City Stories Index · Italy · 2026 edition
Rome vs Venice
Not opinions, measured walking data. On what we can measure, they tie 3–3. Character is a different question: Rome is the city of popes and squares; Venice is the floating republic.
Change the matchup
| What we measure | Rome | Venice | Leads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Places with a storyspots where a route tells you what happened there | 150 | 32 | Rome |
| How often you pass a storymetres from one story to the next; fewer is better | 287 | 258 | Venice |
| Historical figuresreal people you meet in its stories | 41 | 6 | Rome |
| Instagrammabilityscore /100, on the index’s fixed scale | 23 | 46 | Venice |
| Group outingsof every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+ | 12 | 9 | Rome |
| International visitors% of player reviews written in a foreign language | 92 | 97 | Venice |
Differences under 5% count as ties. Sample sizes and definitions on the methodology page.
What their stories are about
How many places with a story each city has per theme: Rome in orange, Venice in blue. All bars share one scale, so lengths are comparable everywhere on the chart.
RomeVenice
48 places
royalty & nobility9 places
40 places
faith & churches10 places
38 places
arts & culture7 places
27 places
crime & dark history11 places
21 places
legends & myths8 places
7 places
guilds & trade5 places
Rome scorecard →
The city of popes and squares
Venice scorecard →
The floating republic