What Institut Metròpoli does

Institut Metròpoli is a public metropolitan research institute founded in 1986, headquartered at the Bellaterra campus of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) in Cerdanyola del Vallès, Spain. It operates as a consortium of Catalan public institutions and serves the 36-municipality Barcelona metropolitan area. The institute conducts applied and competitive research across nine themes — childhood and adolescence, governance and public innovation, housing, mobility, neighbourliness and urban safety, regional and urban economics, social and urban cohesion, social rights and public policies, and sustainability — and maintains three recurring survey instruments (EMEF for mobility, ECV for social and urban cohesion, EVAMB for coexistence and urban safety).

Its core product surface consists of (i) the Indicadors Platform, an online dashboard of metropolitan indicators; (ii) a publications portfolio anchored by the Anuari Metropolità de Barcelona (annual yearbook), the AMB en xifres statistical compendium (tracking ~100 indicators), the peer-reviewed Papers journal, a Working Papers series, and the GEM Catalunya annual entrepreneurship reports produced since 2007; (iii) specialized research units including the Observatori Metropolità de l'Habitatge de Barcelona (OHB, housing observatory) and Institut Infància i Adolescència; (iv) competitive European-funded research projects such as Vigilants de la Calor, MICAD, FOODCLIC, and TRANSMEDIAS; and (v) the Màster Metròpoli graduate degree programme.

Revenue is not publicly disclosed. The institute is funded through institutional grants and research contracts from public administrations, with the Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB) as the primary funder and research commissioner. Supplementary revenue streams include fee-based access to raw datasets (documented in the institute's transparency portal), tuition from the Màster Metròpoli programme, and European competitive research funding. Go-to-market is institutional rather than commercial: research outputs are delivered directly to public administrations, while open-access digital channels (website, indicators platform, social media) serve general dissemination. The customer base is concentrated almost entirely in the Catalan public sector (AMB, Ajuntament de Barcelona, Autoritat del Transport Metropolità, Diputació de Barcelona) and partner universities (UAB, UB, UPC), with no private-sector or commercial customers disclosed.

Name

Institut Metròpoli

Legal name

INSTITUT METRÒPOLI

Website

https://institutmetropoli.cat

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Institut Metròpoli is a public metropolitan research institute founded in 1986 that conducts applied and competitive research, manages statistical data platforms, publishes urban studies, and offers training programmes for the Barcelona metropolitan area's public administrations, academic institutions, and researchers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Bellaterra (Cerdanyola del Vallès)

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Institut Metròpoli is a public metropolitan research institute that conducts applied and competitive research on urban dynamics for the Barcelona metropolitan area. It operates standardized surveys on mobility, social cohesion, and urban safety; publishes annual statistical reports, a yearbook, and the peer-reviewed Papers journal; maintains the Indicadors online indicators platform; and runs the Màster Metròpoli graduate program plus specialized observatories for housing and childhood.

Product overview

Institut Metròpoli is a metropolitan research institute offering a portfolio of research publications, data platforms, surveys, and educational programs. The core offering includes statistical publications (Anuari Metropolità, AMB en xifres), the academic Papers journal, and GEM entrepreneurship reports. The institute operates the Indicadors data platform providing metropolitan indicators, conducts major surveys (EMEF mobility, ECV cohesion, EVAMB safety), and manages specialized units including the Housing Observatory (OHB) and Childhood Institute. The Màster Metròpoli provides academic education, while competitive research projects (Vigilants de la Calor, MICAD, FOODCLIC, TRANSMEDIAS) address sustainability, climate, food systems, and urban safety themes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GEM Catalunya: Global Entrepreneurship Monitor reports for Catalonia published by Institut Metròpoli

Products and services

• Indicadors Platform (Indicadors) Online platform providing metropolitan indicators and statistical data for the Barcelona metropolitan area, enabling data access and visualization on urban metrics for policymakers, researchers, and the public.
• Papers Journal (Revista Papers) Peer-reviewed academic journal publishing research on metropolitan studies, urban issues, and social sciences, available by subscription to academic institutions and researchers.
• GEM Catalunya (Global Entrepreneurship Monitor) Annual reports on entrepreneurship in Catalonia, including general reports, executive reports, and summaries tracking entrepreneurial activity and attitudes for public and institutional audiences.
• Anuari Metropolità de Barcelona Annual metropolitan yearbook providing comprehensive statistical and analytical data on the Barcelona metropolitan area for public administrators and researchers.
• AMB en xifres Annual statistical report presenting key indicators on mobility, sustainability, safety, employment, and social cohesion in the Barcelona metropolitan area for public administrators.
• EMEF (Enquesta de Mobilitat en Dia Feiner) Standardized survey analyzing mobility habits of the Barcelona province population for transportation planning purposes, commissioned by the Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM).
• ECV (Enquesta de Cohesió Social i Urbana) Standardized survey measuring social and urban cohesion indicators in the metropolitan area for policymakers and researchers.
• EVAMB (Encuesta de Convivencia y Seguridad Urbana) Survey on coexistence and urban safety in the Barcelona metropolitan area, financed by the Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona, for metropolitan safety policy.
• Màster Metròpoli Master's degree program focused on metropolitan studies, urban planning, and metropolitan governance, delivered to graduate students and professionals.
• Observatori Metropolità de l'Habitatge de Barcelona (OHB) Specialized housing observatory studying housing markets, rental prices, and residential vulnerability in the Barcelona metropolitan area for housing policy stakeholders.
• Institut Infància i Adolescència Specialized institute focused on childhood and adolescence research within metropolitan areas for child and youth policy stakeholders.
• Vigilants de la Calor Citizen science project co-investigating thermal comfort through participatory research in the Barcelona metropolitan area for climate and sustainability stakeholders.
• MICAD (Metropolitan Inclusivity in Climate and Digital Transitions) Competitive research project addressing metropolitan inclusivity in climate and digital transition contexts, producing research outputs for European and metropolitan policy audiences.
• FOODCLIC (Integrated Urban Food Policies) European-funded research project developing sustainable food systems, spatial linkages, social inclusion, and sectoral connections for city regions, producing outputs for urban food policy.
• TRANSMEDIAS (Transformación Seguridad Convivencia Ciudades Medias) Competitive research project focused on urban safety and coexistence transformation in medium-sized cities, producing outputs for urban safety governance.
• Working Papers Working paper series publishing ongoing research and preliminary findings from institute researchers for academic and policy audiences.

Quantifiable outcome

• 5,500 interviews planned for EMEF 2026 mobility survey
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona (AMB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary institutional partner and main funder. AMB commissions metropolitan research on mobility, sustainability, housing, and urban development from Institut Metròpoli.
• Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost institution providing the Bellaterra campus location. Collaborative research involving UAB faculty and access to university research infrastructure.
• Ajuntament de Barcelona (Barcelona City Council)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCity government partner for urban research and metropolitan studies. Collaborates on housing, mobility, and social cohesion research.
• Diputació de Barcelona (DIBA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvincial government institution collaborating on metropolitan research and municipal support programs.
• Universitat de Barcelona (UB)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner for collaborative research projects including sustainability and urban studies.
• Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnical university partner for engineering and urban planning research collaborations.
• Cambra de Barcelona (Barcelona Chamber of Commerce)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChamber of commerce partner for economic and entrepreneurship research including GEM reports.
• GEM Global Entrepreneurship Monitor ConsortiummajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational consortium partner producing annual Global Entrepreneurship Monitor reports for Catalonia since 2007.
• Institut Infància i AdolescènciaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpecialized unit focused on childhood and adolescence research within the metropolitan area.
• Observatori Metropolità de l'Habitatge de Barcelona (OHB)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpecialized housing observatory conducting metropolitan housing market research and analysis.
• Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMetropolitan transport authority commissioning and funding mobility surveys including the EMEF (Enquesta de Mobilitat en Dia Feiner).
• CREAF (Centre de Recerca Ecològica i Aplicacions Forestals)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch center collaborating on sustainability studies including butterfly observatory and urban ecology projects.
• IEGD-CSICmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSIC research institute collaborating on food systems and sustainability research.

Scale indicators3 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Regional Plan Association: US metropolitan research and planning organization producing reports, indicators, and policy analysis for the New York metropolitan region. Functions as a direct functional analogue in a non-European regulatory context.
• Institut Paris Région: Metropolitan planning and research institute serving the Île-de-France region. Operates under a similar mandate of producing urban research, indicators, and planning studies for a major European metropolitan area.
• Barcelona Regional: Catalan urban development and strategic planning agency based in Barcelona. Directly comparable as a local research and planning body addressing urban, mobility, and infrastructure questions in the same metropolitan geography.
• Observatoire des Territoires (ANCT): French public observatory producing territorial indicators and analyses for sub-national planning. Functionally comparable as a publicly mandated data and indicator platform supporting regional development policy.
• Idescat (Institut d'Estadística de Catalunya): Public statistical institute of Catalonia producing official regional statistics and indicators. Closely comparable to Institut Metròpoli's statistical and indicator-producing functions for the same regional policy ecosystem.

Emerging players

• LSE Cities: Academic urban research centre at the London School of Economics producing research on urban dynamics, governance, and inclusion. Overlaps with Institut Metròpoli's metropolitan research themes but operates from a university rather than a public consortium.

Broad incumbents

• INE (Instituto Nacional de Estadística): Spain's national statistics office producing demographic, economic, and social indicators. Comparable as a public-sector statistical producer, though at national rather than metropolitan scale.

Others

• Institut d'Estudis Catalans: Catalan academic and scientific institution coordinating research across humanities and social sciences. Comparable as a public research consortium serving Catalonia, with overlapping academic and publishing roles.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCkMl7gYvm4onand_g2uyu5g
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/institutmetropoli
• Instagraminstagram.com/institutmetropoli

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Institut Metròpoli