A tale of two cities: comparing urban vegetation in Spain's largest metros
Madrid and Barcelona are Spain's two largest cities, both Mediterranean metropolises with millions of residents. But when it comes to urban vegetation, they tell very different stories.
Using Sentinel-2 satellite imagery from summer 2024, we analyzed the vegetation coverage in both cities. The results might surprise you.
Barcelona has three times the vegetation coverage of Madrid by percentage. But Madrid is six times larger in area.
When we calculate the actual green area and divide by population, a different picture emerges.
Barcelona's city limits are tightly drawn around its dense urban core, pressed between the mountains and the sea. Madrid's boundaries extend far into surrounding areas, including large parks like Casa de Campo.
This doesn't diminish Barcelona's achievement - maintaining over 10% vegetation in one of Europe's densest cities is remarkable. But it reminds us that comparing cities requires understanding their unique geographies.
Sant Cugat del Valles (Barcelona metro) has the highest vegetation coverage of any city in our dataset - nearly 6x higher than Madrid's city center.
Both cities face the challenge of maintaining green spaces in growing urban areas. Barcelona shows that density and greenery can coexist. Madrid's larger footprint offers different opportunities for urban forests and parks.
