Massive economic investment and population growth were critical highlights of Dallas' success last year, but it wasn't enough to keep it among the world's top 50 best cities, according to a new authoritative report.
The annual 'World's Best Cities' report, compiled by Resonance Consultancy, a Canadian-based real estate and tourism marketing advisor, explores the location, reputation and competitive identity of the world's major cities with urban populations of 1 million or more. It quantifies the relative characteristics of
Dallas ranked 73rd in 2024, down from 47th in the 2023 rankings.
London remains at the top in 2024, followed by Paris (2nd), New York (3rd), Tokyo (4th), and Singapore (5th).
The report focuses primarily on its ability to demonstrate Dallas' prosperous “economic reality” rather than explain its rankings.
More than 10,000 companies have established headquarters in Dallas, making it the city with the highest concentration of large employers in the United States, according to the report.
The report praised the city's consistently top-ranked Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, which earned the honor of being North America's best airport in early 2023 by the Airports Council International.
”[The airport’s] Planned $3 billion Terminal F project [is] It could likely be back on the table, given that DFW ridership rebounded to 73.4 million passengers in 2022 — a 17 percent increase over the busy 2021,” the report said. The author writes:
The Dallas overview of the report highlights two major upcoming projects: a new 2.5 million square foot convention center and the reconstruction of a major highway through the city.
”[2028] “Look at the ditch on Interstate 345 in the car-worshipping city that cut off black neighborhoods when it was built in the early 1970s,” the report says.
Dallas' cultural footprint has also developed significantly over the years. Dallas is home to the “sixth largest LGBTQIA+ community in America,” according to the report, but that's not the only thing that makes the city so diverse (and fun).
“The 20-square-block mixed-use space includes facilities such as the Dallas Museum of Art, the Crowe Asia Museum, a theater, a symphony orchestra and an opera venue, all focused on social betterment. [cultural status]” the report said.
Austin and Houston also made the 2024 World's Best Cities list, but only one city dropped significantly from last year's ranking. Houston fell from 42nd place in last year's report to its current 66th place.
Meanwhile, Austin maintained its No. 43 spot for the second year in a row.
According to Resonance Consultancy, the top 10 best cities in the world are:
- 1st place – London, UK
- 2nd Place – Paris, France
- 3rd place – New York, New York
- 4th place – Tokyo, Japan
- 5th place – Singapore
- 6th place – Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- 7th place – San Francisco, California
- 8th place – Barcelona, Spain
- 9th place – Amsterdam, Netherlands
- 10th place – Seoul, South Korea
