The subjective wellbeing of migrants in Guangzhou, China: The impacts of the social and physical environment

•Using multilevel models, this paper examines the determinants of migrants' subjective wellbeing in Guangzhou.•The results indicate that migrants have a lower level of subjective wellbeing than local residents.•The sense of relative deprivation, social support, and neighbourhood social environment determine the cognitive component of migrants' wellbeing.

China has witnessed a surge of rural-urban migrants over the past three decades. Although a plethora of literature has shed light on the low quality of migrants' lives, little research has been done to understand how migrants evaluate their own lives in host cities, and no study has been undertaken to link migrants' subjective wellbeing with their residential environments. Using the data collected from a questionnaire survey in Guangzhou and multilevel linear models, this paper examines the determinants of migrants' subjective wellbeing in host cities. It particularly focuses on the extent to which and the ways in which migrants' social ties and residential environment influence their subjective wellbeing. The results indicate that, in general, migrants have a lower level of subjective wellbeing than local residents, and the cognitive and emotional components of migrants' subjective wellbeing are influenced by different factors. The sense of relative deprivation, social support, and neighbourhood social environment matter in determining the cognitive component of migrants' wellbeing (life satisfaction) but have no impact on the emotional component of their wellbeing (positive and negative affect). No evidence shows that neighbourhood cleanliness and neighbourhood amenities influence the level of migrants' subjective wellbeing.