St Albans is one of the UK's top 10 most aesthetic cities, according to a tiling and ceramics firm.

Atlas Ceramics, a company based in Hampshire, has declared St Albans the country's seventh most beautiful destination.

The Hertfordshire city was given an overall score of 7.14 out of 10 in a study by the firm.

%image(14508348, type="article-full", alt="Nobody knows "distinct character" like the citizens of St Albans, Atlas' report reads")

To get this mark, Atlas Ceramics weighed up the "percentage of boutique hotels" (14.29 per cent), the number of listed buildings per square kilometre (five), and the number of interior designers (270.6) and architects (265.9) per 100,000 people.

The city was beaten by London, Chelmsford, Winchester, Exeter, Worcester and - in pole position - Oxford.

But St Albans beat Cambridge, Manchester and Bristol in the rankings.

%image(14508355, type="article-full", alt="St Albans Charter Market")

%image(14508356, type="article-full", alt="St Albans is more beautiful than Cambridge (pictured), according to Atlas Ceramics")

%image(14508359, type="article-full", alt="The Clifton Bridge at sunrise in Bristol, the 10th most beautiful city in the UK, according to Atlas Ceramics")

%image(14508363, type="article-full", alt="Hertford Bridge in Oxford, which topped Atlas Ceramics' list of the most beautiful UK cities")

Detailing the study, an Atlas spokesperson said: "A city’s aesthetics give a location its character.

"Whether it’s cutting-edge industrial design in a city at the forefront of technological innovation, or well-preserved features like mosaic tiles with a rich history that imparts a timeless feel, each city has its unique fingerprint shaped by its residents.

"A beautiful city can attract new residents too, helping shape its character.

"People in beautiful cities tend to socialise more and feel happier if the streets, buildings and public spaces are attractive and inviting.

"So, which city can be crowned the most aesthetic in the UK and which is the worst?

"We’ve taken a look at boutique hotels, listed buildings and monuments, interior designers, architects and social media data to find out."

As part of the study, St Albans came out on top as the city with the most interior designers and the most architects.

The study reads: "Interior design is a key element of a city’s aesthetic as it demonstrates how willing a city is to stay on the cutting edge of design.

"A co-working space in the city was also recently nominated for an interior design award at the London Design Awards.

"St Albans takes first place for this factor with 270.6 interior designers per 100,000 of its population."

%image(14508369, type="article-full", alt="St Albans Museum - an example of neo-Greek civic architecture from the early 1800s")

It adds: "Architectural style shapes a city’s aesthetic, giving each location a distinct character and nobody knows this more than the citizens of St. Albans!

"The city has 265.9 architects per 100,000 people landing the city in first place.

"The city is one of the best places for architects as more than 70 per cent of planning applications are accepted by the local council."

The study shows Salford has the second most interior designers and architects. Manchester comes third in the interior designer category, while Cambridge has the third most architects, the study notes.

Atlas used data from Houzz - a home renovations directory - to come up with these figures.

The firm is not alone in its claim that St Albans is a beautiful city.

In a Guardian "Let's Move To" feature, Tom Dyckhoff writes: "St Albans is a Goldilocks kind of place: it’s just right.

"Old (one of Britain’s oldest settlements), but not over-preserved.

"Not too frantic and urban, not too dull and commutery.

"Dense, but green and verdant.

"The city centre is a historical delight, high on a hill and folded into Verulamium park, bursting with Roman remains and ancient trees.

"Not too big, not too small."

%image(14508372, type="article-full", alt="St Albans is "green and verdant", a Guardian Lets' Move To feature reads")

The city features in the Top 200 Places to Live on the Muddy Stilettos blog.

The self-styled urban guide to the countryside reads: "Not only is St Albans one of the country's most beautiful small cities, it's also bursting with great pubs, restaurants, independent shops, and a good dose of community spirit."

Along with the most aesthetic cities, Atlas Ceramics' study names Derry, Northern Ireland, as the least aesthetic city in the country - with Durham in second and Sheffield in third.

%image(14508377, type="article-full", alt="Derry was ranked the least aesthetic city in the UK by Atlas Ceramics")

%image(14508380, type="article-full", alt="Durham, the second least beautiful city in the UK, according to Atlas Ceramics")

On Derry, the study notes: "This Northern Irish city lands itself with the unfortunate title of the least aesthetic city.

"It takes last place in our index with a score of 1.79/10 thanks to it having the lowest proportion of interior designers on the list, who play an important role in creating and curating a city’s aesthetic.

"It’s also in the bottom three for its proportion of both architects, listed buildings and monuments."