Říčany reigns supreme in Czechia for the eighth time, Slavkov u Brna makes it onto the winners' podium. The Municipalities in Data project reveals where life is best in Czechia

This year, the Municipalities in Data project once again compared the quality of life in all 206 municipalities with extended powers (ORP). While the top two spots remain unchanged—gold goes to Říčany and silver to the capital city of Prague—third place has a new occupant. This year, the bronze medal went to Slavkov u Brna, which pushed Hustopeče (5th place this year) out of the medal positions.

The results show a long-term trend that the best places to live are smaller towns in close proximity to large cities. These towns benefit from excellent access to services and job opportunities in the big city, while also offering a quieter living environment.

"Říčany is a phenomenon that has been at the top since we started measuring. This is due to a unique combination of proximity to Prague, high-quality education, and civic amenities," explained Jan Havránek, head of the Municipalities in Data project.

Successful Central Bohemia and South Moravia

This year's ranking confirms the strong position of the South Moravian Region. Nine representatives of this region ranked in the top twenty, including Kuřim (4th place), Brno (7th place), and Šlapanice (9th place). Cities in Central Bohemia also performed excellently. The highest positions were occupied by Brandýs nad Labem-Stará Boleslav (6th place) and Hořovice (8th place).

This year, we again focused on cities that recorded the largest year-on-year upward shift. Among the biggest "jumpers" with improving quality of life are Votice (up 88 places), Vysoké Mýto (up 72 places), and Kaplice (up 65 places).

"Votice earned such a high jump, which is not entirely common, due to population growth and an increase in jobs. Kaplice, on the other hand, improved mainly in the number of general practitioners and pediatricians. Vysoké Mýto is a combination of these factors, benefiting mainly from a higher number of jobs and the migration of young people. However, it should be emphasized that the movements in the ranking are not caused by massive changes, but rather by small differences in individual categories among cities in the wider middle of the ranking," added Havránek.

The gap is widening

Since 2018, there has been a clear trend of widening gaps between the best and worst cities. While the average Quality of Life Index scores for the ten cities at the top of the ranking rose by five percent, those for the ten lowest-ranked cities fell by 44 percent. The overall dispersion between cities has increased by 15 percent. 

"The difference in quality of life has visibly increased over the last eight years. This is not a one-off fluctuation, but a persistent state. This trend is systematic and consistently evident across all indicators and years," said Havránek.

Significant deterioration in housing affordability

If we take a closer look at the individual indices, the biggest relative change was recorded in the housing affordability index – the affordability of home ownership deteriorated by more than 30% over eight years (prices rose much faster than incomes). Conversely, the greatest improvement has been in the area of material deprivation, where the total number of material deprivation benefits paid has fallen by half. The 29% decline in the number of people in debt enforcement proceedings means relief for tens of thousands of debtors and their families. There was a smaller change, for example, in the index of general practitioners (-4%) or the number of pediatricians in the municipality (-11%), but it is precisely the availability of medical care that may cause significant problems in the future – the decline is gradual, but it affects different areas unevenly, and some areas are already facing a critical shortage of doctors. Overall, the data show growing social disparities. Economic indicators (debt, poverty) are improving, but access to basic needs—housing and local healthcare—is deteriorating for a significant portion of the population.

We have been compiling the ranking since 2018 and have used a uniform methodology throughout. A more detailed description of the methodology is available here.