Wellington maintains status as New Zealand’s most creative city

November 10, 2023

Wellington City Council has welcomed the city again being acknowledged as the most creative city in New Zealand by the Infometrics Creativity Index - maintaining an unbroken record since the year 2000.

The index looks at the proportion of a city’s workforce involved in creative and artistic occupations and industries, and points to a link between the creative arts and economic development.

Wellington had a Creative Index of 6.9 in 2022 meaning 6.9% of Wellington City’s workforce (12,403 people) were employed in the creative sector last year.

The index puts Wellington well ahead of Queenstown, Auckland and Dunedin, and four of its neighbours - Porirua, Lower Hutt, Kāpiti Coast, South Wairarapa - are also in the top 10, making it the most creative region of Aotearoa.

Stating that says the creative community is the beating heart of the city, and that this latest result shows it remains strong, Wellington Mayor, Tory Whanau commented “Wellington has always embraced its creative capital status, it’s what sets us apart from other cities.

“It also shows Wellington City Council’s on-going commitment to the sector has supported it through some challenging times - particularly our Aho Tini 2030 Arts, Culture, and Creativity Strategy which is providing a strong platform for innovation and creativity in our city.”

Image: The auditorium of Wellington's St James Theatre. Credit: Wellington City Council.

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