100 best cities in the world 2026 – ranked

August 1, 2026

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The best cities in the world have been ranked for liveability, lovability and prosperity. We take a look at what came top

New York is having a renaissance of sorts. With a Mayor that oozes rizz, the Knicks in an overdue winning streak, and the buzz of the Taylor-Travis wedding, New York is having a very good year indeed.

Alas, the city that never sleeps still doesn’t rank at the top of the 100 best cities in the world, according to Resonance, an expert team of economists, data scientists and urban analysts who help world leaders set goals.

Their annual ranking has placed one city at the top for an incredible 11th consecutive year. Think double-decker buses, fish and chips and dainty afternoon tea. That’s right. Cool Britannia rules once more. The best city in the world is London.

London tops the best cities in the world — London is the best city in the world

London continues to draw a global audience, from students and entrepreneurs to tourists and corporate titans. In 2024, the UK capital saw $22 billion in international traveler spending, up from $17.4 billion in 2023, demonstrating a strong post-pandemic recovery.

It remains a bucket-list destination with record-breaking arrivals at Heathrow Airport and a recent $320m upgrade at Gatwick.

Part of the London skyline — An iconic part of the London skyline

Meanwhile, London’s skyline is undergoing its most dramatic transformation since Sir Christopher Wren rebuilt the city after the Great Fire. Add world-class culture and cuisine and it’s easy to see why London has consistently ranked as the world’s best city.

How is the ranking created?

To measure and rank the 100 best cities in the world, Resonance focuses on cities with a population of more than one million people.

It then draws on core statistics, user-generated data from online sources such as Google, Instagram and TikTok, and qualitative data from over 21,000 respondents across 31 countries who are asked which three towns or cities they would most like to live in, most like to visit, and think currently offer the best job opportunities.

This data is coded into three indices:

Liveability: biking, walkability, weather, air quality, climate risk, green space, sights & landmarks, nature & parks, public transit, internet infrastructure, standard of living, health, perception data.

Lovability: Google trends, TikTok videos, Facebook (or Weibo) check-ins, Instagram (or Rednote) posts, nightlife, shopping, restaurants, museums, theaters & concerts, family-friendly attractions, perception data.

Prosperity: Size of the largest convention center, number of large companies headquartered there, labor force participation, airports, highest-ranking university, economic output, business ecosystem, unemployment rate, educational attainment, perception data.

The data is then used to create a Place Power Score for each of the three indices, ultimately determining the world’s best cities.

Note: the ranking excludes all Russian cities, as it has since 2022, due to the country’s illegal invasion of Ukraine and its ongoing military aggression.

The top 5

London is followed closely by New York, Paris, Tokyo and Madrid.

New York moved ahead of Paris in 2025 thanks to its high number of Global 500 companies as well as its notorious nightlife, shopping and culture.

New York City comes second in the best cities in the world — New York ranks second

Paris is the third best city due to its ambitious sustainability policies which have included expanding cycle routes, reducing city speed limits and tree planting as it aims to become Europe’s greenest city by 2030.

Tokyo is Asia’s highest-ranked city in fourth place. The report highlights Tokyo’s popularity with travellers and shoppers as well as the city’s relentlessly expanding foodie scene.

Rounding out the top 5 is Madrid, ranked for its green ambition and cultural diversity.

100 best cities in the world – complete ranking

Below you can view the complete ranking of the best cities in the world, based on the Place Power Score for liveability, lovability and prosperity. The final column is the city’s population.

Rank	City	Live	Love	Pros	Population (m)
1	London, UK	3	2	1	12.4
2	New York, USA	2	3	2	19.9
3	Paris, France	1	1	4	13.1
4	Tokyo, Japan	4	4	3	36.6
5	Madrid, Spain	7	6	10	6.9
6	Singapore, Singapore	9	12	5	6.0
7	Rome, Italy	5	5	34	4.3
8	Dubai, UAE	17	9	6	6.0
9	Berlin, Germany	10	10	7	5.1
10	Barcelona, Spain	6	7	23	5.0
11	Sydney, Australia	8	20	8	5.4
12	Los Angeles, USA	13	13	13	12.9
13	Seoul, South Korea	12	16	16	24.1
14	Amsterdam, Netherlands	11	25	14	2.9
15	Beijing, China	34	15	12	21.3
16	Shanghai, China	40	17	9	28.4
17	Toronto, Canada	14	29	15	7.6
18	São Paulo, Brazil	54	8	40	22.4
19	Hong Kong, China	29	27	22	7.6
20	Istanbul, Turkïye	41	14	51	14.2
21	Melbourne, Australia	22	42	21	5.2
22	Bangkok, Thailand	42	18	42	10.8
23	Osaka, Japan	21	24	52	16.6
24	Oslo, Norway	15	62	17	1.6
25	Stockholm, Sweden	19	56	18	2.4
26	Miami, USA	26	30	30	6.4
27	Vienna, Austria	18	32	47	3.1
28	San Francisco, USA	43	69	11	4.6
29	Bengaluru, India	46	19	57	13.1
30	Mexico City, Mexico	90	11	77	20.5
31	Munich, Germany	27	54	19	3.0
32	Dublin, Ireland	23	55	25	2.2
33	Copenhagen, Denmark	16	74	27	2.1
34	Zürich, Switzerland	20	98	24	1.6
35	Chicago, USA	49	38	28	9.4
36	Milan, Italy	38	39	31	4.9
37	Lisbon, Portugal	24	31	85	3.1
38	Prague, Czechia	25	33	81	2.2
39	Buenos Aires, Argentina	39	21	127	15.3
40	Mumbai, India	65	26	60	20.9
41	Vancouver, Canada	28	63	32	2.7
42	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	37	22	142	13.6
43	Warsaw, Poland	33	58	29	3.3
44	Hamburg, Germany	30	59	43	3.4
45	Shenzhen, China	193	34	26	12.8
46	Montreal, Canada	36	65	39	4.6
47	Budapest, Hungary	31	57	65	2.9
48	Brussels, Belgium	44	92	33	3.4
49	Riyadh, Saudi Arabia	155	45	35	7.5
50	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia	88	51	44	8.4
51	Bogota, Colombia	97	35	80	9.3
52	Guangzhou, China	198	40	38	13.9
53	Jakarta, Indonesia	238	28	61	32.2
54	Delhi, India	252	23	87	32.0
55	Las Vegas, USA	149	36	71	2.3
56	Boston, USA	53	113	36	5.0
57	Washington D.C., USA	64	100	41	6.4
58	Houston, USA	174	48	48	7.7
59	Auckland, New Zealand	32	102	75	1.6
60	San Jose, USA	104	264	20	1.9
61	Helsinki, Finland	35	133	58	1.5
62	Orlando, USA	102	52	66	2.9
63	Taipei, Taiwan	51	67	83	2.7
64	Frankfurt, Germany	62	135	37	2.7
65	Lima, Peru	159	37	101	11.0
66	Atlanta, USA	135	68	50	6.4
67	Seattle, USA	72	110	49	4.1
68	Perth, Australia	52	120	56	2.3
69	Manchester, United Kingdom	60	109	54	3.3
70	Cape Town, South Africa	56	50	147	3.7
71	Krakόw, Poland	48	79	100	1.5
72	Valencia, Spain	45	75	117	1.7
73	Ottawa, Canada	47	139	63	1.5
74	Athens, Greece	59	47	177	3.5
75	Santiago, Chile	95	53	102	8.2
76	Medellín, Colombia	80	49	139	4.1
77	Cologne, Germany	69	104	64	2.2
78	Dallas, USA	180	86	45	8.3
79	Brisbane, Australia	66	141	68	2.7
80	Hangzhou, China	146	78	74	8.0
81	San Diego, USA	120	88	73	3.2
82	Hyderabad, India	172	43	149	10.5
83	Chengdu, China	141	64	94	9.4
84	Denver, USA	109	128	59	3.0
85	Calgary, Canada	85	132	70	1.6
86	Abu Dhabi, UAE	224	94	46	1.5
87	Austin, USA	125	125	62	2.5
88	Philadelphia, USA	108	115	76	6.3
89	Baltimore, USA	67	222	67	2.8
90	Stuttgart, Germany	61	180	88	2.5
91	Rotterdam, Netherlands	112	191	55	1.8
92	Lyon, France	70	134	105	2.3
93	The Ruhr, Germany	73	126	118	5.1
94	Busan, South Korea	78	112	126	3.4
95	Düsseldorf, Germany	74	193	79	1.4
96	Mecca, Saudi Arabia	119	66	166	2.1
97	Porto, Portugal	55	123	173	1.3
98	Bucharest, Romania	77	137	120	2.1
99	Birmingham, UK	106	174	78	3.1
100	Doha, Qatar	185	187	53	2.6