Four simple rules behind Japan's most liveable cities
This piece examines the urban planning principles that make Japanese cities highly liveable, focusing on accessibility and reduced reliance on cars. It highlights how intentional design choices, such as walkable streets and integrated public transit, benefit diverse populations.
Why it matters
It provides a model for urban development that prioritizes human-scale infrastructure and social accessibility over car-centric design.
Share Save Add as preferred on Google Lindsey Galloway Getty Images From neighbourhood shopping streets to accessible transport, Japan's most liveable cities remove the everyday frustrations of urban life.
What makes a city genuinely easy to live in? It's not necessarily gleaming skyscrapers or world-famous attractions, but whether you can get to work without a car, do your shopping on foot, navigate a train station in a wheelchair or push a pram safely down the pavement.
Japan's cities are especially good at this. In the Economist Intelligence Unit's 2026 Global Liveability Index, Osaka ranked seventh and Tokyo rose three places to 10th, making Japan the only Asian country with two cities in the top 10.
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