − sunshine_penalty. Reference temp and thresholds vary by weather type.
Limitation: For about 35 large countries you can pick a city; all others use one representative city. Heuristic scoring, not a climate model.
How much the state restricts religious practice and how much hostility religious groups face from society. It does not measure how secular or how religious a country is.
For people of faith, the ability to practise openly without government restrictions or social hostility is fundamental. This dimension measures both state-level restrictions (laws, regulations) and social-level hostility (harassment, discrimination by neighbours or communities).
religious_freedom = (100 − pew_govt_normalised) × 0.50 + (100 − pew_social_normalised) × 0.50
Limitation: Coded by Pew researchers from published reports, not a survey of residents. A high score means few restrictions and little hostility; it says nothing about whether daily life is secular or devout. Captures state and society level, not neighbourhood level.
Adult English ability as measured by the EF English Proficiency Index. Countries where English is a main language are scored at 100.
For non-native English speakers relocating abroad, the population's English ability determines how easily you can navigate daily life, work, and social connections without learning the local language. A high score means English gets you far; a low score means significant language investment.
english_proficiency = ef_epi_normalised. Countries where English is a main language are set to 100.
Limitation: EF EPI tests people who chose to take a free online test, who are more educated and urban than average, so scores skew upward. Countries where English is a main language are set to 100 rather than measured. A country missing from the latest EF edition keeps its previous score for one year.
United States ranks 55th out of 59 countries for purchasing power on income from abroad, scoring 36 out of 100. Price level ratio vs US: 1.00 (average). GDP per person, adjusted for local prices: $90,027 (very high income). This is what the score uses for someone earning a local salary.
Sources: Price Level Ratio (2025), GDP per person (PPP, intl $) (2025)
United States ranks 30th out of 60 countries for rule of law, scoring 69 out of 100. WGI Rule of Law percentile: 71.7 (strong). WGI Corruption Control: 65.5 (strong control).
Sources: WGI Rule of Law (2025), WGI Corruption Control (2025)
United States ranks 50th out of 60 countries for safety, scoring 45 out of 100. Homicides per 100,000 people: 5.8 (moderate). Numbeo Crime Index, based on residents' reports: 49.2 (moderate).
Sources: Homicides per 100,000 (2023), Numbeo Crime Index (2026), Global Peace Index (context, not scored) (2025)
United States ranks 13th out of 42 countries for warmth, scoring 60 out of 100. Hofstede Indulgence vs Restraint: 68 (indulgent). InterNations Ease of Settling In rank: 25 (easy to settle in).
Sources: Hofstede IVR (2010), InterNations Ease Rank (2025), Gallup MAI (2018)
United States ranks 22nd out of 57 countries for school culture, scoring 57 out of 100. PISA 2022 academic scores: reading 492 (above average), maths 477 (oecd average). Student belonging index: 0.20 (above average). Bullying exposure index: 0.17 (above average).
Sources: PISA Reading (2022), PISA Maths (2022), PISA Science (2022), PISA Belonging Index (2022), PISA Bullying Index (2022), PISA Safety Index (2022)
United States ranks 25th out of 59 countries for healthcare, scoring 72 out of 100. WHO UHC coverage: 86 (excellent). HAQ Index: 84.2 (high quality). Physicians: 2.6 per 1,000 (moderate). Hospital beds: 2.8 per 1,000 (moderate). Your employer provides coverage. Verify it's in your offer — no employer means no coverage or very expensive self-purchase.
Sources: WHO UHC Coverage (2021), HAQ Index (GBD 2019) (2019), Physicians per 1,000 (2022), Hospital beds per 1,000 (2022), Nurses per 1,000 (2022)
United States ranks 17th out of 59 countries for infrastructure, scoring 77 out of 100. Logistics infrastructure (World Bank LPI): 3.9 out of 5 (excellent). 95% of people use the internet, with 39 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people.
Sources: Logistics infrastructure (LPI, 1-5) (2022), Internet users (% of people) (2024), Fixed broadband per 100 people (2024)
United States has average annual temperature 14.5 °C, 2700 sunshine hours per year, 125 rain days per year. Summers average 26.0 °C; winters average 2.0 °C.
Sources: Open-Meteo climate model (2023)
United States ranks 13th out of 60 countries for religious freedom, scoring 85 out of 100. Government restrictions on religion: 0.5 out of 10 (low restrictions). Social hostilities toward religion: 2.5 out of 10 (moderate).
Sources: Pew Govt Restrictions (2023), Pew Social Hostilities (2023)
English is a main language in United States, so it is scored at 100.
United States ranks 10th out of 59 countries in the Relocate Index with a composite score of 68.5 out of 100. It scores highest on english proficiency (100) and lowest on purchasing power (36). The index covers 10 dimensions scored on data from OECD, World Bank, WHO, and other institutional sources.
United States scores 45 out of 100 for safety in the Relocate Index, ranking 50th out of 60 countries. It records 5.8 homicides per 100,000 people per year. Residents rate crime at 49.2 on the Numbeo Crime Index (moderate). National averages: safety varies a lot between cities and neighbourhoods. Sources: UNODC via World Bank, Numbeo.
United States scores 72 out of 100 for healthcare, ranking 25th out of 59 countries. WHO Universal Health Coverage index: 86 (excellent). Your employer provides coverage. Verify it's in your offer — no employer means no coverage or very expensive self-purchase. Sources: WHO, IHME Global Burden of Disease, OECD Health Statistics.
United States scores 36 out of 100 for purchasing power on income from abroad, ranking 55th out of 59 countries. Its price level ratio relative to the US is 1.00 (average). A local salary is scored differently, on local income levels. Source: World Bank.
United States scores 60 out of 100 for warmth (ease of settling in), ranking 13th out of 42 countries. Hofstede Indulgence vs Restraint score: 68 (indulgent). InterNations Ease of Settling In rank: 25 (easy to settle in). Sources: Hofstede Insights, InterNations Expat Insider.
United States has an average annual temperature of 14.5 °C, summers averaging 26.0 °C and winters 2.0 °C, 2700 sunshine hours per year, 125 rain days per year. Climate data from an Open-Meteo climate model.
United States scores 57 out of 100 for school culture, ranking 22nd out of 57 countries. PISA 2022 scores: reading 492, maths 477. Student belonging index: 0.20 (above average). Source: OECD PISA 2022.
English is a main language in United States, so it is scored at 100 out of 100 for English proficiency.
Relocate Index