🇧🇪
Brussels
Belgium
Multilingual capital of Europe with great rail connections.
🇭🇷
Zagreb
Croatia
Compact Croatian capital with friendly locals and a strong café culture.
Estimated monthly student budget
🇧🇪 Brussels
€1,000–1,300 / month
Estimated monthly student budget
🇭🇷 Zagreb
€700–1,000 / 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
🇭🇷 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.
🇧🇪 Brussels
🇭🇷 Zagreb
Expensive
Cost of Living
Affordable
High
Nightlife
Moderate
Fair
Weather
Good
Excellent
Travel Opportunities
High
Active
Student Life
Very Active
Manageable
Housing
Comfortable
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
🇭🇷 Zagreb
- Friendly, welcoming locals
- Reasonable cost of living
- Compact, easy-to-navigate centre
Student voice — 🇧🇪 Brussels
“Brussels is amazing if you care about EU careers.”
Student voice — 🇭🇷 Zagreb
“Zagreb is the most welcoming city I've lived in.”
🇧🇪 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
🇭🇷 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.