London named world’s best city brand for second year running

• London claims top spot for the second consecutive year in newly release Brand Finance Global City Index 2024
• Manchester, Liverpool, and Edinburgh’s unique offerings highlighted, from sports fame, through music connection, to outdoor beauty
• London is followed by New York and Paris, completing world’s top 3-ranked cities overall, as Tokyo and Dubai rise to 4^th and 5^th ranks
• The research is based on a survey of 15,000 respondents across 20 countries, providing global insight on the world’s top city brands

London holds on to its spot as the world’s top city brand for the second consecutive year, according to the latest Brand Finance Global City Index, the most comprehensive global survey of city perceptions.

The 2024 results are based on a survey of over 15,000 respondents across 20 countries, offering a detailed look at how the world’s leading city brands are viewed. Respondents were asked to rate 100 cities on Key Performance Indicators: Familiarity, Reputation, and Consideration, indicating how strongly these cities are perceived as places people would want to live, work, study, visit, retire, and invest in. In addition, respondents chose from 45 attributes grouped under seven pillars, including Culture & Heritage or Business & Investment, that they associated with city brands.

London retains its position as the world’s top city brand. The city excels in Familiarity (3^rd) and Reputation (3^rd), exemplifying its strong global profile and appeal. However, London faces challenges in Consideration (19^th), particularly in areas like living, investing, and retiring, with affordability (97^th) emerging as a major concern.

David Haigh, Chairman and CEO, Brand Finance, commented,

“London continues to shine as the world’s best city brand thanks to its strong international presence, rich cultural identity, and renowned educational institutions. However, challenges like affordability and perceived bureaucracy, including post-Brexit visa complexities, impact its image. While London ranks high for global significance and strong economy, its scores in liveability suggest room for improvement in how the city is perceived by international audiences. Strengthening these perceptions will be key for London to maintain its global appeal"

Manchester ranks 26^th among the world’s top 100 city brands. Its highest-ranking results from the attribute famous sports teams and clubs, for which it ranks 2^nd globally. Home to Manchester City FC and Manchester United FC, this puts the city on the global radar beyond just the sporting world. This year, however, Manchester City FC was narrowly edged out by Real Madrid CF for the title of the world’s most valuable football club brand in the annual Brand Finance Football 50. Mirroring that, Madrid claims the top spot for famous sports teams and clubs.

Liverpool ranks 38^th in the Index this year and, like Manchester, is globally recognised for its rich sporting and cultural heritage, ranked 3^rd for its famous sports teams and clubs, thanks to Liverpool FC’s iconicity. Though birthplace to The Beatles, who are widely regarded as one of the most influential bands in music history, Liverpool’s rich Culture & Heritage is less recognised outside of Europe, resulting in a lower ranking of 33^rd out of 100 in this pillar.

Scotland’s Edinburgh ranks 47^th overall, with the city excelling in perceptions surrounding its commitment to sustainability, ranked 14^th globally and 1^st among UK cities. Edinburgh shines in particular as the world’s 3^rd ranked city for green spaces and recreation. With landmarks like Arthur’s Seat and Princes Street Gardens, along with its proximity to the Scottish Highlands, Edinburgh is a vibrant destination for outdoor enthusiasts, offering a perfect blend of natural beauty and urban life.

Global Results

Beyond the UK, New York and Paris hold the 2^nd and 3^rd ranks, respectively. Paris leads in Culture & Heritage, while New York is top for Education & Science. Tokyo has risen to 4^th and is perceived as the world’s leader in science and technology.  Dubai, now 5^th globally, is perceived as the world’s most reputable city, and leads for future growth potential and investment appeal. 

David Haigh, Chairman and CEO, Brand Finance, commented:

“The 2024 study reveals that familiarity can be a double-edged sword. For example, while London remains the world’s best city brand overall, its perceptions across certain metrics have weakened this year. It is no longer considered the world’s top city to visit – overtaken by Rome, or to study in – where Boston is now top of class. These findings provide valuable insights into the changing perceptions and priorities of residents and visitors, which can help guide decision makers in cities across the world in implementing effective strategies to drive growth.”

With the introduction of regional expansions, including the US City Index launched earlier this year, the report helps city leaders across the world to understand the top 100 global city brands.

For a detailed breakdown of the rankings and insights into the global city brands, visit the full report at www.brandfinance.com/globalcityindex.

Presented by brand evaluation consultancy Brand Finance, the Brand Finance Global City Index is based on a global survey of over 15,000 members of the public conducted in September 2024 in 20 countries on all continents to measure perceptions of the world’s top 100 city brands.

To arrive at a comprehensive assessment of the city brands in the ranking, alongside measuring Familiarity, the survey asked the respondents about the general Reputation and their personal Consideration of each city as a place to live, work locally, work remotely, study, retire, visit, or invest in. The evaluation of preferences across these seven dimensions was complemented by perceptions of 45 underlying city brand attributes, grouped under seven Pillars (Business & Investment, Liveability, Culture & Heritage, People & Values, Sustainability & Transport, Governance, and Education & Science).

To ensure comparability among the top 100, the Index excludes domestic perceptions about city brands, taking into account those of foreign respondents only. Nevertheless, the domestic perceptions were also measured in the survey and are available for the 20 countries where the research was conducted.

About Brand Finance

Brand Finance is the world’s leading brand evaluation and strategy consultancy. Bridging the gap between marketing and finance for more than 25 years, Brand Finance evaluates the strength of brands and quantifies their financial value to help organisations of all kinds make strategic decisions.

Headquartered in London, Brand Finance has offices in over 20 countries, offering services on all continents. Every year, Brand Finance conducts more than 5,000 brand valuations, supported by original market research, and publishes over 100 reports which rank brands across all sectors and countries.

Brand Finance is a regulated accountancy firm, leading the standardisation of the brand valuation industry. Brand Finance was the first to be certified by independent auditors as compliant with both ISO 10668 and ISO 20671 and has received the official endorsement of the Marketing Accountability Standards Board (MASB) in the United States.

Disclaimer

Brand Finance has produced this study with an independent and unbiased analysis. The values derived and opinions presented in this study are based on publicly available information and certain assumptions that Brand Finance used where such data was deficient or unclear. Brand Finance accepts no responsibility and will not be liable if the publicly available information relied upon is subsequently found to be inaccurate. The opinions and financial analysis expressed in the study are not to be construed as providing investment or business advice. Brand Finance does not intend the study to be relied upon for any reason and excludes all liability to any individual, government, or organisation.

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