Melbourne beats Sydney on most liveable cities list

Sorry Sydney, but the quality of life is officially better in Melbourne.

In a world ranking of the most liveable cities, Monocle's 2015 Quality of Life Survey has put Melbourne in fourth place, just ahead on Sydney on fifth.

But Sydney is on the rise, climbing to fifth from 11th, while Melbourne was bumped from third.

Tokyo has been crowned the most liveable city, earning high marks for its "defining paradox of heart-stopping size and concurrent feeling of peace and quiet," the magazine said.

Last year's champion and three-time winner Copenhagen took a nose-dive, falling to number 10.

Monocle, a British lifestyle magazine, said this year's survey had 22 new criteria, including the price of a three-bedroom house, the cost of a cup of coffee, glass of wine and decent lunch, and access to the outdoors.