This report establishes one of the first shared international frameworks for understanding intermediary cities with a standardised definition, and identifies their diverse roles within national territorial systems. It highlights how intermediary cities differ from large metropolitan areas yet perform eight key functions – business, knowledge, transport, housing, culture, retail, health and government – that shape their contribution to regional development. The report also maps 555 intermediary cities across OECD countries and develops a five-type typology (Knowledge Hubs, Service Hubs, Housing Hubs, Cultural Hubs and
Self-contained Employment Hubs) to guide more place-based analysis and policymaking.
The report further proposes policy priorities to unlock the potential of intermediary cities by addressing workforce shortages and skill gaps, enhancing physical and digital connectivity, and improving well-being and quality of life. It recommends strengthening local labour-education alignment, expanding transport and digital infrastructure, and ensuring access to key services and amenities. To enable intermediary cities to fulfil their functions, the report emphasises the need for three enabling conditions to strengthen their capacities: clear place-based strategies, stronger multi-level co-ordination, and sustained, well‑aligned investment. It also highlights opportunities for national, regional and EU-level actors to improve financing frameworks, streamline support instruments, and foster integrated territorial approaches.
As this report concludes, several next steps emerge for deepening the understanding of intermediary cities and translating insights into more effective policy action. Future work can build on the analytical foundations developed here by pursuing the following priorities:
Continue developing new data and policy evidence: Advance the empirical base by generating improved indicators and datasets on the functions as well as contexts (e.g. geographical, institutional) to develop further analysis on typologies and performance of intermediary cities. Strengthening quantitative and qualitative evidence will support more robust international comparisons and help refine policy frameworks.
Conduct additional country case studies to analyse national urban systems: Expand the research to examine how intermediary cities operate within diverse national contexts, including their bridging role across different population sizes, geographies and institutional environments. Such studies can further uncover how intermediary cities support territorial cohesion, connect rural and metropolitan areas and respond to demographic or economic pressures.
Advance thematic studies of intermediary cities: Conduct more focused investigations on specific issues to inform targeted policy priorities and refine the policy priorities in the pilot toolkit. This could include issue‑based deep dives into housing challenges, labour market transitions or connectivity gaps, providing evidence‑based insights to better inform the policy responses.
Deepen typology‑based city case studies: Conduct in-depth case studies on specific city typologies to better understand their challenges and performance drivers. This includes examining typologies not yet examined in this project with in-depth analysis (e.g. Knowledge Hubs) to generate more type‑specific policy guidance.
Deepen city case studies in specific geographical contexts: Analyse intermediary cities situated in distinctive geographical settings to clarify how spatial location shapes opportunities and constraints to inform context-sensitive policy guidance. This includes city-level case studies on specific contexts not yet examined in this project with in-depth analysis (e.g. intermediary cities close to large cities) to better understand the challenges and drivers of performance.
Extend the study to intermediary cities in non-EU contexts: While much of the empirical analysis presented in this report – including the quantitative assessment and the experimental typology – is grounded in the EU context, many challenges and opportunities faced by intermediary cities, such as demographic change, service provision, economic diversification and connectivity, are highly relevant beyond Europe. Broadening the geographical scope to regions such as Latin America and the Caribbean, North America, and other OECD countries will help test and adapt the analytical framework and enhance its global relevance.
