City Stories Index · United Kingdom · 2026 edition
Edinburgh vs London
Not opinions, measured walking data. On what we can measure, London leads 4–2. Character is a different question: Edinburgh is the old town and the new; London is the city of kings and crowds.
Change the matchup
| What we measure | Edinburgh | London | Leads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Places with a storyspots where a route tells you what happened there | 55 | 594 | London |
| How often you pass a storymetres from one story to the next; fewer is better | 254 | 273 | Edinburgh |
| Historical figuresreal people you meet in its stories | 13 | 184 | London |
| Instagrammabilityscore /100, on the index’s fixed scale | 20 | 31 | London |
| Group outingsof every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+ | 16 | 14 | Edinburgh |
| International visitors% of player reviews written in a foreign language | 4 | 8 | London |
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: Edinburgh in orange, London in blue. All bars share one scale, so lengths are comparable everywhere on the chart.
EdinburghLondon
16 places
arts & culture141 places
9 places
faith & churches111 places
13 places
royalty & nobility104 places
21 places
crime & dark history95 places
4 places
parks & leisure74 places
13 places
legends & myths70 places
8 places
guilds & trade68 places
6 places
industry & modern era57 places
Edinburgh scorecard →
The old town and the new
London scorecard →
The city of kings and crowds