For a long time, cities have competed the way builders do: by focusing on more roads, more homes, bigger airports, and cleaner utilities. They’ve measured success in technical scores and visible assets. Today, the real contest is about how cities turn those assets into everyday gains that residents can feel, whether that’s time returned to their day, friction removed from life, or a richer set of experiences that make living there worth it. Furthermore, successful and competitive cities are fast-changing ones—because people and capital are attracted to their future potential as well as current achievements. These are some of the critical findings from BCG’s research conducted in 2025, and they have significant long-term implications for city governments around the world as they work to build resident advocacy, attract digital nomads, and advance their fortunes. We believe the city fundamentals underpinning this research are stable and strong and can even help cities sustain themselves through crises or conflicts such as the one now occurring in the Middle East. A New Competitive Era In an era of city rivalries, cities win when they raise real take-home life value without making the city unaffordable. For example, better mobility doesn’t mean just faster traffic flows. It’s surplus time: minutes and hours saved through smart transport, better demand management, and simple digital services that let people handle life in a few taps instead of wasting a morning. Better comfort doesn’t mean just nicer buildings and bigger parks. It’s the variety and depth of life—culture, learning, community, nature, and opportunity—that’s available. And prosperity isn’t only about salaries; it’s about investable surplus—what people have left after paying housing and daily costs, as well as taxes. But even having a strong take-home life value isn’t enough if a city stands still. Expectations move fast, and residents compare cities