The Magic City ranked number 26 in Resonance Consultancy’s 2026 World’s Best Cities report, landing ahead of dozens of heavyweight metros and firmly staking its claim as a global capital of culture, commerce and you-should-probably-book-that-flight-already energy.
The ranking blends data and worldwide sentiment across livability, lovability and prosperity, and Miami cracked the top 30 in all three. It’s the kind of showing that reflects what anyone who’s been here lately already knows: this city isn’t coasting on beach views and bottle service anymore.
Resonance calls out Miami’s gravitational pull, crediting its “arms-wide-open acceptance of newcomers” and the creative churn that comes with it. Doors open easily here—for founders, artists, chefs, creators and every flavor of ambitious newcomer looking to plug in. The result is a city constantly recalibrating and scaling up, from tech migration to museum expansions to neighborhoods that seem to reinvent themselves between brunches.
Of course, momentum has its friction points. Growth has outpaced just about everything, including housing, infrastructure and patience, meaning Miami is learning in real time what it means to be a global city operating at full volume. But even with the growing pains, the trajectory is unmistakable. There’s a confidence to the place now, a sense that Miami has graduated from “hot right now” to “here for the long run.”
Florida doesn’t show up just once on the list—Orlando ranks number 62 this year—but Miami leads the state and continues to feel like the national bellwether: a testing ground for new industries, new arrivals, new cultural identities and new ideas about what an American city can be.
Locals will tell you the city still surprises them. The skyline keeps shifting, the food keeps leveling up and the cultural calendar increasingly feels like a full-time job to keep up with. Miami isn’t trying to be quiet or humble and honestly, why should it?