While our relationship has hit a bit of a rough patch lately, the United States and Canada continue to intermingle.
Along with sharing the longest international border in the world, the two countries also have a ton in common, and according to a new study, a growing number of Americans are thinking about taking that relationship one step further.
Canada is the most-searched destination for Americans looking to relocate abroad, with over 105,000 people a year researching how to make the move, according to a new global ranking from Country Navigator, a cultural intelligence platform. Second-place New Zealand logged around 60,900 annual searches. The UK came in third at 60,160.
The reasons why aren’t exactly surprising. Of all the top five destinations, Canada has the lowest cultural distance score from the U.S. at just 0.6, meaning life here would feel more familiar to an American than almost anywhere else on the planet. There are also well-worn immigration pathways for skilled workers, and over 621 American migrants per 100,000 people already live here.
Where things get interesting is when search volume gets set aside in favour of the full picture. Country Navigator’s overall ranking weighs migration levels, political stability, unemployment, and cultural alignment together, and by that measure, Canada lands tied for fifth (with Norway) with a score of 8.07 out of 10.
Canada’s weak spot is unemployment, currently sitting at 6.9%, the highest of any country in the top ten.
Switzerland takes the top overall spot with an 8.34, despite attracting only around 31,740 annual searches from Americans. It posts strong numbers everywhere else though, with 89% political stability, 4.9% unemployment, and a cultural distance of just 1.3 from the U.S. New Zealand ranks second at 8.22, with the highest political stability score in the top ten at 96%, while Ireland comes in third on the strength of its American migrant concentration, 673.9 per 100,000, boosted by its status as European headquarters for Google, Meta, and Apple.
The broader pattern across the top ten is pretty consistent: English-speaking or culturally familiar destinations, functioning immigration systems, and stable economies. Essentially, places where starting over wouldn’t feel quite so much like starting from scratch.
But when it comes to where Americans are actually looking, the answer is Canada, and it isn’t particularly close.
Top countries for Americans to relocate to:
- Switzerland
- New Zealand
- Republic of Ireland
- Netherlands
- Canada (joint 5th)
- Norway (joint 5th)
- Denmark
- Australia
- Singapore
- United Kingdom
This story was inspired by the article “Over 105,000 Americans a year want to move to Canada and no other country comes close” which was originally published on Narcity.