Kfar Saba Ranks Highest On Urban Quality Of Life In Israel, Jerusalem Lowest

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — The Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) released data regarding the quality of life for Israelis in cities over 100,000 residents. Kfar Saba ranked first on the survey while Jerusalem, the capital city, ranked last.

The survet evaluated responses to 52 quality of life indices across different categories in 16 major cities in Israel: Kfar Saba, Rehovot, Ramat Gan, Rishon Lezion, Beersheba, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Holon, Netanya, Petah Tikva, Haifa, Beit Shemesh, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Bnei Brak, Bat Yam, and Jerusalem.

It should be noted that the capital is home to some 550,000 Jewish and 350,000 Arab residents and this broad spectrum of residents could affect its quality of life indices. It is also home to a large and socioeconomically challenged chareidi population, many of whom live in crowded residential areas.

The indices surveyed included life expectancy, infant mortality rates, housing density, water quality, satisfaction with the residential areas, satisfaction with parks and green spaces in the residential areas, internet use rates, recycling rates, and general trust and confidence in others.

Kfar Saba ranked first in life expectancy (84.9) housing density (0.7 people per room as compared with 0.86 for other cities’ average), satisfaction with residential areas (95.5%), and satisfaction with parks and green spaces (83.9%).

Rehovot was runner up but led in the category of citizens generally satisfied with life (97.5%). Rehovot also boasted the highest number of residents who felt their job correlated with their field of study and enabled promotion. Rehovot was also one of the safest cities – not a single traffic accident death was reported there in 2020.

Ramat Gan had the lowest infant mortality (1 per 1000 births compared to a national average of 2.8), as well as the highest rate of internet use (97.5%) and highest percentage of recycled waste (41.1% compared to 22% national average).

Rishon Letzion led as the safest city to walk alone at night (88.9%) while Tel Aviv boasted the highest employment rate (69.4% compared with 59.1% average) and the highest number of children receiving matriculation certificates (71.1%). However the city, ranked the most expensive in the world, includes nearly 50% of citizens paying 30% or more of their income for housing. Still, Tel Aviv has the highest number of residents who felt satisfied with their work-life balance.

Jerusalem had a lower number than average of residents who were feeling depressed (20.3% compared to the 22.9% average) and ranked higher than average in water quality. Given the capital’s population composition, there was a significant gap between the percentage of Jews who felt satisfied with their lives (96%) and the percentage of Arab residents who felt the same (75%).