London has ranked in second place for Best Music City 2026, just after Berlin, new data released by SeatPick has revealed.
With rankings being based upon measurable music infrastructure such as number of music venues, concerts, festivals, music business and artists.
SeatPick’s top ten cities include three other UK cities, with Manchester, Glasgow and Bristol making the list.
London achieved a rating of 8.10 just 0.8 behind Berlin.
With many iconic larger venues like Wembley Stadium, the O2 and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium drawing performances from global mega artists such as BTS and Bad Bunny, its no surprise that London draws many crowds and fans.
Woosie Osei-Bonsu, 22 said: “I would say it surpasses Berlin, for big and small artists I think they always aim to come to London above all potential European stops.”
She added: “I grew up outside of London and one of my goals for moving to London was to take advantage of how accessible and easy it is to go to concerts here.”
Osei-Bonsu who is a big music fangirl, saw Beyoncé perform 5 times at her Renaissance concert in 2023, said: “A lot of artists always say they dreamed of performing in London and it is always the one country in Europe artists will always visit no matter what.”
Despite three other UK cities making the top ten, Osei-Bonsu said they would much rather go abroad for a concert than anywhere else in the country.
She added: “If an artist hasn’t put a date for London but elsewhere in the country, I would not go. I would rather go to another country where a date is and make a trip out of it or wait till they add London to the list.”
Recounting her own experience of trying to see K-pop Artist Tamein last year, the Edit Assistant waited until more tickets for his London date became available rather than purchasing tickets for the bigger venue in Manchester.
Osei-Bonsu added: “I would say that my favourite venue is Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, I prefer it to Wembley Stadium which I have only been to once.”
She has been to Tottenham Hotspur five times to see Beyoncé during her Renaissance world tour and twice last summer during her Cowboy Carter Tour.
She said: “I was so happy to hear that BTS will be playing there this year too because in my opinion you get a great view no matter where you are sat and the screens are always humongous.
“People dislike the location but I love seeing the locals personalize their shops to accommodate the concert by playing music, putting up banners and cardboard cut outs etc, it is all a part of the experience.”
However, she also stated that not all of London’s stadiums are up to standard.
She said: “My gripe with Wembley Stadium is how wide it is, the standing pitch is so big and I think the seats are too far away.
“Lastly, Wembley Arena is the worst because the floor layout is rectangular instead of circular and so the only seats worth getting are in the first couple blocks, if you are at the back it is over.”
Featured image credit: Aneela Aslam
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