🇧🇪
Brussels
Belgium
Multilingual capital of Europe with great rail connections.
🇭🇺
Budapest
Hungary
Thermal baths, ruin bars and the Danube at sunset.
Estimated monthly student budget
🇧🇪 Brussels
€1,000–1,300 / month
Estimated monthly student budget
🇭🇺 Budapest
€800–1,050 / month
Best for
🇧🇪 Brussels
- Students interested in EU politics or international careers
- Those who plan to travel widely across Europe
- People who enjoy multilingual environments
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.
Expensive
Cost of Living
Very Affordable
High
Nightlife
Very High
Fair
Weather
Fair
Excellent
Travel Opportunities
Excellent
Active
Student Life
Iconic
Manageable
Housing
Plentiful
Strong
University Reputation
Well-Regarded
Student insights
🇧🇪 Brussels
- Extremely international
- Excellent rail connections to London, Paris, Amsterdam, Cologne
- Strong professional and internship opportunities
Student insights
🇭🇺 Budapest
- Excellent value for money
- One of the best nightlife scenes in Europe
- Large Erasmus community
Student voice — 🇧🇪 Brussels
“Brussels is amazing if you care about EU careers.”
Student voice — 🇭🇺 Budapest
“Budapest is a brilliant city for Erasmus.”
🇧🇪 Brussels
Pros
- Extremely international
- Excellent rail connections to London, Paris, Amsterdam, Cologne
- Strong professional and internship opportunities
- Wide cultural offer
- Multilingual environment
Cons
- Grey, rainy climate
- Fragmented student community across neighbourhoods
- Cost of living relatively high
- Less iconic atmosphere than Ghent or Bruges
- Bureaucracy across language regions
🇭🇺 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.