Europe is blessed with a number of stunning cities with iconic architecture and an array of cultures.
But, as one survey shows, some cities are less fortunate with some locals disgruntled with their quality of life.
Using the European Commission’s 2023 Survey on the Quality of Life in European Cities, Express.co.uk was able to build a list of the 10 best, and 10 worst, European cities to live in.
The EU survey asked people how “satisfied” they are with life in their home city.
Some surprising results came from the poll, with some unexpected names in the top 10 and an iconic capital city in the bottom 10.
Below is a full list of the top 10 and bottom 10 cities.
The top 10 was:
1. Zurich, Switzerland
2. Copenhagen, Denmark
3. Groningen, Netherlands
4. Gdańsk, Poland
5. Leipzig, Germany
6. Stockholm, Sweden
7. Geneva, Switzerland
8. Rostock, Germany
9. Cluj-Napoca, Romania
10. Braga, Portugal
The bottom 10 was as follows:
1. Palermo, Italy
2. Athens, Greece
3. Istanbul, Turkey
4. Tirana, Albania
5. Naples, Italy
6. Belgrade, Serbia
7. Rome, Italy
8. Skopje, Macedonia
9. Miskolc, Hungary
10. Podgorica, Montenegro
The best city in Europe to live in, according to the survey, is Zurich in Switzerland.
It is known as a finance centre in Switzerland, meaning many from the banking and business sectors live here.
The city also has great scenery thanks to Lake Zurich. An impressive 97 percent of respondents said they were satisfied living there.
Geneva, Switzerland, also featured in the top 10 in seventh place.
In second place was the capital of Denmark, Copenhagen. A favourite for citybreakers, Copenhagen is a cyclist-friendly city with a wealth of culture.
However, some cities received more negative reviews from locals.
Palermo, Sicily , may be the capital of the Italian island, but it had a satisfaction rate of just 62 percent.
Italy’s capital, Rome, also featured in the bottom 10 with only 71 percent happy with their lives there.
Athens, the capital of Greece, was found to be the second worst city while Turkey’s capital, Istanbul, was in third.
Athens residents complained about a lack of green space and population density while those in Istanbul are grappling with a housing crisis.
You can read more about how each city fared here.
