World’s most and least friendly countries for expats ranked
Home sweet — and so far away — home.
A new survey ranking the friendliest — and least friendly — countries to move to for work, school, or retirement was released — with the US far from the top.
The survey was conducted by InterNations, an expat guide, which ranked 53 countries around the world by asking its residents to rate where they live.
If you’re thinking of relocating, you might want to consider Costa Rica, as it ranked No. 1 for its ease of settling in, for its culture, feeling of welcome, and local friendliness.
“The locals are generally gentle, lovely people. You learn to adapt to a ‘Pura Vida’ life in Costa Rica,” a Canadian expat told InterNations.
Mexico didn’t fall far behind, coming in second place. 75% of people who relocated here have a thriving social life and more than 80% felt welcomed with open arms when they decided to call Mexico home.
The Philippines was ranked as the third best country for expats due to its ‘free and easy lifestyle.’ According to the study, a lot of people moved here for love or retirement.
The US might not have ranked in the top 10 friendliest places to relocate to — it ranked No. 28 on the list — but at least it didn’t come in last.
That last place title belongs to Kuwait. Clearly the Kuwait locals are set in their ways, because it has come in last for this ranking the past 10 years.
It is said to be difficult to make friends with the locals, and only about a quarter of expats actually feel welcome in Kuwait.
Norway came in second to last. “No matter how advanced my Norwegian language skills are, I still can’t seem to make Norwegian friends,” an expat from Kenya told InterNations.
Another country that has consistently ranked low on this list is Germany. 32% of expats say they don’t feel welcome here and that it’s very hard to make friends.
Some other notable mentions known for being the least friendly countries are Switzerland ranking No. 46, and the UK ranking 42 on the list.
In a recent survey, 17% of Americans said they’d like to move outside the U.S. in the next five years.
Well, hopefully some Americans will reconsider where they think they want to move to — as some of the countries on the list include England, Switzerland, and Germany — which we now know are some of the least friendly countries.
See the top and bottom 10 countries below:
1. Costa Rica
2. Mexico
3. The Philippines
4. Indonesia
5. Brazil
6. Thailand
7. Panama
8. Colombia
9. Kenya
10. Greece
…
44. Hungary
45. Denmark
46. Switzerland
47. Czechia
48. Sweden
49. Austria
50. Finland
51. Germany
52. Norway
53. Kuwait
Source: InterNations
