It was praised for its parks and walkability.
13:56, 20 Aug 2025Updated 15:21, 20 Aug 2025
The best city in Scotland for Gen Z has been revealed(Image: NDStock / Getty Images)
A Scottish city has been named among the best in the world for young people. It was also crowned the best in the UK, beating London.
On Wednesday, August 13, Time Out published a list of the world’s best cities for Gen Z to live in, according to Gen Z. The travel website ranked cities across the globe based on factors such as culture and walkability.
Coming in at number seven on the worldwide top 10 is Edinburgh. The Scottish capital placed above destinations such as Mexico City in Mexico and Shanghai in China.
According to Time Out, Edinburgh “topped several categories” in its Gen Z survey. The city placed especially high in terms of its green spaces and access to nature, with 95 per cent of 20-somethings living there singling out these aspects.
Edinburgh is known for its wide variety of picturesque parks, including The Meadows and Princes Street Gardens.
The Meadows is situated to the south of the city centre and includes mainly open grassland crossed by tree-lined paths, while Princes Street Gardens is comprised of two adjacent public that lay in the shadow of the historic Edinburgh Castle.
Arthur’s Seat is a top hiking destination in Edinburgh(Image: RichieChan / Getty Images)
The city is also home to Arthur’s Seat, which is found within Holyrood Park. The extinct volcano is a popular hiking spot that offers panoramic views out over the cityscape from its summit.
Meanwhile, Edinburgh was noted for its walkability. According to Time Out, 89 per cent of Gen Z residents in Edinburgh state that the city is walkable.
The capital is also home to many bars and pubs that are popular amongst students and younger locals. These include Paradise Palms near the University of Edinburgh, Pilgrim Bar on Robertson’s Close, and The Hanging Bat on Lothian Road.
Time Out wrote: “Edinburgh topped several categories in our survey of Gen Z, receiving the highest score for green spaces and access to nature (according to 95 per cent of 20-somethings living there) and walkability (89 per cent of Gen Z say the city is walkable).”
Edinburgh was noted among young people for its walkability (Image: Edwin Remsberg / Getty Images)
The only other UK city to appear on Time Out’s top 10 is London, which placed at number nine. The English capital was noted for its culture and food scenes in particular.
Elsewhere, topping the list as the world’s best city for Gen Z in 2025 is Bangkok in Thailand. According to Time Out, the city ranked especially highly for happiness, with 84 percent of young locals saying they are happy to live there.
To put together its list of the world’s best cities for Gen Z, Time Out used its previously published annual ranking of the world’s greatest cities. The experts filtered the responses to those under age of 30 to reveal the global ranking of the best cities for younger residents.
The website added: “Things like affordability, a great nightlife scene and ease of meeting new people are up there, according to our survey.
“Many cities made the ranking for being diverse and inclusive, and for having great art, plenty of green spaces and efficient public transport.”
Read on for the 10 best cities in the world for Gen Z to live in 2025. For more information, visit the Time Out website.
The world’s best cities for Gen Z in 2025
- Bangkok, Thailand
- Melbourne, Australia
- Cape Town, South Africa
- New York City, United States
- Copenhagen, Denmark
- Barcelona, Spain
- Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Mexico City, Mexico
- London, United Kingdom
- Shanghai, China