🇧🇪
Brussels
Belgium
Multilingual capital of Europe with great rail connections.
🇵🇱
Krakow
Poland
Medieval old town with a thriving young population.
Estimated monthly student budget
🇧🇪 Brussels
€1,000–1,300 / month
Estimated monthly student budget
🇵🇱 Krakow
€750–1,000 / 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
🇵🇱 Krakow
- Students with a tight budget
- Those who want to save without giving up a good Erasmus experience
- People interested in Central and Eastern Europe
Category profile
How each city tends to feel across the things students care about — different, not better or worse.
🇧🇪 Brussels
🇵🇱 Krakow
Expensive
Cost of Living
Very Affordable
High
Nightlife
High
Fair
Weather
Fair
Excellent
Travel Opportunities
High
Active
Student Life
Active
Manageable
Housing
Comfortable
Strong
University Reputation
Strong
Student insights
🇧🇪 Brussels
- Extremely international
- Excellent rail connections to London, Paris, Amsterdam, Cologne
- Strong professional and internship opportunities
Student insights
🇵🇱 Krakow
- Very low cost of living
- Excellent value for money
- Historic and culturally very rich city
Student voice — 🇧🇪 Brussels
“Brussels is amazing if you care about EU careers.”
Student voice — 🇵🇱 Krakow
“Krakow is cheap, student-oriented and right in the center of Europe.”
🇧🇪 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
🇵🇱 Krakow
Pros
- Very low cost of living
- Excellent value for money
- Historic and culturally very rich city
- Great travel opportunities around Central Europe
- Relatively accessible accommodation
Cons
- Long, cold winters
- Smaller Erasmus community than Budapest or Prague
- Fewer international connections than major European capitals
- Local language difficult for many students
- Less international visibility than some leading destinations
Have you studied in one of these cities?
Share your experience and help future students make better Erasmus decisions.