City Stories Index · United Kingdom · 2026 edition
Bristol vs Edinburgh
Not opinions, measured walking data. On what we can measure, Edinburgh leads 4–2. Character is a different question: Bristol is the merchant harbour; Edinburgh is the old town and the new.
Change the matchup
| What we measure | Bristol | Edinburgh | Leads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Places with a storyspots where a route tells you what happened there | 42 | 55 | Edinburgh |
| How often you pass a storymetres from one story to the next; fewer is better | 347 | 254 | Edinburgh |
| Historical figuresreal people you meet in its stories | 9 | 13 | Edinburgh |
| Instagrammabilityscore /100, on the index’s fixed scale | 38 | 20 | Bristol |
| Group outingsof every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+ | 19 | 16 | Bristol |
| International visitors% of player reviews written in a foreign language | 2 | 4 | Edinburgh |
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: Bristol in orange, Edinburgh in blue. All bars share one scale, so lengths are comparable everywhere on the chart.
BristolEdinburgh
5 places
crime & dark history21 places
9 places
arts & culture16 places
2 places
royalty & nobility13 places
12 places
legends & myths13 places
3 places
faith & churches9 places
5 places
guilds & trade8 places
4 places
industry & modern era6 places
Bristol scorecard →
The merchant harbour
Edinburgh scorecard →
The old town and the new