Photos: Chicago by Jesus Toledo, Pexels License; Edinburgh by Carlos Delgado, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped.
Chicago or Edinburgh?
Our verdict in twelve categories, each scored against the same fixed benchmark cities, and the climate month by month, so you can choose for your trip.
Choose Chicago for
- beaches
- food and drink
- nightlife
What lies behind each score is written up on Chicago’s own page.
Choose Edinburgh for
- day trips
- nature and the outdoors
- getting around
What lies behind each score is written up on Edinburgh’s own page.
Scoreboard
Twelve categories on one fixed scale from 0 to 100. The shaded stretch is the gap between the two.
What lies behind each score is written up on the two cities’ own pages: Chicago and Edinburgh.
Your match
Pick a travel style or drag the sliders, and both match scores follow your weighting.
Wins on beaches and food and drink with your weighting.
Wins on day trips and nature and the outdoors with your weighting.
What matters to you?
When should you go?
Pick your month. The climate figures are measured averages, not a forecast.
Chicago in July
Edinburgh in July
Daytime high, °C
Rainfall in the month, mm
Where the figures come from
Edinburgh has no rain gauge within 25 km of the centre, so its rainfall comes from a gridded climate dataset read at the city rather than from a gauge further away.
Edinburgh's sunshine is measured 52 km from the centre, at Leuchars.
Temperature and rainfall are climate normals, averaged over the years shown. Chicago: 1991-2020 normals, Chicago Midway Airport (14.5 km from centre). Edinburgh: 1991-2020 normals, Edinburgh Airport (10 km from centre).
Before you go
| Measure | Chicago | Edinburgh |
|---|---|---|
| Official language | - | English |
| Currency | US Dollar (USD) | Pound Sterling (GBP) |
| Sockets | AB120 V, 60 Hz | G230 V, 50 Hz |
| Driving side | Right | Left |
| Time zone | UTC-6, UTC-5 in summer | UTC, UTC+1 in summer |
| Emergency number | 911 | 112 or 999 |
| Elevation | 179 m | 47 m |
| Main airport | Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD)25 km from centre274 non-stop destinations | Edinburgh Airport (EDI)11 km from centre163 non-stop destinations |
| Public holidays this year | 13 days | 10 days |
By the numbers
| Measure | Chicago | Edinburgh |
|---|---|---|
| City population | 2,746,388 | 488,050 |
| People per km² | 4,529 | 1,884 |
| Museums within 10 km | 44 | 32 |
| UNESCO World Heritage sites within 50 km | 1 | 3 |
| Swim season, months above 21 °C | 1 month | None |
Where else could you go?
Every comparison below shares a destination with this one, so you can follow Chicago or Edinburgh somewhere new.