City rankings · Europe
Most affordable European cities for renters
Ranked by the share of gross income the typical renter spends on a 1-bedroom apartment. Cities vary wildly — Warsaw and Brussels offer very different propositions to London or Zurich.
ViennaAT
Median rent €1,200/mo · Need €48,000/yr
24%
Comfortable
OsloNO
Median rent kr14,500/mo · Need kr580,000/yr
25%
Manageable
BerlinDE
Median rent €1,250/mo · Need €50,000/yr
27%
Manageable
ZurichCH
Median rent CHF2,700/mo · Need CHF108,000/yr
27%
Manageable
StockholmSE
Median rent kr14,000/mo · Need kr560,000/yr
28%
Manageable
CopenhagenDK
Median rent kr10,000/mo · Need kr400,000/yr
28%
Manageable
BrusselsBE
Median rent €1,100/mo · Need €44,000/yr
28%
Manageable
AmsterdamNL
Median rent €1,900/mo · Need €76,000/yr
30%
Manageable
MadridES
Median rent €1,450/mo · Need €58,000/yr
33%
Manageable
MilanIT
Median rent €1,500/mo · Need €60,000/yr
33%
Manageable
WarsawPL
Median rent zł3,800/mo · Need zł152,000/yr
34%
Manageable
ParisFR
Median rent €1,600/mo · Need €64,000/yr
35%
Stretch
RomeIT
Median rent €1,100/mo · Need €44,000/yr
36%
Stretch
PragueCZ
Median rent Kč26,000/mo · Need Kč1,040,000/yr
36%
Stretch
BarcelonaES
Median rent €1,450/mo · Need €58,000/yr
38%
Stretch
DublinIE
Median rent €2,400/mo · Need €96,000/yr
38%
Stretch
LondonGB
Median rent £2,100/mo · Need £84,000/yr
41%
Stretch
LisbonPT
Median rent €1,650/mo · Need €66,000/yr
46%
Risky
Key findings
- Vienna leads as the most affordable European city at 24% of income, versus Lisbon at the other end with 46% — a spread of 22 percentage points across the continent.
- Vienna (#1) and Brussels (#7) rank among the more affordable options — strong wage levels combined with social housing policies that moderate private market rents help keep the ratio down even in these capital cities.
- London (#17) ranks near the bottom despite being one of Europe's highest-earning cities — a reminder that high nominal incomes don't automatically translate into affordable renting when private rental prices have structurally outpaced wages.
A note on currencies
Most European cities use EUR, but some use GBP, CHF, SEK, DKK, NOK, PLN, or CZK. The % ratio is currency-agnostic — it shows what share of local gross income goes to local median rent, making it the fairest cross-city comparison. Click any city for rent amounts in local currency.