The Isle of Bute in Argyll has been named the best place to live in Scotland.
It heads a list of seven Scottish locations chosen by The Sunday Times' annual Best Places to Live guide.
The guide, which includes 70 locations across the UK, assesses a range of factors, including schools, transport and broadband to culture, green spaces and the health of the high street.
An average house price for each location has been supplied by Halifax, with information on broadband speeds provided by Thinkbroadband.
Helen Davies, property editor at The Times and Sunday Times, admitted that the list is necessarily subjective.
“Leave it just to statistics and you will never capture the spirit of a place.
“For that, you need to visit to take into account that ‘you have to be here’ feeling - is the pub dog-friendly, for example? Can you live car-free? What are the schools and houses like? Is it multicultural and multigenerational, and can it offer a good way of life to lots of different sorts of people?
“This year we have discovered new best places to live, from resurgent city centres in the North, rejuvenated suburbs across the country, hidden villages in the South West, and a commutable Scottish island.”
Ilkley in West Yorkshire was named as the overall best place to live in the UK, while the Scottish options included, in order:
Isle of Bute, Argyll (Winner, new) : Just 90 minutes from Glasgow, Bute stands above all the other Scottish Islands for commutability.
Average house price: £155,000
Growth since 2020: data not available
Braemar, Aberdeenshire (new) : This elevated village shows Scotland at its most rugged, but also its most sophisticated, with a high street that sells everything from cashmere and chocolates to walking boots and skis.
Average house price: £245,000
Growth since 2020: data not available
Culross, Fife (new) : Sea views and the period charm of its cobbled, winding streets make this one of Scotland’s most popular villages - and within an hour’s drive of both Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Average house price: £177,000
Growth since 2020: 3%
Dunblane, Stirling : One of the best state secondaries in Scotland, glorious countryside and a strong sporting tradition - not only for tennis - make this the perfect perch for families.
Average house price: £249,000
Growth since 2020: data not available
Shawlands, Glasgow : The Southside’s premium coffee and cake quarter is both practical and cool – and well placed to take advantage of Pollok Country Park and the reopened Burrell Collection.
Average house price: £245,000
Growth since 2020: 15%
Melrose, Borders : You don’t have to like rugby to live here (but it does help) – you can also enjoy the views of the Eildon Hills, and the town’s literary reputation, which comes to the fore every summer in the Borders Book Festival.
Average house price: £311,000
Growth since 2020: data not available
North Berwick : The jewel of the East Lothian coast is too good to leave out of the list, thanks to its combination of good schools, independent shops, beach life and trains to the capital.
Average house price: £401,000
Growth since 2020: Data not available
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