I've generated probably a hundred different city maps at this point (occupational hazard), and I can tell you from experience: some cities just look better as art than others. It's not that some cities are "better"—it's that certain street patterns create more visually striking compositions.
Here are the 10 cities that consistently produce the most stunning map prints, based on both visual impact and how often people tell us they love them.
1. Barcelona, Spain
Barcelona's Eixample district is basically geometric porn for design nerds. Those octagonal blocks designed by Ildefons Cerdà in the 1850s? Absolutely mesmerizing when you zoom in enough to see the pattern. One of our most popular non-UK cities by far.
2. Paris, France
Thanks to Baron Haussmann's massive 19th-century renovation, Paris has these incredible radial boulevards radiating from monuments like the Arc de Triomphe. It creates this spider-web effect that's instantly recognizable. Mix that with the medieval lanes that survived, and you get incredible visual complexity.
3. New York City, USA
Manhattan's grid is iconic for a reason. That rigid structure, interrupted by Broadway's diagonal slash and Central Park's perfect rectangle? It's one of the most recognizable urban patterns on earth. Even people who've never been to NYC can identify it.
4. Venice, Italy
Venice is wild because there are no cars—just canals and footpaths winding in organic, almost random patterns. It looks nothing like any other city. The map has this fractal-like quality that's really unique.
5. London, United Kingdom
Two thousand years of urban development visible in one map. You've got Roman roads, medieval lanes, Georgian squares, Victorian railways—it's all there. The Thames curve alone makes it worth it, but zoom in anywhere and you'll find interesting patterns.
6. Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo confuses people because it looks "chaotic," but it's actually following historical waterways and old feudal boundaries. The result is this mesmerizing organic pattern that's the complete opposite of Western grid cities. Absolutely stunning in the right theme.
7. Washington D.C., USA
Pierre L'Enfant designed D.C. with a grid system overlaid with diagonal avenues, creating these star-shaped intersections everywhere. It's dramatic and bold—perfect for wall art if you want something with grandeur.
8. Melbourne, Australia
The Hoddle Grid in Melbourne's CBD is perfect and orderly, but zoom out a bit and you see Victorian-era suburbs with parks, boulevards, and crescents creating beautiful variation. It's like the best of both worlds.
9. Amsterdam, Netherlands
Those famous canal rings create concentric semi-circles that are instantly recognizable. Amsterdam's probably one of the few cities where even non-locals can identify it just from the map pattern.
10. Boston, USA
Boston's streets literally follow cow paths and old shorelines from centuries ago. It's wonderfully organic and "unplanned" in the best way. Perfect if you want character over geometry.
What Actually Makes a Great Map Print?
After watching thousands of people generate maps, I've noticed a few patterns about what works:
Contrast matters more than you'd think. Cities with clear distinctions between major and minor roads look better than cities where everything's the same width.
Density is a Goldilocks situation. Too sparse and it looks empty. Too dense and it's visual noise. You want enough detail to be interesting but not overwhelming.
Personal connection trumps everything. Honestly, the "best" city is the one that means something to you. We've had people create beautiful prints of small towns nobody's heard of because that's where they grew up or fell in love.
"I nearly went with Paris because it's 'prettier,' but ended up doing my hometown of Bristol instead. Best decision—every time I look at it, I see the neighborhoods where I actually lived my life." — Tom, Bristol
Quick Printing Tips
If you're printing one of these cities, a few things I've learned:
High contrast themes work best—Noir, Blueprint, or one of the darker themes. They make the street patterns really pop.
Don't zoom out too far. I cannot stress this enough. These cities look amazing when you're close enough to see individual streets, not when you're showing the entire metropolitan area.
A3 or larger is the sweet spot for printing. Anything smaller and you lose the detail that makes these cities special. Most print shops can do A3 for £15-20.