The 10 most concert-obsessed places in the UK named - is your city on the list?

• The times when London was considered the “epicentre” for concerts might have become a thing of the past.
• That’s according to a new study into the cities in the UK, which revealed the country's most "concert-obsessed" areas.
• Here’s the top ten places in the UK where true passion for live music currently resides.

Every music fan knows that London and Glasgow dominate the touring circuit, but which UK city truly deserves the crown for being the most "concert-obsessed"?

A new study by Fanatix set out to answer exactly that question, looking beyond mere population size and raw concert numbers to find where the passion for live music burns the brightest. Their analysis combined massive volumes of search data—tracking terms like "gigs near me" and "music events"—with essential data on venue density and the total volume of concerts.

The results deliver a rather surprising result regarding the assumed “hierarchy” of the UK's music map, confirming that regional intensity triumphs over metropolitan scale, with the highest rankings going to cities that foster a concentrated and deeply engaged local scene.

The final ranking shows that the traditional heavyweights were dramatically outperformed, forcing us to redefine where the nation’s true passion for live music resides - and we know that the city that’s topped the ranking will be bellowing out the name of their county in celebration.

The science part (methodology)

To quantify public interest, Fanatix utilised Google Ads to gather the average monthly search volumes for various music-related terms, including "concerts," "gigs near me," "live music," and "music events." For logistical and venue data, they turned to Songkick, analysing the number of planned events and active venues, as well as the total volume of concerts.

All data collected was normalised and calculated per 100,000 people to ensure proportionality across different city populations, with cities that had no upcoming events being excluded entirely.

The data was collected in October 2025, meaning the figures are accurate as of that date, though the study noted a caveat: venue listings from sources like Yelp, used in the analysis, may underrepresent the actual number of venues in larger cities, potentially affecting those city scores.

The UK’s top 10 cities for the ‘musically obsessed’

Leeds emerged as the overall winner, demonstrating a powerful combination of search interest, venue density, and concerts per capita. However, the competition was incredibly tight among the top three: Leeds (8.82) takes the crown, showcasing a strong balance across all metrics, but Oxford (8.78) finishes a close second, and Edinburgh (8.74) completes the top three.

Perhaps the most surprising finding is the performance of the UK's largest city; despite recording a massive 16,770 monthly searches for music events—far exceeding every other city—London finished in 5th place with a score of 8.01.

While London hosts the most events overall, its vast population means that interest, venues, and concerts are less concentrated per person compared to the smaller, more dedicated communities in cities like Leeds and Oxford.

The study also shows a significant drop-off outside the top five; cities like Brighton (7.22), Leicester (6.75), and Glasgow (6.43), while renowned for their music scenes, placed lower in the rankings.

It seems to indicate that their activity levels, when weighted by population and other factors in the study's methodology, did not match the intense concentration of music obsession found in the highest-ranked cities.

Fanatix commented on how the UK concert scene could continue to evolve: "We are witnessing a significant evolution in UK concert culture. Our data confirms a real rise in the number of people actively searching for live music and events, but the most exciting takeaway is the decentralisation of passion.

“Concert obsession is no longer solely London-centric, as the figures clearly demonstrate the intense enthusiasm shown by cities across the UK. Live music has firmly established itself as a key cultural touchpoint, playing a vital role in how regional communities connect and experience culture."

The UK’s top 10 cities: the full "concert obsessed" ranking

1. Leeds (8.82)
2. Oxford (8.78)
3. Edinburgh (8.74)
4. Bristol (8.23)
5. London (8.01)
6. Brighton (7.22)
7. Leicester (6.75)
8. Glasgow (6.43)
9. Newcastle (6.38)
10. Cambridge (6.32)