15 Cheap Big-Cities to Live in Europe (Less than $1,600/Month) 

1.400dollars a month in Budapest for a single person..... yet an avg person in Budapest doesn earn more than 7-800dollars/month, and Hungary has one of the higest inflations in entire Europe where basic good costs more than they do in western countries.... Gotta love these Americans telling us how cheap our cities/countries are IN THEIR OWN CURRENCY AND INCOME.

Poznan in Poland also deserves a recommendation. It is cheaper than Warsaw, Krakow and Wroclaw, but the quality of life is similar to those mentioned. The population is similar to Dresden. Poznań from years has the lowest unemployment rate in Poland in value around 1%.

I would choose Valencia out of this selection - it probably has a beautiful warm climate where citrus does well and the city seems to be full of beautiful buildings and avenues - and then there is that wonderful arts precinct that reminds me of the Sydney Opera House in my country where you could enjoy your favorite forms of arts and entertainment. Spain too is a relatively stable country.

Being from Naples I would only consider to move to a similar place warm and close to the sea and little bit less chaotic than my city so I think Valencia is the best option. Never been in Romania but I think Romania is one of the most underrated places in Europe, they have an amazing wild nature and the new thermal baths in Bucarest are amazing, some of the most beutiful women of the continent as well.

As a Riga local, Riga is super awesome during spring and summer but I wouldn't reccomend being here in late autumn and winter. Sure it is nice at first but after many many months of darkness and coldness it gets annoying.

Dresden is an absolute boss! I had the honor of living here for a while when I was a student. It is very cheap here, compared to other big cities, especially in the western part of Germany. Beautiful city with beautiful galleries and its own "Switzerland" - Saxon Switzerland. Also, you can travel to Prague quite quickly.

Moved to Wrocław 7 years ago. Amazing city. Love it so much and not going to move elsewhere. Recommend it.

Some ppl in the comments don't realise this video is aimed at American expats/digital nomads, not at Europeans 🤷‍♀️

Thessaloniki is an affordable city to live. Better than Athens

how is 1,600$ cheap? in a lot of European countries, people don`t even earn that much - I certainly don`t and I`m from EU.

Do you think that "less than $1600" is cheap?? You live in the world of dreams... In europe, expecially in Italy and spain, the average wage is 1300/1400 euros, and in cities with more than 500k a low rent is 700/800, it's unliveable. I live in Verona and just for a room i spend 500 euros/month, and my wage is 1400.

Visited Sofia recently...it's a bit grim...nightlife is nothing special, it's polluted, there are dilapidated commie blocks everywhere even in the city centre, and as this video is recommended for nomads/expats, a word of caution; very very few people speak English there, so prepare to struggle for getting basic stuff done. Unless you know locals to help you out, good luck relocating there.

It is so tricky. If you want to work in the city, then Naples may be cheaper then München for example but the salaries are also much lower. If you are retired or financial independent from the location for work, then this list is surely something to think of.

I'm from Belgrade, you can rent easily from 500-900 dollars per month. If you want to go for super luxury then it's 1500$. Average salary is 400-500$

As a person from Belgrade, I don't think it's a great option. - It's overcrowded already, especially as there has been an influx of Russians and somewhat Ukrainians in the past year or so. Raising the price of rent too. - There is no subway and the traffic gets rough in rush hour, which doesn't exclude the weekend. - While the restaurants will be cheaper than most are used to, the food in the supermarkets isn't. Also, electronics prices are way higher than in countries that have a higher living standard. - The pollution started getting rough during the winter in the past several years. - We don't get many cheap flights out of the city. - Construction is happening everywhere! I've been to Budapest and Thessaloniki and I would recommend them way over Belgrade.

This is a good list of places in Europe on a budget. I would say Valencia, Dresden, Budapest, Wroclaw and Krakow seem like the best options. Seville is definitely more expensive than explained in this video, plus the summers in Seville are unbearable due to prolonged hot and dry weather. Belgrade, Thessaloniki, Palermo, and Naples definitely lack pro-business attitudes, and they may feel a bit dangerous to some foreigners. Bucharest, Zagreb, Riga, Zaragoza and Sofia might be good options too, but probably for a shorter period of time. If you have a slightly larger budget and are open to other European cities/towns I would also recommend the following places for remote/nomad workers: Porto, Antwerp, Utrecht, Lubeck, Dusseldorf/Cologne, Basel (might be expensive, but it's beautiful), Alicante, Oviedo, Montpellier, a lot of northern Italian cities e.g. Genoa, Turin, Bergamo, Verona, Parma (some of them might be expensive e.g. Verona), also other beautiful and affordable Italian locations e.g. Bologna, Perugia, Bari, in Poland I would also recommend (apart from Wroclaw and Krakow which are great spots) Poznan, Szczecin and Lodz. If you want to include UK, I would definitely suggest Edinburgh, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle and Leeds as the best places for remote work and living, and they are quite affordable for UK standards.

My two cents as a native Hungarian: cost of living is not just rent. 1 gallon of diesel in Budapest costs 6.1$ That is only 60% of the highest recorded price a year ago. Consider these things as well! The other thing: expats come here, from east (it was an obvious destination for many Ukrainians as well) and west. No blaming, but as the language is so hard to learn, many of them don't even bother (no offense in general, I have friends and colleagues who did). I know people living here since 10-15 years, who can't even understand basic stuff in the grocery store. Not a good approach to locals to expect everyone to learn your language, because you don't care to learn ours. On the other hand: cheap apartments for expats, who are OK even if prices go up a "little", means the prices went way out of the range of an average Hungarian. And I couldn't agree more with those of you, who said, Hungarians should learn more foreign languages. And don't get me started on politics and cultural things (for which reason I can't even fully understand why someone would WANT to move to Budapest). But try to think with the head of a local: people come into my town, who don't even try to understand me, but raise the prices to a level that I can no more live in my own city. How would you welcome these people? I'm absolutely not xenophobic, I have friends, family all around the world, this I think is a natural reaction to the effect of these expats moving in.

Bulgaria is really cheap, even though it has become much more expensive in recent years. I wouldn't go to Sofia, though, but to Plovdiv. It is definitely nicer. In general, smaller cities in the Balkans are definitely recommendable if you want to live cheaply, such as Skopje, Pristina and Sarajevo.

Who needs $1400 per month in Budapest? Maybe if you eat in the best restaurants every other day.

I'd also take into account how much money you can actually make in those cities. In some of the cities listed you cant even make that much money a month unless you are high up the ranks or work for a big international company

These are all pretty much either in Spain or Eastern Europe with few exceptions. I’m sure Sevilla is more like $2500-4000/month to live nicely. Also I’ve heard that Naples can be dangerous in some places especially for women.

... the best choices are the Spanish cities ... aside from all the advantages Spain can offer there's the language (Spanish) ... it's one of the major world languages

Only 10-15 years ago Lisbon would be on the top of this list. Today all the hype created around that city brought it to one of the most expansives capitals in Europe

By definition the author of this post rules out anywhere in Malta or Cyprus, Both are worth consideration.

They should add a warning about how bad the air in Krakow still is

Without defining cost of living the figures have little meaning eg how far from the city centre? Does it include a one bedroom apartment or a three bedroom house? Owning a car? health insurance? Shopping in a supermarket or a market? Eating an occasional steak or just sausages? Etc etc

I've heard Seville is rather hot in the summer.

Latvia? One of the poorest countries and there are not that much who can earn 1600 or even a 1000. You must be some good IT specialist to have a good salary and buy or rent in Riga. Salaries are low and real estate prices getting higher.

What about Bratislava? Very close to Vienna but much cheaper.

since when 1,600 its cheap? average salary in France is fucking 2200 eur, let alone some Spain with 1000 or ukraine where im originally from with its 300$ per month lmao

yep go enjoy the weather in Zaragoza😂😂😂

Wow, great video! It's really helpful to see a list of affordable European cities for those on a budget. Definitely adding some of these places to my travel list! Thanks for sharing this valuable information! 🌍✈💰

Who still wants to live in a big city ?

Weird. I live in Belgrade for €800-1000. It's apartment and food for 2 persons

Sofia and Bulgaria are the cheapest in the world anywhere else you are paying too much.

❤ so glad to know that there are affordable places to live in Europe. I was beginning to think that Europe is impossible ❤

Just got back from Zagreb and Ljubljana, while I loved Zagreb for many reasons, I still love Ljubljana best. English is widely spoken and people tend to be friendly and welcoming, Slovenia has a strong middle class

In Sicilia, Catania is much more connected than Palermo both via air and train than Palermo. CTA is a larger airport.

Zagreb and Sofia are great cities.

Not a single Portugal city? Hah

Yeah try US salaries in Eastern Europe😂Come here to see what is cheap

With 1100 euro you will have a very hard time living in Bucharest, if you need to pay rent. Rent costs have increased alot and you might end up spending half of the amount on a decent rent...it does depend on your life standars, but 1100 with rent is not very fun...

My brother do you live in Sofia or something? How is life in Belgrade 1500,it is the capital of one of the poorest countries in Europe. I personally live in Bucuresti my monthly spending is less than 500 euros,and i was going out almost every day,rent would be for a flat about 300 euro,less for a room So going to dollars ,about 900 would be more than enough . Also i lived in Sofia,and i believe Sofia was a bit more expensive than Bucharest

Budapest may be cheap for expats on a big income, but if you consider that some Hungarians have to work three jobs to get by it is not so cheap anymore...

Please don't come. Stay in America. Make it great again. :)

I'm living close to Dresden and yes, the city is cheap and beautiful. But if you are not a native, you will encounter racism a lot compared to other German cities. But it depends on the district you are living in!

That is interesting list :) Actually I live in Krakow (Poland), with m less than 1500 eur/m and it is OK. Only problem is the cost of housing whch has raised (but seems stable now) and cost of fuel (seems to go down now). But what a coincidence, I am planning to visit Palermo soon (eventually move to Italia if I like it) and it is just after Krakow ^^

no city in portugal which is .... expensive , I guess

Valencia has consistently beautiful archetecture!

I appreciate this list of places! I'll be getting a remote job here hopefully soon. I'll be leaving America in the coming months. I'd really appreciate if you could do this sane video but for Northern Europe.

Belgrade is not cheap anymore. Rent costs more then in Viena

You should consider Turin!

I’m actually very surprised to NOT see Vienna.. it’s insanely affordable there. I love there there on $1,260 a month budget for a single person

Metropolises scare me and they stink from afar. I prefer remote working from (very) small towns. I like small villages.

Dresden🔛🔝

Is Croatia an Eastern European country? Really? Refresh your knowledge about.

I was sure Bucharest was #2 and Sofia #1..

I would add Athens. Big city that has absolutely everything, it is relatively cheap, has mild winters, 2700+ sunshine hours...

Zaragoza? Cheap but there's nothing there and a big lack of job oportunities.

1600 a month? Expensive

I have been to Wroclaw several times. It always feels more expensive than Warsaw. Naples is crime-ridden!

My favourite city out of this list is definetly Budapest.

Yah, Sofia!

Budapest as affordable? Average salary 300k HUF. Average rent 250k HUF plus common expenses + utilities. AND then you still have to eat and travel. (To work and school).

Turin is probably the cheapest 1M+ city option in Western Europe.

Monthly cost of living in thessaloniki is not that how because most people make around 800€-1000€

Probably more accurate to say we can survive with a $1600. With so little money you don't really "live"

There are many great cheap cities in France (maybe under half-mil population, but still..)

Canadian cities ,Vancouver ,Toronto and Montreal are horrible. They have all the big city problems ,and are way too expensive to live in .

You can Survive in Belgrade with 500-1000e. Hahah

Nice video but I feel like many cities are missing. Where are the cities in Benelux, France UK...? Also, I would love to understand more about the ranking. Thanks anyways, it gave me some ideas of cities to explore.

If Texas becomes like California, this is the next move (at least for those who can)

Where is Portugal in this list????

It’s not a fair comparison until you also include the cost of taxes

But like, if you're moving to a place, shouldn't you already be in a profession that nets you more than that a month? Something like at least 3 000€ or something? Not saying you should earn a lot of money, but you're moving to an entirely new country, there's going to be tons of expenses you didn't see coming, you're going to need a lot of stuff, etc. I don't think that it's super smart to move away from your extended social network if you're not getting paid decent money. After all, who're you going to get help from when things go bad? You can offset some of that with money, but wouldn't you need to make some money first?

Please don't tell clueless people to move to these great cities so that they can ruin them.

I really have a problem with the term "expat". Such a benign word... The term usually means either an American or someone British leaving their home country and moving/living in some other place. YET someone some coming from Africa, Latin America, the Middle East is a migrant, an alien, a non citizen or worse, an "illegal". Expat has a nice positive spin; migrant, not so much. Whatever a person's circumstances when someone leaves their homeland to live in another country they are immigrants. Would you consider a person fleeing the ravages of war or famine etc. as an expat? Are they treated the same as an expat? Probably not. I've lived 16 years abroad and am about to move again. When I arrive, I will be an immigrant, very happy to embrace a new land and culture. I don't consider myself "woke" but if this comment makes you think so, so be it.

None of those cities need more americans moving in, bringing nothing good and rising prices for locals, please stay home 🙏🏻

Isn't Torino better than Palermo?

Thanks

I was surprised that Prague was not on the list ? I’ve never been there but know people who have and they commented on how affordable it was for restaurants and pubs etc

You missed Lisbon, Porto I would suggest to increase your knowledge they are quite cheap to live

Surprised Zurich isn't on here...

I think because people myself

Every upside comes with its downside. Or, if it sounds too good to be true then it is. Cheap on one side, but on the other side: quality of products, services, life in general, air polution, traffic, safety? I have been in five of those cities. If there was no other choice i.e. finding love there, really good job, ... i would perhaps live in Zagreb or Budapest. Palermo? You must be kidding, right? People are fleeing from Sicily to better places. There I have mainly seen old and young people, but few active working age ones and families. Plus the unemployment there is near 30%. Plus Palermo is really a very unkind and ugly city, but later is just my personal opinion. As a tourist I had pretty good time in Belgrade and very good time in Naples, but again there are no low costs, that would attract me to live there. Especially in the later one.

Guys any one having experience with Glasgow? Is good to live apart from weather?

Seriously, Sophia? It's zombies town, I've been there two times and I was sure that the world finished and zombie virus took control over the world during I was driving a car. Poland cool for living but if you run your own business or work remotely abroad and earn eur or usd because with pln and working contract your living standards will be kinda renting flat and almost not eating. London is the same, people go there live with friends or partners in one room, stay few months in terrible conditions just to earn pounds and come back with them to their own country because it's extremally expensive to live there and payments aren't high. I'd rather consider some smaller towns with very good comunications to the capitals, like Leids 30 min train to Amsterdam or Swords/Cork 30-40 minutes to Dublin because you're living costs will be two times cheaper and earnings high because of you can work in capital cities. Many people also mention Istanbul in their videos but I don't know why because if you don't know turkish language you won't even buy bread in the shop and finding job without good turkish well, even hard for IT unless you just live there and earn abroad so ofc you will have much money and cheap life.

There are much more concerns other than price. Such as language, crime. Subject doesnt mislead tho

What costs are being considered within those 1600 euros?

Lol Valencia? No.

Nothing in the British isles or Scandinavia ??

13:08 SOFIA THE BEST

Spain is amazing but it's increasingly becoming impossible to live in because of climate change. Crazy warm and no water.

St Petersburg, Russia is the best 🇷🇺

The annual income of most Hungarians does not exceed $12,000... I mean, it is $1000/month, or less.

Cost of living in Bucharest has significantly increased over the last 3 years. It's still affordable by western standards, but it's getting to a point where the drawbacks of living here are not counteracted by the buying power. I don't recommend moving here. Your quality of life will decrease.

no clug? i am disappoint

Why not Istanbul?

I can't imagine moving from the West to.....the West. I think the list is well thought out though.

I’m surprised there wasn’t mentioned Łódź in Poland. This is maybe not one of the prettiest cities, but still with one of the best architecture in Poland (It was just a industrial centre in communism era). It’s located in central Poland 1 hour from Warsaw, has it’s own airport, it’s one of the fastest developing cities in Poland at the moment, but the key is the price - it’s dirty cheap, you can easily find 50m^2 apartment for rent for like 500€ in best localisation or buy one for like 1800€ or less per m^2. If you thought of buying an old apartment in tenement house in a city centre with a couple of minutes walk to almost everything - shopping malls, train and tram stations, shops, groceries, theatres, museums you can buy it even under 1000€ per m^2, it’s the biggest underdog in Poland with metro system under construction.