EdinburghThe old town and the new
Measured from 1,000+ plays across 9 walked routes: in Edinburgh, you pass a place with a story every 254 metres.
Ranked #4 of 10 United Kingdom big cities
2026 edition · scores vs all indexed cities · measured 2026-08-21 · scored on 7 of 8 measures · how we measure
Depth45/100
55 places with a story
13 historical figures · 1h of stories
Density62/100
a story every 254 m
median along a route
Character97/100
crime & dark history
typical story: 1788 · early modern
Pulse33/100
Instagrammability 20/100
peak month: Jul
Edinburgh, measured
The scores
Ranked against
| What we measure | Edinburgh | Score out of 100 | Rank | Global leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Depth | ||||
| Places with a storyspots where a route tells you what happened there | 55 | 42 | #32 of 71 | London · 594 |
| Historical figuresreal people you meet in its stories | 13 | 48 | #16 of 68 | London · 184 |
| Hours of storieshow long its stories take to read, end to end | 0.7h | 44 | #27 of 71 | London · 7h |
| Density | ||||
| How often you pass a storymetres from one story to the next | 254 m | 62 | #27 of 71 | Williamsburg (United States) · 100 m |
| Character | ||||
| Years its stories coverfrom its oldest story to its newest | 974 yrs | 97 | #6 of 70 | London · 1025 yrs |
| Pulse | ||||
| Instagrammabilityhow often players photograph this city | 20/100 | 20 | #47 of 54 | Sydney (Australia) |
| Group outingsof every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3 or more | 16 in 100 | 45 | #35 of 69 | Houston (United States) · 32 in 100 |
| International visitorsshare of player reviews written in a foreign language | 4% | not scored here: most visitors write English too, so the measure cannot tell them apart | #34 of 47 | Venice (Italy) · 97% |
How to read this table›
How to read it: each score is out of 100, measured against a fixed scale that is the same for every city and every edition. Edinburgh's 55 on places with a story scores 42, and it scores 42 on any page you find it. The switch above changes who it is ranked against, not the scores: right now that is all 80 indexed cities (19 countries so far). Edinburgh is scored on 7 of the 8 measures: its overall score averages those 7, and the greyed measures stay out of the average rather than counting against it. Ranks compare cities of a similar size. What a city's stories are about has no better or worse, so themes and eras aren't scored. Instagrammability is shown as a score only; how it's calculated is on the methodology page.
The medal table
What Edinburgh wins
- Most crime & dark history among the United Kingdom' big cities· 38% of its stories
- Most royalty & nobility among the United Kingdom' big cities· 24% of its stories (shared)
Won against the other big cities of United Kingdom in the 2026 edition. See the full table on the country page.
Character
What its stories are about
- crime & dark history38%
- arts & culture29%
- royalty & nobility24%
- legends & myths24%
- faith & churches16%
- guilds & trade15%
- industry & modern era11%
Out of Edinburgh's 55 places with a story, the share whose story touches each theme. One story can touch several.
Character
Which centuries you walk through
- Early modern50%
- 19th century38%
- Medieval6%
- Contemporary6%
When Edinburgh's stories happen (62% of them mention a year).
Pulse
When people play here
Typical share of player reviews per month (median across 5 recent years). Peak: Jul.
Pulse
Who visits, by review language
- English96%
- German3%
- French1%
Language of 1,000+ written player reviews. A proxy for who visits; English hides several nationalities.
Depth
55 stories wait on its streets. Here are three
Despite its modern notoriety and popularity with tourists, it is actually up for debate as to whether John Knox ever lived in…
Edinburgh Castle is said to be the most besieged place in all of Britain. Across its long life it has been a…
Major Thomas Weir was an elite Edinburgh soldier and devout preacher known as "Angelical Thomas." He lived in a tall tenement off…
Depth
Figures you meet on Edinburgh's streets
Major Thomas Weir
at 5 places
Upper Bow · Makars' Court · West Bow
Robert Burns
at 5 places
Milnes Bar · Beehive Inn · The Writers' Museum
King James
at 4 places
The Witchery by the Castle · The Mound · Edinburgh Castle
Robert Louis Stevenson
at 3 places
Makars' Court · Beehive Inn · The Burns Monument
Sir Walter Scott
at 3 places
Scott Monument · Assembly Rooms · William Chambers Monument
Deacon Brodie
at 2 places
Makars' Court · St Giles' Cathedral
Henry Raeburn
at 2 places
The Stock Bridge · The Burns Monument
John Knox
at 2 places
John Knox House · St Giles' Cathedral
Depth
Every Edinburgh place with a story, on one map
Each pin is a place whose story a Questo route tells. Tap one for the quest that tells it. See an empty street that deserves a pin? The form at the bottom of this page adds your story to the editors' queue.
Walk Edinburgh's stories yourself
Three of 9 routes here. See everything in Edinburgh
Where next after Edinburgh?
LondonThe city of kings and crowds534 km away · a story every 273 m
ManchesterThe city that rewrote pop282 km away · a story every 293 m
GlasgowThe city of Mackintosh and saints67 km away · a story every 410 m
NorwichThe city of medieval churches470 km away · a story every 246 m
BrightonThe regency seaside605 km away · a story every 239 m
LiverpoolThe city the Beatles left284 km away · a story every 292 mHow does Edinburgh compare?
Put Edinburgh head-to-head with any city in the index, measure by measure, from real walking data.
Quick answers
- What is Edinburgh like to explore on foot?
- Edinburgh has 55 places with a story across 9 self-guided Questo routes, with a story every 254 metres of walking on average. Its stories lean towards crime & dark history and arts & culture.
- Which historical period defines Edinburgh?
- 50% of Edinburgh's dated stories come from the early modern period; its oldest dated story reaches back to 1050.
- When do people visit Edinburgh?
- Player activity in Edinburgh peaks in Jul, with a typical 31% of reviews arriving June to August (median across 5 recent years of Questo reviews).
- How is this measured?
- From Questo's own walked routes and player activity in Edinburgh: 1,000+ plays and 1,000+ reviews. Full method on the City Stories Index methodology page, 2026 edition.
Quote any line, attributed
For press and citation
- Walking a Questo route in Edinburgh, you pass a place with a story every 254 metres on average.
- 50% of Edinburgh's dated stories come from the early modern period.
- Edinburgh's typical story happens in 1788: the median year across its dated stories, which span 974 years.
- Players meet 13 historical figures in Edinburgh's stories, from Major Thomas Weir to Robert Burns.
- 4% of Edinburgh's written player reviews are in a language other than English (from 1,000+ reviews).
- Roughly 16 of every 100 plays in Edinburgh is a group outing of three or more people, measured from invited multi-device sessions over the last 12 months.
- Edinburgh's play season peaks in Jul; a typical 31% of reviews arrive June to August (median across 5 recent years).
Copy any line as it stands: for an article, a post, or an argument at dinner. Attribution: Questo City Stories Index (2026 edition), with a link to this page. Method and sample sizes on the methodology page.
Edinburgh ranks #29 of 80. Show it.
For city halls, tourism boards, local press and anyone who lives here: this badge is yours to use, free and without asking. It links back to the measurements behind it, and it updates itself when the next edition is published.
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</a>Know a story these streets are missing?
Every place, story and figure on this page comes from routes built by people who know Edinburgh. Add what's missing: as a Questo creator, or with a quick suggestion.