We recently told you Time Out’s World's Best Cities for 2025, with Cape Town, South Africa, landing at number one. To come up with the ranking, the travel guide talked to 18,500 locals in 118 cities around the world about their hometowns, getting their input on everything from the food to the culture to the public transport. Now Time Out is using some of that information for a new report on the most beautiful cities on the planet, according to those who live there.
- They’ve zoned in on the feedback to see the percentage of locals who describe their city as “beautiful.”
- Based on that metric alone, a city right here in the U.S. is number one.
- Chicago earns the title of the Most Beautiful City in the World, as an impressive 83% of residents think their city is a looker.
- The Windy City has lovely views of Lake Michigan, snaking waterways of the Chicago River, an iconic skyline, and is home to many parks and gardens, so it’s not surprising people who live there think it’s the best-looking.
- Cape Town gets bumped down to number two, with 82% of locals calling it pretty.
The World’s Most Beautiful Cities, According to Locals
1.) Chicago, U.S.A. (83%)
2.) Cape Town, South Africa (82%)
3.) Sydney, Australia (79%)
4.) Porto, Portugal (78%)
5.) Edinburgh, Scotland (74%) tied with Tbilisi, Georgia (74%)
7.) Lisbon, Portugal (73%)
8.) Medellin, Colombia (72%) tied with Hamburg, Germany (72%)
10.) Bilbao, Spain (71%)
Source: Time Out