London has been ranked the world's best city for the eleventh consecutive year, according to a new report by Resonance Consultancy in partnership with Ipsos. The annual World's Best Cities Report for 2026 says the Capital of Capitals outperformed all other cities, placing second for prosperity and lovability and third for liveability.
The report lists the top one hundred cities in which to live, work and visit in 2025 to 2026. European cities dominate the list, and only two Asian cities feature in it. New York, described as the perpetual heartbeat of America, secured the second spot, followed by Paris in third place. Tokyo is ranked fourth, Madrid fifth and Singapore sixth.
Rome comes in seventh, with Dubai ranked eighth, making it the highest placed city in West Asia. Berlin is ninth, and Barcelona completes the top ten.
Asian cities in top ten
Tokyo and Singapore are the only Asian cities in the top ten, placed fourth and sixth, respectively.
Which Indian cities are in the world's best cities list
Bengaluru, the country's technology hub and often called the Silicon Valley of India, ranked 29th globally. It is followed by Mumbai at 40th spot, Delhi at 54th and Hyderabad at 82nd.
How the rankings are decided
The study evaluated more than 270 cities with populations of over one million to identify those offering the best overall experience. It examined education, culture, connectivity, nightlife, safety and several other indicators.
Each city was then given a Place Power Score based on three main pillars: liveability, lovability and prosperity. Liveability reflects how comfortable and convenient life is in a city, including the cost of living, cleanliness and healthcare.
Lovability measures how happily people live there. Prosperity captures a city's economic performance in terms of job opportunities, education and income levels.
To assess prosperity, the report reviewed the infrastructure supporting economic growth and talent attraction. It also considered corporate presence and the strength of the start-up ecosystem as indicators of innovation, job creation and global competitiveness.
