Newcastle has narrowly missed out on a podium place in a list ranking the most attractive cities in the UK.
Edinburgh, London, Bristol all beat the North East city to the medal positions in the study commissioned by the Royal Mail.
Researchers compiled data and considered nine factors such as green spaces, cultural services, healthcare, and job opportunities to create average rankings.
Out of the 12 cities under consideration, Newcastle came out on top in cultural services with 10.7 theatres and 68.6 libraries per million people.
Housing and office space are also affordable with the average home costing 5.4 times the average annual income, the third cheapest of the 12 cities.
The city has a strong ratio of number of GPs to the size of the population. Per 1,000 people, there are 1.6 GPs, giving a ranking of third place on that measure.
Sarah Stewart, chief executive at destination management and marketing organisation NewcastleGateshead Initiative, has welcomed the news.
She said: “We’re delighted to receive recognition as one of the best places in the UK to live and work in.
"Our cultural attractions, lively nightlife and burgeoning restaurant scene, as well as our growing reputation in our priority business sectors and talent pool make us an attractive place for people to live, learn, work and invest in.
“Having been named as the number one place in the world to visit in 2018 by Rough Guides, this new study recognises that NewcastleGateshead is not only a great place to visit but also to live and work in.”
Edinburgh came out on top overall due to having the edge on a number of categories.
It wins on education and performs well on job opportunities, business community, earnings and access to green space (forming 28% of the city).
Earnings in Edinburgh are second only to London, £578 average per week. The city also has the second highest number of start-ups, while office space costs are about half that of London.
Royal Mail spokesman David Gold said: “This new research from Royal Mail shows there is hot competition among the UK’s leading cities to be the most attractive location for people to live and work in.
“Edinburgh has the edge on other economically significant UK cities. Bristol also performs well in categories including job opportunities, healthcare, business community and culture.”
The top 12 places to live in the UK, according to the Royal Mail’s study are:
1. Edinburgh
2. London
3. Bristol
4. Newcastle
5. Manchester
6. Glasgow
7. Leeds
8. Cardiff
9. Sheffield
10. Liverpool
11. Belfast
12. Birmingham
