One country wins on transport, another on climate, another on how easily newcomers feel at home. A quality-of-life ranking can make moving abroad look like a decision with a tidy answer. Real life is more interesting—and more individual—than a single league table.

The ranking originally featured here came from an older InterNations survey. Its country order and percentages should not be presented as current results. The useful question now is how to read such surveys without asking them to make the whole decision for you.

Find out whose experience is being measured

InterNations’ Expat Insider reports experiences of people living outside their country of origin. That is valuable information about the respondents’ lives, but it is not the same as a complete assessment of everyone living in each destination.

Read the methodology for the edition you are using. How were participants recruited? Which destinations had enough responses? What counted towards the index? Changes in the sample or questions can affect comparisons between years.

Separate the overall score into real needs

Before reading the rankings, write down three things that would most affect an ordinary week for you. Perhaps it is public transport, reliable access to a particular service and enough affordable space at home. Someone else may prioritise schools, language or proximity to family.

Use those needs to decide which parts of a survey deserve attention. An excellent overall position cannot compensate for a serious mismatch on something essential to your circumstances.

Test a normal weekday

A holiday introduces you to a place when you are free to explore it. Living there adds errands, routines and obligations. During a research visit, try travelling at the time you would commute, shopping for an ordinary meal and walking around a neighbourhood beyond its most attractive street.

Ask people about practical details, while remembering that their situation may differ from yours. A remote worker, a local employee, a student and a retired resident can experience the same city very differently.

Give each source the right job

Use surveys for patterns and questions. Use official sources for residence permissions, work rules and service eligibility. Use current local information for actual housing and daily costs, and qualified advice when decisions involve tax or other personal obligations.

A note with “known”, “needs checking” and “would like to test” can be more helpful than another list of the world’s best places. It turns a broad idea into something you can investigate.

Our guide to travel expectations and reality explores the same habit with photographs. Whether the inspiration is a beautiful image or a number-one ranking, the next step is to discover how the place would work for you.