🇨🇿
Brno
Czech Republic
Affordable Czech student capital with a strong community.
🇭🇷
Zagreb
Croatia
Compact Croatian capital with friendly locals and a strong café culture.
Estimated monthly student budget
🇨🇿 Brno
€650–950 / month
Estimated monthly student budget
🇭🇷 Zagreb
€700–1,000 / 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
🇭🇷 Zagreb
- Students looking for a friendly, underrated destination
- Those with a mid-range budget
- People who want an authentic Central/Southeastern European experience
Category profile
How each city tends to feel across the things students care about — different, not better or worse.
🇨🇿 Brno
🇭🇷 Zagreb
Very Affordable
Cost of Living
Affordable
High
Nightlife
Moderate
Fair
Weather
Good
Excellent
Travel Opportunities
High
Outstanding
Student Life
Very Active
Comfortable
Housing
Comfortable
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
🇭🇷 Zagreb
- Friendly, welcoming locals
- Reasonable cost of living
- Compact, easy-to-navigate centre
Student voice — 🇨🇿 Brno
“Brno is Prague's chill little sibling.”
Student voice — 🇭🇷 Zagreb
“Zagreb is the most welcoming city I've lived in.”
🇨🇿 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
🇭🇷 Zagreb
Pros
- Friendly, welcoming locals
- Reasonable cost of living
- Compact, easy-to-navigate centre
- Strong café and outdoor culture
- Easy access to the Croatian coast
Cons
- Smaller Erasmus community
- Less famous than other European capitals
- Cold winters
- Fewer international flight connections
- Croatian language barrier outside university
Have you studied in one of these cities?
Share your experience and help future students make better Erasmus decisions.