Every day we move through streets, parks, and neighborhoods. Some places lift our spirits, while others weigh us down. Some buildings make us pause and smile; others make us wonder how they were ever approved.
Yet, despite the obvious influence of design and aesthetics on our daily lives, there is still no universal way to measure the beauty of our surroundings. We can measure air quality, energy efficiency, and carbon footprint—why not the aesthetic footprint of a place?
Why Aesthetic Impact Matters
Beauty is not a luxury. It shapes how we feel, how safe we perceive a place to be, and how proud we are of our communities. A well-designed building can uplift an entire neighborhood, attract visitors, and give identity to a city. A poorly placed or poorly designed one can do the opposite, leaving scars that last for decades.
If beauty influences us so deeply, why don’t we treat it as something measurable, trackable, and improvable?
The Vision of How Nice Is
This is where How Nice Is comes in.
We believe in creating a universal system for rating the aesthetic impact of buildings and businesses on their surroundings.
A language that anyone can understand.
A tool that empowers citizens to express how they experience their neighborhoods.
A standard that helps businesses and developers realize their impact.
A movement that makes cities more beautiful, one rating at a time.
How It Works
Through community voting, transparent scoring, and collective insight, How Nice Is builds the first step toward a shared aesthetic standard. Just as restaurants are rated for quality or hotels for comfort, places can—and should—be rated for how much they add (or subtract) from the beauty of their environment.
Over time, this creates a global aesthetic map: a living record of how people experience their cities and spaces.
We believe that beauty is not just subjective—it is shared, it is cultural, and it can be made visible.
And once visible, it can be improved.
Join us in shaping the world’s first universal aesthetic rating system. Because our surroundings should not only function—
they should inspire.