If you're going to lose your wallet somewhere, you probably want to do it in Helsinki or Mumbai -- at least you'll have a better chance of getting it returned.
Reader's Digest reporters dropped 192 wallets in 16 countries around the world in order to determine which cities were home to some of the most honest people and which had some of the least honorable citizens. In the least honest cities, less than half of the 12 "lost wallets" were returned.
Instead, most passersby pocketed the coupons and $50 in local currency that was left in every wallet. Each billfold also contained a name and phone number, along with other items typically kept in a wallet, such as a family photo and business cards.
Helsinki, Finland, was the most honest city by far; only one of the wallets was pilfered. In the United States, New York City was the sole metropolis measured, but the city still ranked highly with eight of the 12 wallets returned.
New York's ranking may come as no surprise. In the 2012 National Honesty Index, compiled by Honest Tea, 92 percent of New Yorkers paid for their drinks at an unmanned kiosk.
"It is truly inspiring to see that there are so many honest people in the world,” Raimo Moysa, editor in chief of Reader’s Digest International Magazines, said in a released statement. "And most of all, that honesty is valued among young and old, men and women, poor and rich in very different cultures."
Click over to Reader's Digest to see the full results of the lost wallet test, or see the top five least honest cities in the gallery below.
