England's top 10 places to live ranked - and London is not No. 1

Bedfordshire has taken a hit, being labelled as the worst county in following a new ranking of all the counties in the country.

released a list ranking the country's 48 counties, judging them in 41 areas, including the number of Michelin-star restaurants. Bedfordshire was at the bottom of the list.

While some may wonder whether categories such as the number of golf courses should really determine a county's quality, there are criteria that touch upon most interests.

The ranking also measures a county against its number of National Parks and top-rate villages as well as its crime rate and, of course, how many Great British Pub Awards winners it has.

In response to Bedfordshire's poor ranking, the news outlet reported: "It has no World Heritage Sites, National Parks, coastline, Michelin-starred restaurants, first-rate hotels, world-class sport, RHS gardens, Dark Sky Reserves, National Trails or cathedrals."

Bedfordshire gained 247 points because of one RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) reserve, The Chiltern Hills, 24 museums and galleries, and several National Trust and English Heritage properties.

Devon, also England's best place to live, earned 981 points-nearly four times more than Bedfordshire.

This isn't the first time Bedfordshire's reputation has suffered. In 2023, the county's commuter town, Luton, was also named the "worst place to live" in the UK by the satirical website iLiveHere. The website claimed that "everyone is unhappy about something" in the "unsafe town."

However, this year, it managed to skip the top worst place to live list and found its way into the top five most zen places in the UK. According to research by Supplement Place, the town has a zen rating of 6.9 out of 10.

The Telegraph's list was a revision of the original analysis they carried out in 2022. Its ranking criteria were divided into four subcategories: peace and quiet, natural wonders, history and culture, and luxuries.

Greater London managed to top the list for history and culture, and luxuries, while Devon came top for natural wonders and Cornwall for peace and quiet.

England counties - full ranking

1. Devon

2. Cumbria

3. North Yorkshire

4. Cornwall

5. Somerset

6. Kent

7. Norfolk

8. Hampshire

9. Dorset

10. Greater London

11. Northumberland

12. Gloucestershire

13. Wiltshire

14. East Sussex

15. Suffolk

16. West Sussex

17. Surrey

18. Oxfordshire

19. Shropshire

20. Essex

21. Lancashire

22. Berkshire

23. Worcestershire

24. Lincolnshire

25. Derbyshire

26. Cheshire

27. West Yorkshire

28. Herefordshire

29. Staffordshire

30. Nottinghamshire

31. Cambridgeshire

32. South Yorkshire

33. Rutland

34. Isle of Wight

35. Buckinghamshire

36. West Midlands

37. Greater Manchester

38. Tyne and Wear

39. Durham

40. Leicestershire

41. Warwickshire

42. Hertfordshire

43. Northamptonshire

44. East Riding

45. Merseyside

46. City of London

47. Bristol

48. Bedfordshire