Last year, London was crowned Europe’s best city for public transport. This year, the capital has been overtaken by a city of steep hills, cobbles and a tram project that got off to a famously wobbly start.
As part of our annual global city survey, we asked more than 24,000 locals to rate their city’s buses, trams and trains on a scale from ‘awful’ to ‘amazing’, then ranked cities by the share of residents who called theirs ‘good’ or ‘amazing’. Only one city per country can make the global top 20, and Europe ended up with 10 of the 20 spots. Here’s how the continent got on.
Edinburgh leads Europe in fourth place globally, with 92.4 percent of locals rating its network highly, behind only Taipei, Singapore and Hong Kong. The secret weapon is Lothian Buses, which is majority-owned by the city council, has run a flat fare since 2006 and carried 119 million journeys in 2025. Edinburgh Trams had a record year of its own, with 12.5 million journeys, and passenger numbers have climbed since the line was extended through Leith to Newhaven in 2023. You can now tap on with a contactless card and have your fares capped across buses and trams, and the two operators were recently named Bus Operator of the Year and Tram Operator of the Year at the National Transport Awards.
In second place for Europe and sixth in the world is Zurich, where 90.7 percent of locals are happy with how they get around. Swiss punctuality is the stuff of legend, but what really stands out is how neatly everything fits together. There’s a tram or bus stop roughly every 300 metres, and a single ZVV ticket covers trams, buses, S-Bahn trains, funiculars and boats on Lake Zurich. That makes a day out wonderfully simple, whether that’s hopping on the S10 to Uetliberg, the city’s local mountain, in around 25 minutes or just drifting across the lake.
Vienna is third in Europe and seventh in the world, with 90.3 percent of locals rating its network highly. For 13 years, an annual pass for public transport in the city cost just €365, or €1 a day, but from January 2026 that rose to €467. Locals don’t seem too put out – annual pass holders hit a record 1.34 million last year and the network carried 903 million passengers. Vienna also came in the top five of ’s best cities for cycling, so you’re spoilt for ways to get around.
In fourth place is Tallinn, where 85.3 percent of locals are fans of their city’s public transport; no wonder, when it’s been free for registered residents since 2013. Visitors still need to pay, but the Tallinn Card bundles unlimited public transport with entry to the city’s attractions. In Helsinki, where 83.6 percent of locals are happy, one HSL ticket covers trams, buses, the metro, commuter trains and even the ferry to Suomenlinna, the sea fortress just off the coast. The newest addition is light rail line 15, known as Jokeri, which opened in October 2023 about ten months ahead of schedule.
Europe’s 10 best cities for public transport in 2026
- Edinburgh, UK (92.4 percent, 4th globally)
- Zurich, Switzerland (90.7 percent, 6th globally)
- Vienna, Austria (90.3 percent, 7th globally)
- Tallinn, Estonia (85.3 percent, 8th globally)
- Helsinki, Finland (83.6 percent, 9th globally)
- Warsaw, Poland (81.9 percent, 12th globally)
- Stockholm, Sweden (80.3 percent, 14th globally)
- Hamburg, Germany (77 percent, 17th globally)
- Amsterdam, Netherlands (76.9 percent, 18th globally)
- Oslo, Norway (75.9 percent, 20th globally)
🚆Here’s the full list of the world’s best cities for public transport in 2026.
Want to know which city came out on top? This is officially the world’s best city for public transport, according to locals.
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