RANKED: The Most Romantic Cities in the UK

26th January 2023

To celebrate Valentine’s Day, we rated UK cities on all things love-related to reveal the country’s biggest hopeless romantic hotspots!

Cobbled streets, riverside walks, rustic alleyways – some places just have a certain je ne sais quoi, but when it comes to matters of the heart, you might be surprised to discover where Brits have the most game.

More proposals in Leeds than any other city

There’s something in the air in Leeds. It seems nowhere else pops the big question as much as the loved-up residents of this Yorkshire city, with more people interested in engagement rings here than anywhere else in the country.

Call it controversial, but when it comes to proposals, it seems that Northerners are far more romantic than Southerners by a long shot, with places like Liverpool, Newcastle and Manchester in the top five, as well as Scotland’s Glasgow in third place.

Rank	City	Interest in engagement rings per 100,000 people
1	Leeds	875
2	Liverpool	760
3	Glasgow	719
4	Newcastle	674
5	Manchester	650
6	Belfast	578
7	Birmingham	574
8	Edinburgh	571
9	Hull	554
10	Nottingham	513
11	Bristol	507
12	Derby	492
13	Stoke	469
14	Cardiff	456
15	London	450
16	Bradford	443
17	Sheffield	441
18	Coventry	434
19	Leicester	340
20	Southampton	327

Lovers in Leeds are making the most of Valentine’s Day plans

Leeds ranks first for the most proposals, so it’s no surprise the city also beats all others when celebrating Valentine’s Day.

Cupid will be busiest here on February 14^th, with more people in Leeds searching for things to do on Valentine’s Day than in any other city.

Luckily anyone who lives here is spoilt for choice. From country estate dinners and live jazz venues to cocktails and views at the city’s rooftop bars, plus plenty of other romantic things to see and do, it’s also a great destination for a city break.

Rank	City	Interest in Valentine’s Day per 100,000 people
1	Leeds	477
2	Newcastle	355
3	Manchester	343
4	Liverpool	328
5	Nottingham	321
6	Edinburgh	315
7	Birmingham	313
8	Glasgow	310
9	Bristol	280
10	Derby	273
11	Belfast	267
12	Cardiff	251
13	Hull	249
14	London	247
15	Bradford	244
16	Sheffield	239
17	Coventry	238
18	Stoke	213
19	Leicester	212
20	Southampton	178

Derby is the most loved-up UK city

Meet the hopeless romantics! Derby residents are hot on the search for love, quite literally, with online interest in the topic higher than in any other UK romantic city.

Derby has also been named one of the most beautiful cities in the country a few times for its scenery, average sunshine hours and pretty walks.

Rank	City	Interest in love per 100,000 people
1	Derby	273
2	Leeds	258
3	Birmingham	252
4	Manchester	235
5	Newcastle	209
6	London	201
7	Nottingham	189
8	Edinburgh	173
9	Liverpool	173
10	Glasgow	163
11	Coventry	160
12	Bristol	154
13	Leicester	153
14	Belfast	146
15	Cardiff	137
16	Hull	135
17	Bradford	133
18	Sheffield	132
19	Stoke	116
20	Southampton	97

Newcastle has the most romantic restaurants

If a candlelit dinner in an intimate setting with your favourite person sounds like a dream, Newcastle is the place to be.

When it comes to scoring a coveted Valentine’s Day booking, Newcastle gives you more restaurants to choose from, with the highest romantic restaurant-to-people ratio of anywhere else in the country (don’t leave it to the last minute though!).

Whether it’s a first date or a special occasion, Newcastle serves up everything from Michelin star hotspots to cosy hideaways on cobbled streets, making it the perfect place to indulge the palate.

Rank	City	Romantic restaurants per 100,000 people
1	Newcastle	54
2	Edinburgh	51
3	Leeds	33
4	Nottingham	33
5	Glasgow	32
6	Liverpool	30
7	Southampton	29
8	Belfast	29
9	Cardiff	28
10	Bristol	24
11	Manchester	23
12	Stoke	23
13	Derby	23
14	Sheffield	20
15	London	19
16	Birmingham	15
17	Hull	14
18	Leicester	13
19	Bradford	10
20	Coventry	6

Leeds sends more bouquets than any other city

As the city with the most proposals, Leeds takes the top spot as the city that also gifts the most flowers.

For couples in Leeds, nothing says ‘I love you’ quite like the gift of flowers. From delicate lilies to passionate red roses and fragrant peonies, online interest in bouquets is higher in Leeds than any other location in the UK.

If you’re planning on sending a bunch of flowers to the apple of your eye this Valentine’s Day, word is that CO2-absorbing plants, hot pink bouquets and serene lavender are some of the hottest trends of 2023.

Rank	City	Interest in flowers per 100,000 people
1	Leeds	1,074
2	Edinburgh	1,063
3	Birmingham	1,052
4	London	1,006
5	Manchester	975
6	Glasgow	882
7	Newcastle	851
8	Nottingham	769
9	Bristol	769
10	Liverpool	760
11	Derby	720
12	Bradford	665
13	Sheffield	662
14	Coventry	650
15	Leicester	616
16	Belfast	578
17	Cardiff	541
18	Southampton	483
19	Stoke	469
20	Hull	450

Manchester swipes right the most

Looking for the dating capital of the UK? Look no further than Manchester. Online interest in dating is higher in the northern city than anywhere else, indicating residents are keen to put themselves out there and meet new people in pursuit of finding THE ONE.

Rank	City	Interest in dating per 100,000 people
1	Manchester	38
2	Leeds	34
3	Newcastle	32
4	Bristol	30
5	Nottingham	29
6	Birmingham	28
7	Glasgow	28
8	Edinburgh	28
9	London	27
10	Bradford	25
11	Liverpool	24
12	Sheffield	20
13	Cardiff	20
14	Leicester	19
15	Coventry	19
16	Derby	19
17	Stoke	18
18	Hull	17
19	Belfast	15
20	Southampton	15

London is best for LGBTQ+ dating

A survey around LGBTQ+ friendly cities named the below places as best when it comes to factors such as LGBTQ+ clubbing, safety, rights and, of course, dating.

London outranks them all as the most LGBTQ+-friendly and the most romantic, fun setting for a date.

Rank	City	LGBTQ+ Rating
1	London	4.9
2	Manchester	4.5
3	Bristol	3.6
4	Glasgow	3.6
5	Leeds	3.5
6	Edinburgh	3.1
7	Birmingham	2.9
8	Liverpool	2.7
9	Cardiff	2.3

Lovers on a budget, head to Leeds

As well as scoring first place in other romantic areas, Leeds is also our top UK romance hotspot for affordable dining, with the best budget restaurant-to-people ratio.

A hot date doesn’t need to cost an arm and a leg. According to Numbeo, the cost of a cheap meal in Leeds costs an average of £12, with a three-course meal at a mid-range restaurant costing around £50.

Rank	City	Number of budget restaurants per 100,000 people
1	Leeds	313
2	Newcastle	82
3	Edinburgh	78
4	Manchester	61
5	Nottingham	59
6	Southampton	58
7	Glasgow	55
8	Cardiff	55
9	Stoke	54
10	Liverpool	49
11	Leicester	44
12	Sheffield	43
13	Belfast	42
14	Bristol	42
15	Hull	40
16	Bradford	38
17	Coventry	34
18	London	33
19	Derby	32
20	Birmingham	30

Nowhere does romance like London

As one of the most dazzling cities in the world, it’s no wonder all the loved-up romantics searching for date night ideas on TikTok turn to London. With more than 12 million searches for ‘London date night’ on the social platform, the city dominates as the place with the strongest reputation for romance.

Rank	City	TikTok views for ‘date night’
1	London	12,300,000
2	Glasgow	4,300,000
3	Belfast	629,400
4	Edinburgh	472,500
5	Liverpool	74,400
6	Birmingham	60,500
7	Leeds	58,100
8	Nottingham	25,100
9	Cardiff	12,200
10	Newcastle	11,000

THE FINAL RESULTS: Leeds is the UK’s most romantic city of 2023

After dominating the rankings in four of nine categories, it’s no wonder Leeds is the most romantic city for 2023.

The sprawling metropolis is the commercial capital of Yorkshire, loved for its vibrant and creative energy, breathtaking skyline and droolworthy food and drink scene. With no shortage of dining spots and scenic outdoor locations perfect for a date, singletons and couples are spoilt for choice when choosing an experience in Leeds.

Singletons can break the ice on the first date with a round of glitter-filled crazy golf at Junkyard Golf Club, a romantic walk at the breathtaking Harewood House country estate, or a night of lost inhibitions at Blind Tyger, one of the most iconic cocktail spots in the city. And all for a fraction of London prices!

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Method

Interest in engagement rings, Valentine’s Day, flowers, dating and love is based on Google Trends data for the UK YoY.
Romantic and budget restaurant scores are calculated by the most romantic restaurants per person based on TripAdvisor’s romantic and cheap eats filters and population data for each city from CityPopulation.de and Wikipedia.
LGBT+ data is based on Nestpick’s best LGBT cities rankings.
TikTok for TikTok views.