Barcelona – City Performance, Brand Strength and Reputation

Barcelona is one of Europe’s most visited cities, thanks to its Gaudi architecture, history, location and favorable climate.But it is also a city that is suffering from its own success as a tourist destination, as protests against overtourism, Airbnb and tourist apartments have shown.

But what do leading city rankings have say about Barcelona, in terms of economic performance and urban sustainability, city brand strength and reputation?

Let’s take a closer look at:

• Economic competitiveness and sustainability
  
• City brand strength and global reputation
• Livability: Barcelona’s appeal for visitors, talent, locals

Economic competitiveness and financial performance

How attractive as a place to work and do business? 

According to 2thinknow’s Innovation Cities Index 2022-2023 Barcelona ranks 26^th, an impressive jump of 26 positions from the previous ranking. The city now sits in between Atlanta (25^th) and Milan (27^th).

City brand strength and reputation

Resonance’s 2023 World’s Best Cities Report ranks Barcelona an impressive 8^th overall, scoring 4^th in Prosperity, 7^th in Lovability, and 1^th in Livability. It currently sits between San Francisco (7^th) and Amsterdam (9^th). It also ranks 3^rd for Nightlife and 5^th for TripAdvisor Reviews.

Kearney’s 2023 Global Cities Report ranks it 24^th, a slight improvement of two positions from the previous ranking. It currently sits in between Dubai (23^rd) and Istanbul (25^th). Moreover, the Catalan capital ranks 22^nd in the Global Cities Outlook, a jump of seven positions since the previous report.

The Global Power City Index ranks Barcelona 22^nd. In terms of function-specific performance, the city ranks 34^th for Economy, 33^rd for R&D, 13th for Cultural Interaction, 4^th for Livability, 29^th for Environment, and 13^th for Accessibility.

Barcelona ranks 9^th for Variety of Work Place Options, 4^th for Nightlife Options, and 6^th for Number of Retail Shops.

According to Brand Finance’s City Index 2023, Barcelona ranks 13^th globally with a score of 73.2/100. The city sits in between Toronto (12^th) and Rome (14^th).

Livability

The Mercer Quality of Living City Ranking places Barcelona 48^th, sitting in between Yokohama (47^th) and Aberdeen (49^th). Mercer’s Cost of Living Ranking puts Barcelona 75^th, jumping three positions from the previous ranking. The cost living survey reports that factors such as currency fluctuations, cost inflation for goods and services, and instability of accommodation prices are key to determine the cost of expat packages for employees on international assignment.

According to the Best Urban Cities for Digital Nomads ranking by Spot a Home, Barcelona ranks 3^rd out of 56 global cities. It currently sits between Lisbon (2^nd) and Brisbane (4^th).

The Arcadis Sustainability City Index 2022 ranks Barcelona 49^th overall: Planet 17^th, People 45^th, Profit 57^th.

Last updated in January 2024. More city profiles here.

Enjoyed our summary of global rankings and indices on Barcelona’s economic performance, its sustainability, attractiveness for visitors, talent, business, its city brand strength and reputation? Thanks for sharing!