Top 10 Most Liveable Cities in the Muslim World in 2026

Ask most “best Muslim cities” rankings what they’re actually measuring, and the honest answer is usually tourism appeal — halal restaurant density, hotel amenities, how easy it is to find a mosque near your hotel. Useful for a holiday. Not the same question as: where would I actually want to build a life?

This list answers that second question, and only that question. We used one internationally recognised class of data — the same type of metrics behind the Economist Intelligence Unit’s own Global Liveability Index — applied identically across ten Muslim-majority cities, using Numbeo’s Quality of Life Index (current, 2026 data). No travel-friendliness scores. No citizenship-by-investment thresholds. No tourism appeal. Just the inputs that determine whether a city is genuinely good to live in: safety, healthcare access, cost of living against income, commute burden, pollution, and climate.

We’ve grouped those inputs into four criteria that international liveability standards consistently reduce to:

1. Safety & Stability — how secure daily life actually feels and is.
2. Accessibility & Infrastructure — healthcare access and how much of your day gets swallowed by getting around.
3. Community & Everyday Life — what daily life costs against what people actually earn there.
4. Environment & Quality of Life — air quality and climate, the texture of simply being outside.

The cities below are ranked strictly by their overall Quality of Life Index score. A few results will surprise you — smaller cities outperforming famous ones, and at least one household name missing entirely. We’ve let the numbers stand as they are.

Related:  The Future of the Top 10 Muslim Megacities by 2040

At a Glance: The Full Ranking

Cost of Living, Traffic, and Pollution are indexed such that lower = better; Safety, Healthcare, and Climate are indexed such that higher = better. Source: Numbeo Quality of Life Index, current 2026 data.

1. Abu Dhabi, UAE — Score: 182.0

The UAE capital tops this list on hard numbers, not reputation. Its Safety score of 88.7 is the highest of any city measured here. On Accessibility & Infrastructure, its Traffic Commute score of just 9.7 is the lowest — meaning the shortest average commute burden — of any city on the entire list, paired with a solid Healthcare score of 72.3. On Community & Everyday Life, a Cost of Living score of 56.0 against a Purchasing Power figure well above it means income comfortably outpaces daily costs. The Environment picture is a fair, honest trade-off: a Pollution score of 45.5 and a demanding desert Climate score of 43.9 — the cost of doing business in the Gulf.

Abu Dhabi doesn’t win by being the flashiest city in the region — Dubai holds that title. It wins because, day after day, the fundamentals simply work.

2. Muscat, Oman — Score: 180.9

Oman’s capital comes in a close second, anchored by a strong Safety score of 81.4 and the cleanest Environment on this list — a Pollution score of just 35.9, the best of any city ranked here. Accessibility is solid, with a Traffic Commute score of 22.5 and Healthcare at 63.3. On Community & Everyday Life, a Cost of Living score of 48.4 gives Muscat one of the more comfortable cost-to-income balances in the Gulf, without Abu Dhabi or Dubai’s premium price tag.

Slower-paced, dramatically scenic, and consistently under-marketed relative to its neighbours — Muscat’s numbers make a case its reputation hasn’t quite caught up with yet.

3. Doha, Qatar — Score: 175.1

Doha’s Accessibility is the standout here: a Healthcare score of 73.8, the highest of any city on this list — a legacy of the infrastructure built around the 2022 World Cup. Safety sits at a strong 84.6. On Community & Everyday Life, Doha posts the highest purchasing power figure of any city measured, against a moderate Cost of Living score of 53.3. The Environment trade-off is real: a Climate score of 36.0, among the more demanding in the Gulf.

This is a city built top-down and built fast, and the data shows it’s held up.

4. Manama, Bahrain — Score: 174.1

Small, and worth saying so plainly — Manama’s population is under 600,000 in the city proper, smaller than a single district of many global capitals. Its numbers earn its place regardless. Safety stands at 82.0, and on Community & Everyday Life, a Cost of Living score of 45.7 is the lowest among all the Gulf cities on this list, against solid purchasing power. Accessibility is respectable (Traffic Commute 30.8, Healthcare 67.1), and the Environment picture is mixed but manageable (Pollution 62.3, Climate 64.3).

Population size isn’t one of the four criteria measured here, and Manama is the clearest proof of why: on a per-resident basis, small doesn’t mean lesser.

5. Bursa, Türkiye — Score: 169.3

The first surprise on this list. Bursa — Türkiye’s fourth-largest city, and nowhere near as globally recognised as Istanbul — outscores it decisively here. Accessibility is genuinely excellent, with a Healthcare score of 77.5, higher than every single Gulf city on this list. On Community & Everyday Life, a Cost of Living score of just 39.7 makes Bursa among the most affordable cities measured, in absolute terms. And its Environment score includes a Climate rating of 93.4 — the best of any city on this entire ranking.

Bursa’s case is simple: strong healthcare, real affordability, and a genuinely pleasant climate, in a city most readers have never had reason to consider.

6. Dubai, UAE — Score: 167.6

The most famous city on this list, and it earns its place on merit as well as reputation. Safety sits at 83.8, just behind Abu Dhabi. Accessibility is solid (Traffic Commute 36.3, Healthcare 70.0). Where Dubai gives ground to its Gulf neighbours is Community & Everyday Life — a Cost of Living score of 62.7, the highest among the region’s top cities, a direct trade-off for the scale, variety, and opportunity Dubai offers that smaller Gulf capitals simply can’t match.

Dubai isn’t the highest-scoring city in the Gulf on this measure — but it remains, by a wide margin, the most dynamic one.

7. Antalya, Türkiye — Score: 161.9

A second Turkish city, and a second surprise. Antalya’s Environment score is the headline here — a Climate rating of 91.5, the second-best of any city on this list. Accessibility holds up well too, with a Healthcare score of 73.7, ahead of several Gulf cities. On Community & Everyday Life, a Cost of Living score of 41.9 makes Antalya genuinely affordable.

Best known internationally as a resort destination, Antalya’s numbers suggest it deserves consideration as somewhere to actually live, not just holiday.

8. Jeddah, Saudi Arabia — Score: 156.8

Saudi Arabia’s commercial and cultural gateway city — and the entry point for millions of Hajj and Umrah pilgrims each year — earns its place through solid, consistent scores rather than any single standout. Safety (75.1) and Accessibility (Traffic 29.9, Healthcare 60.8) are both respectable, and Community & Everyday Life offers a comfortable balance with a Cost of Living score of 45.8. Environment is Jeddah’s weakest category on this list, with a Pollution score of 65.5 — higher than most of the cities ranked above it.

A city defined as much by its spiritual significance as by its liveability numbers — and on this measure, the numbers hold up reasonably well too.

9. Izmir, Türkiye — Score: 154.2

The third and final Turkish city on this list, and the one with the single best Environment score of any city measured here — a Climate rating of 96.9, the highest on the entire ranking. Accessibility is solid, with a Healthcare score of 73.3, ahead of every Gulf city except Doha. Community & Everyday Life is affordable in absolute terms (Cost of Living 44.1), though Safety at 66.5 is Izmir’s softest category relative to the cities ranked above it.

Three Turkish cities in this top ten — Bursa, Antalya, and Izmir — and not Istanbul. That’s not an editorial choice. That’s what the data says.

10. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — Score: 152.1

Saudi Arabia’s capital closes out the list, driven by a strong Safety score of 75.4 and the second-highest purchasing power figure on this entire ranking under Community & Everyday Life (Cost of Living 50.4). Accessibility is solid (Traffic 34.0, Healthcare 66.2). Environment is the weaker category here, with a Pollution score of 63.5 — among the higher readings on this list.

Riyadh has undergone more visible transformation than almost any city in the region over the past decade. On this measure, that transformation has translated into a genuine, if not chart-topping, liveability result.

Three Things the Data Makes Impossible to Ignore

The Gulf still dominates the top four — and earns it specifically on safety and infrastructure. Abu Dhabi, Muscat, Doha, and Manama post the four highest safety scores (88.7, 81.4, 84.6, and 82.0 respectively) and among the lowest commute burdens of any cities measured. That’s not branding. That’s the actual data.

Istanbul does not appear on this list. Türkiye places three cities in the top ten — but Istanbul isn’t one of them. Its overall Quality of Life score (127.2) falls below every city ranked here, held back specifically by a Safety score of just 52.0 and a Traffic Commute score of 50.8, the heaviest commute burden of any Muslim-majority city measured in this dataset. Its cultural and historical weight is unmatched anywhere in the Muslim world — but on the specific, narrow question this list answers, the numbers say something different than the reputation does.

Population size plays no role in the ranking, and it shows. Manama, with a city population under 600,000, sits comfortably in the top five. Cities several times its size don’t appear on this list at all. That’s what happens when you measure quality of life per resident rather than by scale, GDP, or global name recognition — and it’s precisely why this list looks different from the ones you’ll find elsewhere.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is the safest city in the Muslim world? Based on Numbeo’s 2026 Safety Index, Abu Dhabi ranks highest among Muslim-majority cities at 88.7, ahead of Doha (84.6) and Dubai (83.8).

Is Dubai or Abu Dhabi more liveable? On this dataset, Abu Dhabi scores higher overall (182.0 vs. 167.6), driven mainly by a lower commute burden and lower cost of living relative to income. Dubai remains larger, more economically diverse, and offers greater lifestyle and career variety.

Why isn’t Istanbul on this list? Istanbul’s overall Quality of Life score (127.2) falls below all ten cities ranked here, primarily due to a lower safety score and the heaviest commute burden among Muslim-majority cities in the dataset. It remains unmatched in cultural and historical significance, which this specific liveability measure does not capture.

What criteria were used to rank these cities? Four categories, drawn from the same class of metrics used in the EIU’s Global Liveability Index: Safety & Stability, Accessibility & Infrastructure, Community & Everyday Life (cost of living vs. income), and Environment & Quality of Life (pollution and climate). No tourism, investment, or citizenship-related data was used.

Is this ranking based on population or economic size? No. Rankings reflect quality of life per resident, not city size or GDP — which is why Manama (population under 600,000) outranks several much larger cities.