share
New research has revealed the greenest European capitals, with Paris coming out on top.
The study by drinking straws specialist Drinking Straw analysed the number of parks, gardens, wildlife areas, forests, playgrounds and bodies of water compared to the size of the population to see which areas have the most green spaces per 100,000 people.
It found that France’s capital of Paris is the greenest of any capital, with 325 total green spaces made up of 171 parks, 127 gardens, one wildlife area, 16 playgrounds and ten bodies of water. When accounting for population, it has 7.62 parks and 5.66 gardens per 100,000 people.
Luxembourg City comes in second place with an impressive total of 13 green spaces despite its smaller population, comprised of 8 parks, one garden and four playgrounds. There were 8.51 parks per 100,000 people, the highest of any city in the study.
Ireland’s capital of Dublin takes third on the list, with 66 green spaces comprised of 34 parks, 15 gardens, seven nature and wildlife areas, three playgrounds, one forest and six bodies of water. The study found it to have 6.47 parks and 2.86 gardens per 100,000 people when the population was accounted for.
Cardiff comes in fourth place, with the Welsh capital being home to 37 green spaces, made up of 18 parks, three gardens, five wildlife areas, three playgrounds, three forests and three bodies of water. When compared against the population, it has 5.54 parks per 100,000 people.
With a total of 61 green spaces, Portugal’s capital Lisbon rounds out the top five. The 61 green spaces comprise of 25 parks, 26 gardens, one wildlife area, seven playgrounds and two forests. There are 4.59 parks and 4.77 gardens per 100,000 people in the city.
London comes in 24th place of all the capitals studied, which has the most green spaces with 356 in total, but when taking into account the city’s population it falls out of the top ten. Edinburgh, the Scottish capital, with a total of 31 green spaces, comes in 17th place when adjusting for population.
| # | City | Population | Parks per 100k people | Gardens per 100k people | Nature/wildlife areas per 100k people | Playgrounds per 100k people | Forests per 100k people | Bodies of water per 100k people |
| 1 | Paris | 2,244,000 | 7.62 | 5.66 | 0.04 | 0.71 | 0.00 | 0.45 |
| 2 | Luxembourg City | 94,034 | 8.51 | 1.06 | 0.00 | 4.25 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| 3 | Dublin | 525,383 | 6.47 | 2.86 | 1.33 | 0.57 | 0.19 | 1.14 |
| 4 | Cardiff | 324,800 | 5.54 | 0.92 | 1.54 | 0.92 | 0.92 | 1.54 |
| 5 | Lisbon | 544,851 | 4.59 | 4.77 | 0.18 | 1.28 | 0.37 | 0.00 |
| 6 | Bratislava | 462,603 | 2.81 | 1.73 | 0.22 | 3.89 | 0.22 | 1.08 |
| 7 | Helsinki | 564,474 | 6.02 | 1.42 | 0.89 | 0.71 | 0.53 | 0.35 |
| 8 | Reykjavik | 131,136 | 3.05 | 2.29 | 0.76 | 0.76 | 0.76 | 2.29 |
| 9 | Barcelona | 1,602,386 | 5.12 | 2.81 | 0.00 | 0.81 | 0.00 | 0.06 |
| 10 | Belfast | 343,542 | 4.37 | 1.46 | 0.87 | 0.58 | 0.29 | 0.58 |
Commenting on the findings, a spokesperson from Drinking Straw said: “While it might be the case that Europe’s most populated capitals have the most infrastructure, this data shows that those at the top of the list also manage to combine that with a strong balance of people to green spaces as well. In the case of cities like Luxembourg and Paris, there are many green spaces compared to the number of people, meaning you won’t be far from a park or garden in most areas.”
