We're certainly not surprised that Edinburgh has been named as one of the happiest places to live in Scotland, as Rightmove released its 11th Happy at Home Index.
This comes as 14 towns and cities in Scotland were recognised as with features that make people happy to live there. Though beaten by Glasgow and Galashiels, our beloved Edinburgh came in at number nine out of 14.
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RIghtmove emphasises that having a sense of belonging to your local area is the most important contributor towards happiness, along with having a strong sense of community, and polite and friendly residents.
As the Daily Record reports, Galashiels locals scored the number one town particularly highly on the friendliness and politeness of the people, and it came top in this area across Great Britain.
Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s Director of Property Science comments: "This year’s Happy at Home survey really shows that the things that make people happy to live in their area are not so much the physical aspects of that area but more the personal aspects, such as our sense of belonging, the community and the people.
"The last few months have undoubtedly been difficult for many, and as we learned during another difficult period in 2020, this is often when we look to our local area and community for support and happiness."
| Place | Regional Rank | National Rank |
| Galashiels | 1 | 2 |
| Perth | 2 | 5 |
| Stirling | 3 | 9 |
| Dundee | 4 | 37 |
| Inverness | 5 | 42 |
| Falkirk | 6 | 77 |
| Paisley | 7 | 83 |
| Glasgow | 8 | 105 |
| Edinburgh | 9 | 131 |
| Kirkcaldy | 10 | 135 |
| Ayr | 11 | 139 |
| Motherwell | 12 | 151 |
| Kilmarnock | 13 | 156 |
| Aberdeen | 14 | 172 |
This year’s study was carried out as the rising cost-of-living is building pressure on many households, which was reflected in the survey results.
One in five (22 per cent) renters said they planned to move in the next 12 months to get better value for money in their area, along with 16 per cent of buyers. One in ten renters admitted they were moving to reduce energy costs, rising to 12 per cent for buyers.
Meanwhile, in the wake of the pandemic, when asked what was most important about the property they might move to, 29 per cent said a garden, while 20 per cent said they are more focused about the energy efficiency of the property.
Outside of Scotland, the list was topped by St Ives in Cornwall, with Woodbridge in the East of England and Hexham in the North East also making the top five.
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