BankWest's Quality of Life Index looked at 590 local government areas (LGAs) across Australia and ranked them against 10 key criteria, including: employment levels, crime rates, internet access, health, education levels, earnings, home ownership rates, house size, proportion of empty homes and community involvement.

“Although many Australians dream of living on the coast or in the country, in reality the best quality of life in Australia is found in the suburbs, particularly in Sydney’s north, Melbourne’s east and western Perth,” BankWest Retail Chief Executive Ian Corfield said.

BankWest's media release can be found here.