When making the move abroad, many of us assume that expats are moving to hotter destinations or into busy, fast-paced cities where living costs are often very high. However, there are many different factors that affect why someone may choose to move abroad and where they move to. Research by Crystal Ski Holidays reveals what colder climates have to offer expats with a preference for the cold. The research ranked the best places to live by looking at factors such as happiness, job satisfaction and income.
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The data looks at the workplace experience of workers in each of these cold-weather countries. Using OECD Insights, the data looks at where these countries rank in comparison to the rest of the world regarding happiness at work. It also gives a ranking out of 10 regarding the job satisfaction of workers in each country and their average salary. Outside of the workplace, the data looks at the average cost of living in these countries by using the average cost of living in New York City as a comparative point. Life expectancy is another factor taken into account. The research revealed that colder climates on average have a higher life expectancy than the global average, which is 69.8 years for men and 74.2 years. In the colder temperatures, the average sits as 77.3 for men and 81.4 for women.
The coldest countries by average cost of living analysed include:
- Canada (-5.35℃)
Canada is ranked 9th for the happiest places to work. The average cost of living is also only 68.16% of the New York average.
- Russia (-5.1)
Russia has the cheapest cost of living at just 40.54% of the New York average but also is the only cold climate country that has a life expectancy below the global average with men living on average only to 64.7 years.
- Norway (1.5℃)
Norway is ranked 3 for happiness with workers earning on average €32.31 per hour. Despite this Norway also has a 4.49% higher cost of living than the New York average
- Finland (1.7℃)
Finland is number 1 for workplace happiness with workers earning an average €27 per hour. The average cost of living is also only 72.18% of the New York average.
Here are where the rest of the coldest countries ranked
- Iceland (1.75)
- Sweden (2.1℃)
- Estonia (5.1℃)
- Switzerland (5.5℃)
- China (6.95℃)
- UK (8.45℃)
- USA (8.55℃)
- Japan (11.15℃)
Japan is warmest of the cold climates at 11.15℃. It also has the highest life expectancy for women at 86.8 years of any cold-weather country. However, Japan is ranked 58th for workplace happiness despite high average cost of living in places like Tokyo.
So, where will you be moving if you love the cold?
