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Committee for Sydney
A new report by independent think tank Committee for Sydney reveals a glaring disparity between Sydney’s performance and its perception on the world stage.
The report, ‘Beauty Runs Deep: Benchmarking Sydney’s Brand 2025,’ looks at six key pillars – visitor and destination, business and innovator, talent, resident, asset and investor, and culture – to test how Sydney’s brand compares, in perception and performance, to cities across the world.
The research reveals a significant split, with results at or near the top for Sydney on metrics around liveability and tourism, with strong name recognition, and strong results for liveability and place, for short term visits and a warm welcome. However, Sydney’s perception on the world stage consistently lags its performance on strategically important indicators – business and innovator, and culture – both crucially important for attracting investment and repeat visitors.
Key points from the report:
- Sydney is the only city in the Southern Hemisphere in the top tier of globally connected corporate cities
- Sydney is the biggest innovation ecosystem south of the equator, yet ranks only 17th out of 25 top cities on reputation for innovation prospects
- Ripe for investment. Sydney is widely regarded as a safe bet for investment, with a wellregulated market, stable political landscape and strong economy, placing second for regional investment opportunities and consistently top three for perceived development prospects. But actual investment volumes lag that perception, creating a significant opportunity to leverage Sydney’s strong perceptions for wider economic and developmental goals.
- Cultural offerings. Sydney’s cultural brand lagged for some time, but in 2025 we are seeing green shoots with Sydney ranking top five globally for its arts and culture scene as voted by locals in each city. Yet Sydney is consistently rated outside of the top 20 among 45 global cities for its museum and dining offerings.
