People in the Mearns are enjoying the best rural quality of life in Scotland.
The area has claimed the top spot in the latest Bank of Scotland Rural Areas Quality of Life Survey for the fourth time, regaining the position it last held in 2010.
The Shetland Islands, which topped the poll in 2011, were placed second, with the Orkney Islands in third.
People living in Aberdeenshire tend to be fit and well, with 93% reporting themselves to be in good or fairly good health, and they have a higher than average life expectancy of 78.2 years.
The employment rate is 79%, with weekly average earnings of £661.
However, the quality of life does come with some costs. While Aberdeenshire has the largest houses in Scotland and residents live in relative security, with burglary rates of just 14.5 per 10,000 households, the average price of a house in Aberdeenshire is 5.7 times the average gross annual local earnings above the Scottish average of five.
Aberdeenshire Provost Jill Webster said: “The results of this poll only serve to underline what I’ve been sure of for many years that the area offers our residents the best quality of life in Scotland.
“From high life expectancy, high employment and high earnings to above average school results and levels of sunshine, Aberdeenshire really does represent the very best of Scotland, from mountain to sea.”