Geographies in Depth

These are the 17 most dynamic cities in Europe

The Eiffel Tower is pictured before Earth Hour in Paris, France, March 25, 2017 at which lights are switched off around the world at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday evening to mark the 10th annual Earth Hour and to draw attention to climate change. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer - RTX32PTN

Paris, France comes in at number 2 of the 17 most innovative, inspiring, and inclusive cities in Europe. Image: REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer

Rosie Fitzmaurice
Lifestyle Fellow, Business Insider UK
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Europe is incredibly diverse, and it can be hard to know where to go — or where to live, if you're considering a move.

Savills Investment Management(Savills IM) has released a list of the 40 most dynamic cities in Europe based on a number of factors that contribute to long-term wealth, economic growth, and positive population trends.

130 cities were chosen for the complete survey, which included all European capitals, as well as all cities with a minimum metropolitan area of 250,000 inhabitants, and positive forecasted population growth.

The cities were then measured on innovation, inspiration, inclusion, interconnection, investment, and infrastructure.

Scroll down to see a list of the 17 most innovative, inspiring, and inclusive cities in Europe, ranked in ascending order.

17. Barcelona, Spain. The capital of Catalonia and home to La Rambla, one of Europe's most famous streets. The Spanish city is famous for its beautiful Gaudí architecture.

16. Lausanne, Switzerland. Located in the heart of Europe, Lausanne ranks number one for foreign-born population and number three for number of foreign university students.

15. Basel, Switzerland. Located on the Rhine River in northwest Switzerland, close to the borders with France and Germany, Basel is the country's third most populous city.

14. Oxford, England. Oxford is helped by a strong and developed university presence and scores particularly highly in individual engagement in community-organised, arts-related activities.

13. Oslo, Norway. Oslo is the capital of Norway, which was ranked number one in the OECD's 2016 Better Life Index. The majority of Norway's population benefit from paid jobs, a high level of education, and long average life spans.

12. Vienna, Austria. Vienna scores fourth in terms of interconnectivity, which takes into account both current and future transport links.

11. Madrid, Spain. The city takes the top spot for number of railway stations and ranks fifth in terms of interconnectivity overall. There are less transport projects planned in Madrid compared to the top four cities ranked by this measure.

10. Zurich, Switzerland. Zurich scores highly for wealth and consumer spending indicators. The population is forecasted to grow, and the Swiss city ranks in the top 20 for commercial real estate investment activity.

9. Edinburgh, Scotland. Historically part of Midlothian, the city has long been a centre of education, particularly in the fields of medicine, Scots law, literature, science, and engineering. The University of Edinburgh is now one of four universities in the city.

8. Stockholm, Sweden. Stockholm has strong forecasted growth in its urban population and ranks well for government infrastructure.

7. Dublin, Ireland. Dublin scores particularly highly on population diversity and grassroots community activity.

6. Munich, Germany. Munich is the number one patent-generating city. Its commercial real estate investment market is well-established, it benefits from relatively high wealth, and ranks third in Europe for consumer spending per capita.

5. Berlin, Germany. Berlin ranks among the top five European cities for real estate investment. It also scores highly for transport infrastructure, social media, and cafés.

4. Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Amsterdam is an active innovator, ranking third for density of start-ups. The city also scores highly for activities related to technology and enterprise.

3. Cambridge, England. Cambridge is a city of driven innovators, taking the number one spot for start-up intensity and transference of ideas. The city is undergoing several large infrastructure projects relative to its size, with large housing development projects underway to the north and south of the city.

2. Paris, France. Paris scores highly for infrastructure, with a large urban population and good digital connectivity. With the Grand Paris infrastructure project, the Paris of the future promises to be slicker to navigate.

1. London, England. Savills IM has officially crowned London the most dynamic city in Europe. It ranks highest for infrastructure, innovation, interconnection, and investment, and second for inclusion and inspiration.

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