🇨🇿
Brno
Czech Republic
Affordable Czech student capital with a strong community.
🇭🇺
Budapest
Hungary
Thermal baths, ruin bars and the Danube at sunset.
Estimated monthly student budget
🇨🇿 Brno
€650–950 / month
Estimated monthly student budget
🇭🇺 Budapest
€800–1,050 / month
Best for
🇨🇿 Brno
- Students with a tight budget
- Those who want a strong student community
- People who enjoy travelling around Central Europe
Best for
🇭🇺 Budapest
- Students with a tight or mid-range budget
- Those looking for a very active social life
- People who want to travel frequently around Europe
Category profile
How each city tends to feel across the things students care about — different, not better or worse.
🇨🇿 Brno
🇭🇺 Budapest
Very Affordable
Cost of Living
Very Affordable
High
Nightlife
Very High
Fair
Weather
Fair
Excellent
Travel Opportunities
Excellent
Outstanding
Student Life
Outstanding
Comfortable
Housing
Plentiful
Strong
University Reputation
Well-Regarded
Student insights
🇨🇿 Brno
- Very low cost of living
- Strong, tightly-knit Erasmus community
- Multiple universities concentrated in one city
Student insights
🇭🇺 Budapest
- Excellent value for money
- One of the best nightlife scenes in Europe
- Large Erasmus community
Student voice — 🇨🇿 Brno
“Brno is Prague's chill little sibling.”
Student voice — 🇭🇺 Budapest
“Budapest is a brilliant city for Erasmus.”
🇨🇿 Brno
Pros
- Very low cost of living
- Strong, tightly-knit Erasmus community
- Multiple universities concentrated in one city
- Great Central European travel base
- Friendly, welcoming atmosphere
Cons
- Cold winters
- Smaller than Prague — fewer flights and tourists
- Czech language barrier outside university
- Less famous globally as an Erasmus destination
- Limited beach or Mediterranean lifestyle
🇭🇺 Budapest
Pros
- Excellent value for money
- One of the best nightlife scenes in Europe
- Large Erasmus community
- Ideal location for travelling
- Relatively accessible accommodation
Cons
- Long, cold winters
- University prestige lower than major Western capitals
- Local language difficult for many students
- Fewer international professional opportunities
- Some infrastructure can feel less modern than Western Europe
Have you studied in one of these cities?
Share your experience and help future students make better Erasmus decisions.