Press Kit
Top Vegan Cities 2026
The Story
Amazing vegan food exists in more places than ever. Finding it still takes real effort—and that gap costs the vegan movement. Research shows over half of people who try plant-based eating give up within a year. Many of them simply couldn't find food good enough to stick with.
The Top Vegan Cities 2026 ranking is built on a simple insight: "Is the food good?" and "Is this city vegan-friendly?" are two different questions. A city can excel at one without excelling at the other. Both matter—but they deserve separate answers.
We analyzed 47,000+ venues across 100 cities in 34 countries to find where both questions get a yes.
Key Findings
- Berlin ranks #1 worldwide—topping both vegan-friendliness and food quality, and the overall ranking
- Germany dominates: Four cities in the top 25 (Berlin #1, Hamburg #8, Cologne #13, Munich #24)
- Hamburg (#8) emerges as a discovery—Berlin's vegan density without the hype
- Portland (#4) leads the US, ahead of Paris (#5), New York (#6), and Los Angeles (#7)
- Ho Chi Minh City (#11) ranks highest in Southeast Asia, showcasing Vietnam's plant-forward cuisine
- Lisbon (#9) quietly became one of Europe's most vegan-friendly capitals
How We Rank
How comfortable is this city for plant-based diners? Based on menu options, labeling clarity, protein variety, and staff knowledge. Cities are scored on venues rated B+ or higher.
How good is the vegan food? Spinach rates every venue on actual food quality—separate from how vegan-friendly it is. Cities are scored on venues rated 4.5+ stars.
The average of both dimensions, weighted 70% by venue count and 30% by density. Cities must be strong on both—great food and genuine accessibility.
About Spinach
Spinach is a vegan food discovery app built on a deep research engine. It answers two questions separately for every venue: Is the food good? and Can I eat here comfortably as a vegan?
Every venue gets two ratings: a Spinach Rating (food quality, 1–5 stars) and a Vegan-Friendliness Index (accessibility, A–E grade). This makes it easy to find what you're actually looking for—whether that's the best vegan food in town, or a place where you'll feel completely at home.
About the Founder
Bartek's first year as a vegan was in Bangkok—a city with incredible plant-based food hiding in plain sight. Finding it took real effort: cross-referencing reviews, learning which spots to trust, building a personal research process. Once he cracked it, he realized how good vegan food could actually be.
That experience stuck with him. After leading HappyCow from 2022 to 2024, he left to build Spinach—a way to give everyone access to the kind of research that used to require years of experience. The Top Vegan Cities ranking is the first output of that engine at scale.
Quotes
"A city can be incredibly vegan-friendly without having the best food—and vice versa. Both matter, but they're different questions. This is the first ranking to answer them separately."
— Bartek Filipowicz, Founder of Spinach
"Amazing vegan food exists in more places than ever. The problem isn't supply—it's discovery. We built Spinach to close that gap."
— Bartek Filipowicz, Founder of Spinach
"Hamburg wasn't on my radar before this ranking. Now it's at the top of my list. That's exactly what good data should do—surface what you'd otherwise miss."
— Bartek Filipowicz, Founder of Spinach
Assets
Links
Full Rankings — Top 100 cities with detailed profiles
Methodology — Complete scoring breakdown
App Store — Download for iOS
Google Play — Download for Android
Announcement Post — Top Vegan Cities 2026 on Instagram
Instagram — @spinach.guide
Contact
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