These are the best cities in the world. For the tenth year in a row, which one came out on top?

• For the tenth year in a row, London has been crowned the world's most "magnetic" metropolis.
  
• Despite Brexit and COVID-19, it remained at the top.
• There are, however, contenders, with Madrid breaking into the top ten for the first time.

Some cities definitely outperform others when it comes to recruiting people, money, and business from all over the world. The purpose of the most recent Global Power City Index is to explain why.

The yearly survey, published by the Tokyo-based Mori Memorial Foundation, rates the world's biggest cities based on their "magnetism," or their capacity to draw people, capital, and businesses from all over the world.

The Economy, Research and Development, Cultural Interaction, Liveability, Environment, and Accessibility are the six factors used to rank cities in the Index. The paper also illustrates how the pandemic has impacted the world's major cities.

The most "magnetic" cities on the planet

For the tenth year in a row, London has been named the world's most magnetic city. It improved its liveability and environmental scores compared to a year ago, but its previously strong accessibility rating dropped due to the cancellation of flights to battle COVID-19.

The Index's compilers, however, expressed concern about London's future scores in light of Brexit. "London placed second overall in terms of economy behind New York," they claimed, "but it has been declining for three years in a row since 2019," they added.

"The primary cause is a loss of competitiveness in GDP development and a scarcity of competent human resources." Other European cities have caught up to London in the last five years, raising worries about London's ability to continue to dominate its European rivals in the economy."

New York maintained its second place rating, with its environmental score rising as a result of efforts to keep the city cleaner. However, a lower ranking as a working environment caused the city's total liveability score to drop.

Tokyo, which was ranked third, raised its score and narrowed the gap between it and London and New York. The city's rating for cultural interaction improved as a result of the postponed 2020 Olympics in 2021, but its liveability ranking improved as a result of an improved score for workstyle flexibility.

Madrid made its first appearance in the top ten, rising from 13th to ninth place thanks to its excellent liveability rating. The Spanish city came out on top in this area because to its job flexibility and citizens' feelings of well-being, security, and safety.

The Index ranks a total of 48 cities, and the category ratings indicate how each has its own unique strengths. New York, for example, beat London in the economy category while also topping the global rankings for research and development.

Stockholm, Sweden's capital, came out on top in the environment category once again, followed by Copenhagen, Denmark's capital. Due to their excellent rankings for urban cleanliness, greenery, and low carbon dioxide emissions, the Australian cities of Sydney and Melbourne joined the top 10 in this area, placing third and fourth, respectively.

The number of passengers arriving at and departing from a city's airports, as well as tourism statistics, are factored into accessibility scores. London, which topped this category in 2020, fell to third position, with Shanghai taking over the top slot.

COVID-19's Impact

The changed ranks, according to the Index's compilers, reflect COVID-19 control measures, and that traffic congestion in cities has decreased as a result of the pandemic. The majority of cities had a third less visitors; London saw a 26% decline in visitors, while Shanghai saw a 51% drop.

Despite COVID-19 triggering a nearly 75% decline in the number of international tourists, London topped the cultural interaction category, as it has done since the Index was originally produced in 2008.

Although Paris (number two) and New York (number three) swapped places this year, the top three cities in this category remained the same as in 2020. The city of Amsterdam moved from 16th to 12th place thanks to higher ratings for its tourist attractions and food alternatives.

The Index also assesses cities according on their appeal to certain demographic groups. In terms of places to live, London was ranked first for corporate leaders, highly skilled employees, and tourists, while Melbourne surged from ninth to first.

Although cities cover only 3% of the Earth's geographical surface, they create more than 70% of all carbon emissions, according to the World Economic Forum's report Net Zero Carbon Cities: An Integrated Approach.

The Forum urges cities to take a holistic approach to environmental, economic, health, and social challenges, claiming that by doing so, cities will be better able to endure a variety of potential climate and health-related disasters.