Cambridge vs Manchester
Not opinions, measured walking data. On what we can measure, Manchester leads 3–2. Character is a different question: Cambridge is the college town on the cam; Manchester is the city that rewrote pop.
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Places with a story
spots where a route tells you what happened there
Cambridge
33
Manchester
65
Manchester leads
How often you pass a story
metres from one story to the next; fewer is better
Cambridge
239
Manchester
293
Cambridge leads
Historical figures
real people you meet in its stories
Cambridge
9
Manchester
12
Manchester leads
Instagrammability
score /100, on the index’s fixed scale
Cambridge
5
Manchester
23
Manchester leads
Group outings
of every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+
Cambridge
20
Manchester
19
Cambridge leads
International visitors
% of player reviews written in a foreign language
Cambridge
—
Manchester
1
Manchester leads
| What we measure | Cambridge | Manchester | Leads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Places with a storyspots where a route tells you what happened there | 33 | 65 | Manchester |
| How often you pass a storymetres from one story to the next; fewer is better | 239 | 293 | Cambridge |
| Historical figuresreal people you meet in its stories | 9 | 12 | Manchester |
| Instagrammabilityscore /100, on the index’s fixed scale | 5 | 23 | Manchester |
| Group outingsof every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+ | 20 | 19 | Cambridge |
| International visitors% of player reviews written in a foreign language | — | 1 | Manchester |
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: Cambridge in orange, Manchester in blue. All bars share one scale, so lengths are comparable everywhere on the chart.
Cambridge scorecard →
The college town on the Cam
Manchester scorecard →
The city that rewrote pop