Hong Kong Is a Roller Coaster Ride for Expats
- Transit Options Improve & the Cuisine Delights
- Healthcare Is Expensive & Air Quality Still Poor
- International Friend Circles
- Long Working Hours, the Price for Better Career Prospects
- Good Incomes Amid High Living Costs
- A Tale of Two Extremes
- Further Reading
In the 2024 Expat City Ranking, Hong Kong gains 12 spots from its position in 2023 to rank 22nd out of 53 cities — continuing to improve since 2022 when it was in the bottom 10 (46th). Expats are also happier with their lives abroad, going from dead last in 2022 (50th) to 12th in 2024. Most indices are faring better, with the best-performing index being Personal Finance (19th). The same cannot be said for Working Abroad (46th).
Transit Options Improve & the Cuisine Delights
Quality of Life in Hong Kong lands in an average 23rd place, as its five subcategories appear on opposite sides of the ranking — from Travel & Transit in the top 10 to Safety & Security in the bottom 10.
Travel & Transit (9th) has seen major improvement since 31st and 20th place in 2022 and 2023, respectively. About nine in ten expats rate the affordability (88%) and availability (90%) of public transportation in Hong Kong positively (vs. a global 70% and 72%, respectively). A similar share (93%) appreciate the opportunity to travel (vs. 83% globally).
“I like being in the city center, but with beaches and access to the sea within 30 minutes.” – British expat
Leisure Options (16th) is above average. At more than 10 percentage points higher than the global average, 87% and 77% of respondents are pleased with Hong Kong’s culinary & dining options (vs. 73% globally) and the culture & nightlife (vs. 66%), respectively.
Healthcare Is Expensive & Air Quality Still Poor
When it comes to Healthcare (19th), the results are mixed: more than eight in ten expats (83%) appreciate its availability (vs. 68% globally) but not even half (40%) find it affordable (vs. 58%).
Near the bottom are the Environment & Climate (40th) and Safety & Security (46th) Subcategories. Air quality is an especially sore point (48th): nearly twice the global average of expats give this factor a negative rating (37% vs. 19%). The climate & weather (18th) and natural environment (26th) fare better, at least.
But despite praising the sunny days, many respondents complain of the high humidity, such as this US American expat: “I’m buying a dehumidifier today. It’s really hard to dry clothes.”
Expats feel safe in Hong Kong (9th) but rank political stability (50th) and the freedom to openly express themselves and their opinions (51st) in the bottom 10.
International Friend Circles
The Ease of Settling In Index is in 21st place. The majority of expats has a personal support network (10th) and is happy with their social life in Hong Kong (10th) — landing Finding Friends in 11th place. However, they don’t feel similarly about Local Friendliness (31st).
Indeed, only 4% of respondents say they’re friends with mostly local residents (vs. 17% globally). The vast majority describes their friend groups as mixed (54% vs. 46% globally) or consisting of other expats (42% vs. 37%).
Overall, expats feel at home in Hong Kong (11th), though the culture may not be the easiest to get used to (32nd).
Long Working Hours, the Price for Better Career Prospects
Hong Kong’s worst-performing index is Working Abroad (46th). Although its Work & Leisure (52nd) and Work Culture & Satisfaction (45th) Subcategories also follow in the bottom 10, Career Prospects is in 14th place, showing a jump in 21 ranks compared to last year’s 35th spot.
Expats aren’t pleased with their work–life balance (52nd) or the (lack of) flexibility in the local business culture (48th). And twice the global average (34%) is dissatisfied with their working hours (vs. 17% globally). This isn’t surprising, as full-time work in Hong Kong is noticeably longer than the global average per week (45.1 h vs. 42.5 h globally).
Still, seven in ten respondents (70%) agree that moving to Hong Kong improved their career prospects (vs. 56% globally), ranking this factor 10th. Not far behind is personal career opportunities in 13th place. This is at least good news for the 68% of expats who moved for job-related reasons. While there, they can expect an average job market (27th) and job security (24th).
Good Incomes amid High Living Costs
Although aspects of working abroad leave much to be desired, the income is good: Hong Kong is in 19th place in the Personal Finance Index. The majority of expats is satisfied with their financial situation (71%) and says their disposable household income is about or more than enough to lead a comfortable life (84%), compared to a global 54% and 70%, respectively.
A major concern is the general cost of living, though: not even one in ten expats (9%) are happy with this factor (vs. 40% globally). This is an interesting statistic, as 42% of respondents report a gross yearly income of at least 100,000 USD, more than double the global average of 20%.
“There’s noise and air pollution. And the accommodation and living costs are high.” – British expat
A Tale of Two Extremes
In terms of Expat Essentials, Hong Kong ranks 22nd. Among the mediocre performances of Digital Life (32nd) and Language (36th), Admin Topics (9th) stands out.
More than seven in ten expats are pleased with the availability of government services online (74% vs. 58% globally) and high-speed internet access at home (87% vs. 78%). However, their access to online services like social media (45th) is more restricted: 12% rate this factor negatively, double the global average of 6%.
On the bright side, it’s easy to deal with the local bureaucracy/authorities (8th) and obtain a visa to move to Hong Kong (5th) — only 3% of respondents found the visa process difficult (vs. 26% globally).
In another example of extremes, 72% of expats rate the ease of finding housing positively (vs. 45% globally), yet a mere 3% say the same about its affordability (vs. 34%). These two factors of the Housing Subcategory (22nd) find themselves in the top 10 (6th) and bottom 10 (46th), respectively.
