48 Most Powerful Cities in the World – Ranked 2026

A global ranking of the world’s most powerful cities, based on the latest international data on economy, livability, and global influence.

The Global Power City Index (GPCI) assesses and ranks major global cities according to their “magnetism,” or their ability to attract people, capital and enterprises from around the world.

The report is published by the Mori Memorial Foundation’s Institute for Urban Strategies, a research body established by Mori Building, a leading urban developer in Tokyo, Japan.

Since 2008, the annual GPCI report has ranked 40 or more major cities by measuring over 70 indicators across six functions:

• Economy
• Research and Development
• Cultural Interaction
• Livability
• Environment
• Accessibility

The top five-ranked cities maintained their positions for ten consecutive years, with London continuing to lead the rankings.

Tokyo climbed to 2nd place ahead of New York in 3rd, while Paris remained in 4th place and Singapore rounded out the top five.

London performed strongly across multiple categories, ranking first globally for Accessibility and Cultural Interaction while maintaining high scores in Economy and Research & Development.

New York performed particularly well in the Economy and R&D functions, while Tokyo recorded the highest livability score among all the cities in the index.

Singapore, ranked 5th, reaffirmed its status as one of Asia’s most influential cities.

Most powerful cities in the world – complete ranking

The table below ranks the most powerful cities in the world using the Mori Memorial Foundation’s latest 2025 Global Power City Index report.

The highest possible total score is 2,700 points.

Rank	City	Score
1	London, UK	1,642.2
2	Tokyo, Japan	1,535.1
3	New York, USA	1,476.6
4	Paris, France	1,444.6
5	Singapore, Singapore	1,293.1
6	Seoul, South Korea	1,288.1
7	Amsterdam, Netherlands	1,196.9
8	Shanghai, China	1,194.6
9	Dubai, UAE	1,186.7
10	Berlin, Germany	1,169.8
11	Copenhagen, Denmark	1,160.4
12	Beijing, China	1,153.5
13	Melbourne, Australia	1,151.1
14	Madrid, Spain	1,150.1
15	Sydney, Australia	1,148.4
16	Vienna, Austria	1,134.7
17	Stockholm, Sweden	1,111.1
18	Osaka, Japan	1,103.1
19	Frankfurt, Germany	1,085.6
20	San Francisco, USA	1,078.5
21	Zurich, Switzerland	1,075.8
22	Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR	1,074.3
23	Barcelona, Spain	1,073.8
24	Taipei, Taiwan	1,071.7
25	Los Angeles, USA	1,070.1
26	Toronto, Canada	1,063.6
27	Boston, USA	1,048.6
28	Brussels, Belgium	1046.8
29	Chicago, USA	1038.3
30	Dublin, Ireland	1036.2
31	Istanbul, Turkey	1028.4
32	Milan, Italy	1007.1
33	Helsinki, Finland	999.0
34	Geneva, Switzerland	996.8
35	Moscow, Russia	975.9
36	Vancouver, Canada	974.3
37	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia	959.6
38	Bangkok, Thailand	954.0
39	Washington, DC	941.7
40	Fukuoka, Japan	913.7
41	Sao Paulo, Brazil	912.2
42	Tel Aviv, Israel	880.8
43	Buenos Aires, Argentina	861.8
44	Mexico City, Mexico	804.3
45	Jakarta, Indonesia	797.6
46	Cairo, Egypt	747.2
47	Mumbai, India	682.4
48	Johannesburg, South Africa	658.6