Sorry Edinburgh. You’ve had a good run, what with the vaults, the closes and the capes. But Google has spoken, and the most haunted city in Europe is York.
Our new study of search data for 34 major European cities found that York racks up 4,304 searches for ghost tours and haunted places for every 100,000 people who live there. Edinburgh, the self-styled spooky capital of the north, manages 1,468. That’s nearly three times more ghostly interest per head for a city with less than half Edinburgh’s population. Awkward.
And London? Bless it. The capital limps in at 10th, behind Venice, Dublin, Florence and Prague, with a measly 28.4 searches per 100,000 residents. York beats it per head by more than 150 times.
Here are the most haunted cities in Europe, ranked by how often people search for spooky stuff per head. Grab a torch.
The top 10 most haunted cities in Europe
| Rank | City | Country | Searches per 100k residents | Avg monthly searches | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | York | United Kingdom | 4,303.8 | 9,000 | 209,118 |
| 2 | Edinburgh | United Kingdom | 1,467.9 | 7,800 | 531,370 |
| 3 | Manchester | United Kingdom | 545.7 | 3,210 | 588,256 |
| 4 | Liverpool | United Kingdom | 210.7 | 1,070 | 507,915 |
| 5 | Glasgow | United Kingdom | 123.8 | 810 | 654,330 |
| 6 | Venice | Italy | 120.2 | 300 | 249,490 |
| 7 | Dublin | Ireland | 114.7 | 680 | 592,713 |
| 8 | Florence | Italy | 47.0 | 170 | 361,705 |
| 9 | Prague | Czechia | 44.7 | 570 | 1,275,406 |
| 10 | London | United Kingdom | 28.4 | 2,590 | 9,122,909 |
The spookiest findings
York vs Edinburgh: the battle of the ghosts
Edinburgh might want to sit down for this. York has 209,118 residents. Edinburgh has 531,370. Yet York pulls in 9,000 ghost searches a month to Edinburgh’s 7,800. More searches, fewer people, and the crown goes south of the border. We’d say “no hard feelings”, but we suspect there will be some.
Manchester is more haunted than London (by a ghostly mile)
Searches for “haunted Manchester” hit 2,900 a month. “Haunted London”? A measly 340. That’s more than eight times the haunted searches, for a city with roughly a fifteenth of London’s population. London has the Tower, the plague pits and 9.1 million residents, and still can’t scare up a crowd. Sorry, London. Your ghosts need a better agent.
London limps in at 10th
The capital only just scrapes into the top 10, with 28.4 searches per 100,000 residents. Venice, Dublin, Florence and even Prague all beat it per head. Venice, a city of under 250,000 people, is more than four times as haunted per head. Mind the gap.
Edinburgh still owns the ghost tour
Credit where it’s due. “Ghost tour Edinburgh” is the single most-searched term in the whole study, with 6,800 searches a month. That’s more than York’s 4,200 for “ghost tour York”, and more than three times London’s 1,900. Edinburgh wins the tour, York wins the haunting. Everybody gets a trophy. Well, almost.
October is ghost season (obviously)
Halloween sends Brits ghost-hunting. “Ghost tour Edinburgh” hit 14,800 UK searches in October 2025, compared with 5,400 a month from April to June 2026. “Ghost tour York” did something similar, jumping to 9,900 in October from a low of 2,900 in June. In fact, every counted keyword for our top five cities hit its highest monthly level in October 2025.
York and Manchester want the full fright
York and Manchester are the only top 10 cities where “haunted” beats “ghost tour”. People search “haunted York” 4,800 times a month, compared with 4,200 for “ghost tour York”, and “haunted Manchester” outsearches “ghost tour Manchester” almost 14 to one (2,900 vs 210). They don’t want a nice walk with a man in a cloak. They want the ghosts.
Venice is the spookiest city outside the UK and Ireland
Venice lands in sixth place with 120.2 searches per 100,000 residents, making it the most haunted city outside the UK and Ireland. It missed out on Glasgow’s fifth place by a whisker (123.8). So close, Venice. So close.
Italy is quietly obsessed with ghosts
Three Italian cities make the top 13: Venice (6th), Florence (8th) and Rome (13th). Italians searched “fantasmi Roma” (Rome ghosts) 190 times a month and “fantasmi Firenze” (Florence ghosts) 120 times a month. Pasta, art and poltergeists. What a combo.
Stockholm loves a spooky stroll
Sweden’s capital came 11th, mostly thanks to “spökvandring Stockholm” (Stockholm ghost walk), searched 310 times a month. Very civilised. Very Swedish.
Seville is Europe’s least haunted city
Seville came 34th out of 34, with no measurable searches for any of its ghost terms. Either its ghosts are very well behaved or nobody’s bothered looking.
Europe’s five most haunted cities, up close
1. York: 4,303.8 searches per 100k residents
- Average monthly searches: 9,000
- Top terms: “haunted York” (4,800), “ghost tour York” (4,200)
The champion. York has long had a reputation as one of Europe’s most haunted cities, and now the data backs up the bragging. Its most famous ghost story dates back to 1953, when a young apprentice plumber called Harry Martindale was working in the cellar of the Treasurer’s House, next to York Minster. He said he heard a trumpet, then watched a troop of Roman soldiers march through the wall. Oddly, he could only see them from the knees up, until they reached a part of the floor where an old Roman road had been dug out. York was the Roman city of Eboracum, so the legionaries were on home turf. Not even death could stop them commuting.
2. Edinburgh: 1,467.9 searches per 100k residents
- Average monthly searches: 7,800
- Top terms: “ghost tour Edinburgh” (6,800), “Edinburgh ghost walk” (580), “haunted Edinburgh” (420)
A very respectable silver, Edinburgh. Truly. Come October, ghost tour searches nearly triple (14,800 vs 5,400 a month in spring). Its Old Town is practically built on ghost stories. Under the Royal Mile sits Mary King’s Close, a 17th-century street that was partly demolished and built over when the Royal Exchange (now the City Chambers) went up in the 1750s. Visitors leave toys for “Annie”, a little girl said to haunt one of its rooms. Nearby, the South Bridge Vaults are a warren of dark chambers beneath the city, and over at Greyfriars Kirkyard, the “Mackenzie Poltergeist” is blamed for scratches and bruises reported by visitors near the tomb of George “Bloody” Mackenzie. Spooky stuff. Just not York spooky.
3. Manchester: 545.7 searches per 100k residents
- Average monthly searches: 3,210
- Top terms: “haunted Manchester” (2,900), “ghost tour Manchester” (210), “Manchester ghost walk” (100)
Manchester doesn’t do things by halves, so naturally its spookiest story involves the devil himself. Legend has it that Elizabethan occultist John Dee, who became warden of Manchester’s college in 1595, summoned Satan in what is now Chetham’s Library. The proof? A mark on an oak table in the Audit Room, said to be the devil’s hoofprint. Head south to Wythenshawe Hall and you might meet Mary Webb, a servant said to have died during the Civil War siege of the hall in the 1640s, whose sobbing is still reported in the corridors.
4. Liverpool: 210.7 searches per 100k residents
- Average monthly searches: 1,070
- Top terms: “ghost tour Liverpool” (490), “haunted Liverpool” (440), “Liverpool ghost walk” (140)
“Haunted Liverpool” isn’t just a search term. It’s also the name of Tom Slemen’s long-running series of books about the city’s ghosts. The city’s best-known haunt is Speke Hall, a Tudor manor on the banks of the Mersey, where a “Grey Lady” is said to drift through the Tapestry Room. Legend links her to Mary Norris, wife of the gambler nicknamed “Worthless Sidney” Beauclerk. Historians point out the records don’t back up the grisliest bits of the tale, but that hasn’t stopped generations of school trips from sprinting out of that room.
5. Glasgow: 123.8 searches per 100k residents
- Average monthly searches: 810
- Top terms: “ghost tour Glasgow” (410), “haunted Glasgow” (340), “Glasgow ghost walk” (60)
Glasgow’s spookiest night out belongs to its kids. In 1954, hundreds of children armed with sticks and kitchen knives stormed the Southern Necropolis in the Gorbals, hunting a “vampire with iron teeth” they believed had eaten two local boys. Police had to break it up. The panic was blamed on American horror comics and helped lead to a 1955 law restricting them. The city’s grand Victorian Necropolis, on the hill beside Glasgow Cathedral, is a fixture on local ghost tours too. And yes, Glasgow, you beat Venice. Enjoy that one.
Bonus: where Brits search most for ghosts abroad
We also measured the same English search terms for all 34 cities from UK searchers only. Unsurprisingly, Brits search most for York (9,000), Edinburgh (7,800), Manchester (3,210) and London (2,590). But when it comes to haunted holidays abroad, these are the cities Brits search for most each month:
- Prague: 320 searches
- Dublin: 170 searches
- Venice: 140 searches
- Krakow: 100 searches
- Paris: 90 searches
- Rome: 90 searches
Prague is the clear winner, with 280 Brits a month searching for “ghost tour Prague” alone. Stag dos, but make it spectral.
What the founder says
Kira Khoroshilova, founder of Diary Of An SEO, said: “Sorry Edinburgh, but the numbers don’t lie. York gets nearly three times more ghost searches per head, and people are brutally honest with Google. Nobody types ‘haunted York’ by accident. As for London, coming 10th behind Venice, Dublin, Florence and Prague, and getting outsearched by Manchester more than eight to one on ‘haunted’ searches, maybe its ghosts just can’t afford the rent.”
Full keyword breakdown
Average monthly searches for each keyword in each city’s home country. “Not counted” marks a term Google treats as the same search as another, so it’s only counted once.
| City | Country | Keywords and average monthly searches | Total counted |
|---|---|---|---|
| York | United Kingdom | ghost tour york 4,200; haunted york 4,800; york ghost tour no data; york ghost walk 4,200 (not counted) | 9,000 |
| Edinburgh | United Kingdom | ghost tour edinburgh 6,800; haunted edinburgh 420; edinburgh ghost tour 4,400 (not counted); edinburgh ghost walk 580 | 7,800 |
| Manchester | United Kingdom | ghost tour manchester 210; haunted manchester 2,900; manchester ghost tour 320 (not counted); manchester ghost walk 100 | 3,210 |
| Liverpool | United Kingdom | ghost tour liverpool 490; haunted liverpool 440; liverpool ghost tour no data; liverpool ghost walk 140 | 1,070 |
| Glasgow | United Kingdom | ghost tour glasgow 410; haunted glasgow 340; glasgow ghost tour no data; glasgow ghost walk 60 | 810 |
| Venice | Italy | ghost tour venice 210; haunted venice 40; luoghi infestati venezia 10; fantasmi venezia 40 | 300 |
| Dublin | Ireland | ghost tour dublin 610; haunted dublin 60; dublin ghost tour no data; dublin ghost walk 10 | 680 |
| Florence | Italy | ghost tour florence 40; haunted florence 10; luoghi infestati firenze no data; fantasmi firenze 120 | 170 |
| Prague | Czechia | ghost tour prague 480; haunted prague no data; strašidla praha 90; strašidelná místa praha no data | 570 |
| London | United Kingdom | ghost tour london 1,900; haunted london 340; london ghost tour 1,600 (not counted); london ghost walk 350 | 2,590 |
| Stockholm | Sweden | ghost tour stockholm 70; haunted stockholm 10; spöken stockholm 10; spökvandring stockholm 310 | 400 |
| Birmingham | United Kingdom | ghost tour birmingham 130; haunted birmingham 70; birmingham ghost tour no data; birmingham ghost walk 40 | 240 |
| Rome | Italy | ghost tour rome 200; haunted rome 10; luoghi infestati roma 10; fantasmi roma 190 | 410 |
| Athens | Greece | ghost tour athens 340; haunted athens 10; στοιχειωμένα μέρη αθήνα no data; φαντάσματα αθήνα no data | 350 |
| Krakow | Poland | ghost tour krakow 70; haunted krakow 10; nawiedzone miejsca kraków 10; duchy krakowa 10 | 100 |
| Amsterdam | Netherlands | ghost tour amsterdam 60; haunted amsterdam 30; spookplekken amsterdam no data; spookwandeling amsterdam 10 | 100 |
| Copenhagen | Denmark | ghost tour copenhagen 20; haunted copenhagen 10; spøgelser københavn 10; spøgelsestur københavn 10 | 50 |
| Milan | Italy | ghost tour milan 10; haunted milan no data; luoghi infestati milano no data; fantasmi milano 160 | 170 |
| Barcelona | Spain | ghost tour barcelona 90; haunted barcelona 30; lugares embrujados barcelona no data; ruta de fantasmas barcelona no data | 120 |
| Munich | Germany | ghost tour munich 40; haunted munich 10; spukorte münchen no data; geisterführung münchen 10 | 60 |
| Vienna | Austria | ghost tour vienna 50; haunted vienna 10; spukorte wien no data; geisterführung wien 10 | 70 |
| Warsaw | Poland | ghost tour warsaw 10; haunted warsaw no data; nawiedzone miejsca warszawa 20; duchy warszawy 30 | 60 |
| Berlin | Germany | ghost tour berlin 40; haunted berlin 70; spukorte berlin no data; geisterführung berlin no data | 110 |
| Budapest | Hungary | ghost tour budapest 40; haunted budapest 10; kísértetjárta helyek budapest no data; szellemtúra budapest no data | 50 |
| Lisbon | Portugal | ghost tour lisbon 40; haunted lisbon 10; lugares assombrados lisboa no data; fantasmas lisboa no data | 50 |
| Paris | France | ghost tour paris 170; haunted paris 20; lieux hantés paris 30; paris hanté 20 | 240 |
| Cologne | Germany | ghost tour cologne no data; haunted cologne 10; spukorte köln no data; geisterführung köln 10 | 20 |
| Lyon | France | ghost tour lyon 10; haunted lyon no data; lieux hantés lyon 10; lyon hanté no data | 20 |
| Hamburg | Germany | ghost tour hamburg 10; haunted hamburg 10; spukorte hamburg 10; geisterführung hamburg no data | 30 |
| Madrid | Spain | ghost tour madrid 40; haunted madrid 10; lugares embrujados madrid 10; ruta de fantasmas madrid no data | 60 |
| Porto | Portugal | ghost tour porto 10; haunted porto no data; lugares assombrados porto no data; fantasmas porto no data | 10 |
| Brussels | Belgium | ghost tour brussels 10; haunted brussels no data; lieux hantés bruxelles no data; spookplekken brussel no data | 10 |
| Bucharest | Romania | ghost tour bucharest 10; haunted bucharest no data; locuri bântuite bucurești no data; fantome bucurești no data | 10 |
| Seville | Spain | ghost tour seville no data; haunted seville no data; lugares embrujados sevilla no data; ruta de fantasmas sevilla no data | 0 |
Methodology
To find Europe’s most haunted cities, Diary Of An SEO analysed Google search data for 34 major European cities in 17 countries. For each city, we measured searches for ghost tours and haunted places, in English and the local language, in that city’s home country, based on average monthly searches (Mangools KWFinder, October 2026), counting near-identical search terms only once. We then divided each city’s total by its population, using official figures from ONS, CSO Ireland, and Eurostat, to rank cities by searches per 100,000 residents.
Using this data?
Journalists and bloggers are welcome to use this data. Just credit Diary Of An SEO and Kira Khoroshilova.
