Every year the Italian equivalent of the Financial Times, Il Sole 24 Ore publishes a list of the most liveable cities in the Bel Paese.
The 2015 edition sees Bolzano return to the apex for the fifth time in 26 years, followed by Milan (up by six places thanks to the success of Expo 2015), Trento and, in fourth place, Florence. This marks a major boost for the Tuscan capital, up by 12 places compared to 2014.
For 26 years, Il Sole 24 Ore has been measuring living conditions throughout Italy by examining and analysing statistics that cover six areas: quality of life (calculated using factors such as the average pension, household expenditure and house prices); business and employment (number of companies registered, employment and youth employment); services (nursery school availability, environment, Internet and hospital beds); population (population density, net migration, separation and divorce rates, education); law and order (thefts, arrests); and leisure (cinema and theatre uptake, tourism, libraries, restaurants and nightlife).
Tuscany is the best-rated region in Italy in the Quality of Life of the Italian Provinces survey: Florence is joined by Siena in ninth place.
