What size city do you most prefer to live in?

[SeasideArms]

I will soon move from a relatively smallish city (pop. 95k) to a far bigger one (pop. 580k), which led me to spend some time lately pondering the pros and cons of cities of different sizes.

So, I was wondering, what size city do you live in? What do you like about it, what do you wish was better? Is there anything that bugs you about it? Is there anything you couldn't live without? What size city would you like to live in the most, and why?

[Vincent, Thunder God]

I grew up in a really small northern town until I moved when I was about 12-13. On the one hand, if you're in a very small town your privacy is less and there's not as much to do. On the other hand, if you're near nature and there's less pollution the air quality is way better and you can really enjoy it with much less people around. Also growing up in that environment you're a lot more sheltered from the world (was especially true in the pre-internet days) but you also don't have as much perspective on what an actual city is like, and in some cases don't get a sense of the higher competition in a work/education environment in a city.

Living in a city I tend to dislike more, even if I'm nearer a green space in the suburbs. The plus side is a lot more services are available and more diversity in terms of people to meet/education etc.

[Dignified Pauper]

I love my city of Columbus, OH. IT's growing, it's thriving. It's still affordable. I own my own space in downtown, and there's a ton of opportunity in the tech sector popping up.

[Jessweeee♪]

My city is like 300k people. Has a small town feel but it's a city large enough to have all of the amenities a city has to offer. Public transportation, entertainment, multiple options for any sort of business you might need to utilize, such as a grocery store. You could name any street and if I haven't heard of it I can probably still guess what neighborhood it's in. Perfect!

[Mr. Carnelian]

I'm a country boy at heart, so it's got to be a small city for me. I like to visit big cities, but I could never see myself living in one.

[Mr Gashtacular]

city i live in has a couple-three ethnic supermarkets, and i love to cook, so thats really useful for me. my hometown just did not have the demographic for anything more than a couple Big Three supermarkets with not much choice of food ingredients.

i dont drive so being in a city generally gives me more freedom (more "stuff" in walking distance, more public transport)

rent is high and i miss nature though. however some good nature not too far to travel.

[Christmas]

At least 100 times the size of Tifa’s boobs. :bigsmile:

[Diego Gravas]

I grew up in a really small northern town until I moved when I was about 12-13. On the one hand, if you're in a very small town your privacy is less and there's not as much to do. On the other hand, if you're near nature and there's less pollution the air quality is way better and you can really enjoy it with much less people around. Also growing up in that environment you're a lot more sheltered from the world (was especially true in the pre-internet days) but you also don't have as much perspective on what an actual city is like, and in some cases don't get a sense of the higher competition in a work/education environment in a city (https://virtoproperty.com/property-for-sale/costa-calida/murcia/murcia-area).

Living in a city I tend to dislike more, even if I'm nearer a green space in the suburbs. The plus side is a lot more services are available and more diversity in terms of people to meet/education etc.
I believe that it would be awesome to live neither in a metropolis like NY nor in a small town with some 5k of population. It is sensible to move to something of medium size. Before the lockdown I had a great oppurtunity to visit Murcia, a city in Spain. I was amazed by its climate conditions, architecture and friendly people. So my dream town is Murcia or something similar :)

[Shlup]

My city is just over 300k, but I live in a historic neighborhood a couple of blocks from downtown. I've never not lived in a city so I'm not sure if I'd be into it, but I do tend to enjoy riding my bike around from place to place.

[Lord Golbez]

Population: Me..... but with well stocked and accessible grocery store(s).

[Del Murder]

I'd prefer a nice suburb, maybe 40K to 80K people, just enough to get lost in.

[Spuuky]

I'd prefer a nice suburb, maybe 40K to 80K people, just enough to get lost in.I lived in a city of 90k for many years and I promise that is not large enough to get lost

[Strider]

I'm a big city kid through and through. You can't match the energy of a Los Angeles or a San Francisco so easily (and even Fresno metro has cleared 600K by this point)

[qwertysaur]

I've lived in NYC. When I went remote for teaching went back to the suburbs. The city proper has over 8 million people in it. Combined with the outlying areas, 18 million, which is more than some countries members here live in. :shobon:

[Shlup]

I'd prefer a nice suburb, maybe 40K to 80K people, just enough to get lost in.I lived in a city of 90k for many years and I promise that is not large enough to get lost

Agreed. Riverside is like 300k and it's not big enough to get lost in.

[Iceglow]

I've only ever lived in London. Population is approx 7m residents and on a busy tourist season that leaps to 10m people in the city a day when you factor in commuters from outerlying cities and towns.

Things I like: There is so much to do. Getting bored in London is actually pretty damn hard to achieve. So long as you've got some cash in your pocket and are willing to travel it's great. There's also a great public transport network which really negates the need for a personal vehicle.

Things I dislike:

In fact the cost of driving in London is so exhorbiant (for example, if I and one of my 3 housemates both drove, one of us would need to pay the local authority over £1500 per year just to get a parking permit for the streets near our flat add in to that Finance Payments, taxation, MOT, fuel, Insurance and the Congestion Charge (a daily tax to enter certain areas of the city) or the Lower Emissions Zone charge (a separate fee for driving vehicles which don't meet emissions standards in a wider area of the city). That is in addition to paying £875 a month to rent a double bedroom).

Did I mention cost of living? My rent alone is more than most people in the UK's mortgages and I'm renting a mere double bedroom of average size for a master bedroom in the UK. I have space for a Double Bed, a Desk and a wardrobe. with enough space left over that I can if I decided to do basic calisthetics on my bedroom floor.

That excellent transport network is over 100 years old now in parts. It frequently requires maintanence, meaning closures, the workers are part of the most militant unions in the UK and go on strike for days at a time to hold the government and the mayor to ransom for ever more pay and better working conditions (no offence to a tube driver but the job is not that hard and you're paid better than most head teachers in the UK or emergency service workers) which means it gets closed. It's also got to deal with up to 10m people a day using it. Rush-hour is a joke if you wanted to you know... socially distance.

The size of the city becomes an issue too. In the same time it takes me to get from my house to my sisters place on Public Transport, I could get a train to Bath. If I hopped in the car we could be in Brighton, on the promenade sunning ourselves before I'd even be half way. I can go to the local airport and fly to any most cities in France, Germany or Spain (if you took the airport security time out of it) in that space of time. I also pay an extortionately high amount per month because the tube drivers demand above inflation pay increases to be wedged in like sardines on a system that was never built with air conditioning or the idea that 10m people would use it a day. To give other Brits an idea of how big London is, an uber from my flat in SW London to my Sister's house in N London costs around £50. To do it in a Hackney Carriage (that is the official name btw for the London Black Taxis) it would cost me approximately £80 at a minimum. One way. And despite there being the Inner London Ring Road (known as the North/South Circular depending on where abouts you are in the city) and this road passing within a few hundred yards of my flat and within a mile of my sister's house taking that road will leave you driving for hours like it's not uncommon to go 2 - 3 hours on this trip that is I trout you not less than 20 miles as the crow flies.. Speaking of as the crow flies, you can drive that route kinda, you get as far as Chelsea (which isn't that far from my house, I walk it regularly) and it kicks you out west to the North Circular to complete the drive. It's actually somewhat quicker to push for the M25 and drive up round the city on that and then cutting back in to my sister's place. Though the quickest I've ever been on that route is still around 1.5 hours drive time.

Work wise, it can also be difficult. I'm based in the SW of the city. If a company is based in NE London, I'm guaranteed to be travelling 2 hours each way, each day if there are no delays, issues or incidents which there frequently are. Employers often see this as acceptable to them but it means I could end up in a position where I have to commute 2 hours to then go ahead and work a 9 hour day before commuting 2 hours home and be expected to live a fulfilling life with my friends in the interim between shifts. Working and starting at 7am every day I have had to in the past get up at 4am daily to ensure I beat the rush-hour commuter strain to get to the office on time. I would then get home at around 8pm at night (having left the office at half 6) be expected to cook, do any life admin, maintain friendships and relationships and get a full night's sleep in. I don't joke when I say have often lived on just 3 - 4 hours sleep a night for the past decade or more.

I also said it's hard to get bored in London, yes it is so long as you have money to spend. Whether it is going on public transport or the necessity to buy food/drinks when out or the admission to attractions, events and entertainment it's expensive. On average a night out in London even where it is a few beers with the mates will cost in the region of £100 and that's IF we do not go for food or rely on taxis in the evening. Add in a simple 2 course meal with friends at a nice eatery and the cost of that meal will tag another £30 - 50 each to the evening minimum. Add in a Taxi home (from Central London to mine approx £30 - 40) and that evening out is pushing £200. If I am on a date and want something like the cinema add another £20 or so to that. If you want a trip to the Theatre add in another £20 - 160 depending on the show and the seats. One time I dressed up as a spaceman and joined a parade. The actual cheapest "date" event I can think of is to go to one of the comedy clubs in the west end where entry is usually either "free" or very cheap (the entry is sometimes free but when you leave they will hassle you for a "donation" a suggested minimum being £5 per person, in fact even if you pay entry to the club which is usually around £5 - £10 if they are charging for tickets, you will still get hassled for this fiver and called out on not giving it at the end of the night so entry is between £5 and £15 really). The issue being sometimes they have semi-professional or amateur comedians on who can be hit or miss or they may have a secret guest who is actually a famous comedian (for example I saw Romesh Raganathan) practicing new material but even this is £20 - £30 per person when you have a few drinks there which as it is boiling in the club, you will definitely want a cold drink or two.

As you can see, I can rant about the negatives of London for a very long time. I must say however that it's a love-hate relationship I have with my city. I love to hate it. I'm forever saying that I will abandon it, quit the city and move away. If I did that though I could see me potentially getting bored easily. There are some genuine issues I take with working and living in London both. The lack of sleep is going to put me in an early grave at some point. The fact that seeing family or friends would be quicker if they lived outside of London or even potentially in another country at times is demoralising and disheartening (that said my friends and I did once put this to the test and flew our asses out to Krakow from our local airports on cheap flights for a weekend and it was actually cheaper and quicker than either of us visiting the other's house and cheaper than a night out in Central)

For all that however, I love this place. The sights, the sounds, the people. I'm a sociable person. I like to talk to others. This year with unemployment, pandemics and lockdown has been crippling to me I'm finding myself so very lonely. I'm used to being out and doing things be it with colleagues, friends, dates for the sake of dating. Whatever. I can go to a pub, get a beer in and be with just one friend that evening. We will leave that pub friends with so many others it's surreal at times.

If I did move away, I would potentially consider moving to somewhere really small and isolated however, that or to a small city, say 1.5 - 2m people?

[flisterseven]

I would prefer bigger cities since there are more opportunities and because bigger cities can accommodate more people, however, the biggest cities are often poorly built for so many people, have too little good places to park our cars, are run or ruined by corrupt politicians, and attract too many weird people, so practically speaking, smaller or medium cities seem to be better. But if huge cities were well-designed then they could perhaps more more ideal.

[escobert]

very small town and not a city at all.

[EmilyCanham]

My city has population around 200K and I thought its enough. As everyone knows bigger cities have several kind of issues. I just love my city:):)

[fredroms]

I want to live in a small city with sea near)

[Christmas]

Around the size of Midgar with a Blitzball stadium. :bigsmile:

[Bjork]

i previous lived in a relatively small city and i loved it there due to the less population and most importantly it was peaceful there. anyway i had to relocate 2months ago due to my new posting in work to a much larger city. at first i had a problem in adjusting to the new environment but quickly adopted. i just realized that apart from the high population there are much many pros that outdo the cons than i really expected. i am loving it here

[krissy]

Hi bjork love your music

[Sarisa]

I grew up in a small town with a low 4 digit population and it was too small for me. You have to drive forever to get anywhere, options are slim to none, and everybody knows your business. I moved to a city with a mid 5 digit population and it was too big for me. Easy to get lost, nobody cares about you, and concrete eyesores everywhere. What I like about small towns is the space. Neighbors aren't right up next to you, parking is never an issue, and you can look in any direction and see wide open spaces of green. What I like about the city is convenience. Everything you could ever need is under a 10 minute drive away, the internet speeds are amazing, and there are far more options for everything. I want something that gets me the best of both worlds, which I'd guess to be city with a high 4 digit population.