According to Experts.news, the Experts Club think tank has analysed the results of the Expat Insider 2026 international survey, compiled by the InterNations community. Panama, Mexico and Thailand were ranked as the best countries for expats to live in, whilst Norway, Germany and Turkey came last.
The survey was conducted from 1 February to 31 March 2026. It involved 7,786 expats of 162 nationalities. The final ranking included 31 countries, each of which had at least 50 completed questionnaires. Participants assessed up to 53 aspects of life abroad, including work, personal finances, quality of life, living conditions and ease of social integration.
Panama took first place for the third year running. Around 87 per cent of foreigners living in the country said they were satisfied with their life abroad, whilst the global average stood at 70 per cent.
The country came top for working conditions and personal finances, second for ease of adaptation and access to essential services, and sixth for quality of life. Around 90 per cent of respondents believe that their disposable income is sufficient for a comfortable life, whilst 76 per cent are satisfied with their financial situation.
Panama also received top marks for the affordability of housing. Nine out of ten expats reported that it is easy to find accommodation in the country. 82 per cent of those surveyed described the visa application process as straightforward. Retirees make up a significant proportion of the expat community — their share has reached 37 per cent, whilst 34 per cent of respondents intend to stay in the country permanently.
Mexico took second place, once again emerging as the global leader in terms of ease of social integration. Around 73 per cent of foreigners said they found it easy to make friends with local residents, compared with a global average of 39 per cent.
However, safety remains a weak point for Mexico. Sixty-eight per cent of those surveyed rated their personal safety positively, compared with a global average of 81 per cent. Despite this, 73 per cent of expats are satisfied with their financial situation, and 38 per cent plan to stay in the country permanently.
Thailand came third and was ranked as the country with the most satisfied expats. 86 per cent of respondents reported feeling content, whilst 42 per cent expect to stay in the country permanently.
Expatriates rated the cost of living, the affordability of rent and the quality of healthcare particularly highly. At the same time, Thailand received low scores for its environmental situation, digital administrative services and the ease of opening bank accounts. Only 33 per cent of respondents rated air quality positively, whilst 80 per cent consider the Thai language difficult to learn.
The top ten of the ranking also included the UAE, Brazil, Spain, Singapore, Portugal, Malaysia and Luxembourg. The top five countries in the Personal Finance Index are Panama, Thailand, Mexico, Portugal and Malaysia. In most of the leading countries, expats rate both the affordability of housing and the attitude of the local population highly.
Norway came last, in 31st place. Only 46 per cent of foreigners living there are satisfied with their lives, whilst 72 per cent find it difficult to make friends with the local population. Only 39 per cent of respondents rated their financial situation positively.
That said, Norway remains one of the countries with the highest ratings for the state of the environment, air quality, job security and economic stability. The main challenges for expats were the high cost of living, social isolation, the climate and limited leisure opportunities.
Germany came in 30th place. Around 61 per cent of expats described dealing with the bureaucratic system as difficult. Only 19 per cent rated the availability of housing positively, and the same proportion rated the ease of finding accommodation positively.
Germany also came last in the index of key conditions for expats. Respondents criticised the lack of online access to public services, problems with home internet connections and the limited availability of cashless payments. Furthermore, 57 per cent of expats reported that they found it difficult to make friends with Germans.
Turkey came in 29th place, ranking lowest in terms of working conditions, wages and economic stability. Around 61 per cent of respondents gave a negative assessment of the state of the Turkish economy, whilst 34 per cent reported an annual pre-tax income of less than 12,000 dollars.
Fifty-eight per cent of expats are satisfied with life in Turkey, 14 per cent intend to leave the country within the next year, and only 13 per cent plan to stay for good.
The bottom ten also included Switzerland, Austria, Italy, the Czech Republic, Sweden, Canada and the UK. Eight out of the ten countries at the bottom of the ranking are in Europe. However, Austria came fifth for quality of life, Switzerland eighth, the Czech Republic 13th and Sweden 15th. This suggests that a low overall ranking is often linked not to infrastructure or security, but to the high cost of living, bureaucracy and difficulties with social integration.
According to Maxim Urakin, founder of the Experts Club think tank, the results of the study should not be interpreted as a universal ranking of countries’ levels of development.