Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou rank as China's most attractive cities for foreign talent

The Foreign Talent Research Center of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security has recently released the 2025-2026 Foreign Talent Attraction Index of Chinese Cities.

The survey covered 81 cities in China with relatively high concentrations of foreign talent (excluding Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) and collected 6,258 valid questionnaires.

Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou lead the index, followed by Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Qingdao, Nanjing, Chengdu, Xiamen, Dalian, Tianjin, Xi'an, Chongqing, Kunming, Ningbo, Haikou, Jinan, Changsha and Wuhan. More than 60 percent of surveyed high-level foreign experts expressed a desire to pursue long-term careers in China.

The project has been carried out annually since its launch in 2010.