The world loves Australia. In a survey that asked respondents to name the cities with the best international reputation, Sydney and Melbourne got the top votes -- the first time two cities from the same country have claimed the first and second spots on the Reputation Institute’s annual City RepTrak poll.
For the survey, researchers at the consulting firm collected answers from 19,000 respondents in G8 countries asking questions about their perception of a city’s economy, government, infrastructure, social policies, business environment and beauty.
The index, released Thursday, ranked 101 international cities.
It comes as little surprise that Australia should dominate the list: The country has managed to be represented on the top five list over the last six years.
Both Sydney and Melbourne scored well across all categories and were also deemed the most livable cities in the world.
Conspicuously absent on the top 10 list, meanwhile, are US and Asian cities.
The first North American city to crack the top 10 is Vancouver, Canada, also a perennial favorite, which claimed the fifth position.
The first American city to make an appearance is San Francisco, in the 24th spot.
“The overall reputation of a city is built upon direct experience, mass communication, third-party endorsements and broadly accepted stereotypes,” said spokesperson Fernando Prado in a statement.
“These are bottom-line issues for local policymakers, because a good reputation strongly correlates with an increase in tourism, relocation and investment in that city.”
Overall, the top 20 list is dominated by European cities -- 15 of the top spots are in Europe.
American cities such as Boston, Seattle, Miami and Los Angeles dominate the second tier of the list and pulled off moderate scores, while the third and final tier is mostly made up of cities in Southeast Asia, Asia and Latin America.
Landing smack dab last on the ranking is Baghdad.
Last year’s top-ranked city was Vienna. Online interviews were conducted in February and March of 2015. The Reputation Institute is a brand and reputation advisory firm.
Here are the top ranked cities on the Reputation Institute’s City RepTrak:
1. Sydney
2. Melbourne
3. Stockholm
4. Vienna
5. Vancouver
6. Barcelona
7. Edinburgh
8. Geneva
9. Copenhagen
10. Venice
