🇭🇺
Budapest
Hungary
Thermal baths, ruin bars and the Danube at sunset.
🇵🇹
Porto
Portugal
Riverside charm, port wine and welcoming locals.
Estimated monthly student budget
🇭🇺 Budapest
€800–1,050 / month
Estimated monthly student budget
🇵🇹 Porto
€850–1,100 / month
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
Best for
🇵🇹 Porto
- Students looking for a mid-sized city
- Those who prefer a more authentic, less touristy experience
- People interested in Portuguese culture
Category profile
How each city tends to feel across the things students care about — different, not better or worse.
🇭🇺 Budapest
🇵🇹 Porto
Very Affordable
Cost of Living
Moderate
Very High
Nightlife
High
Fair
Weather
Good
Excellent
Travel Opportunities
High
Outstanding
Student Life
Active
Plentiful
Housing
Manageable
Well-Regarded
University Reputation
Strong
Student insights
🇭🇺 Budapest
- Excellent value for money
- One of the best nightlife scenes in Europe
- Large Erasmus community
Student insights
🇵🇹 Porto
- City with great personality and authenticity
- Good university reputation
- More moderate cost of living than many European capitals
Student voice — 🇭🇺 Budapest
“Budapest is a brilliant city for Erasmus.”
Student voice — 🇵🇹 Porto
“Porto was the best choice ever.”
🇭🇺 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
🇵🇹 Porto
Pros
- City with great personality and authenticity
- Good university reputation
- More moderate cost of living than many European capitals
- Good balance between leisure and calm
- Good international connections
Cons
- Rainier climate than other southern European destinations
- Increasingly expensive rental market
- Smaller Erasmus community than Lisbon or Seville
- Less cultural and leisure offer than major capitals
- Fewer international and professional opportunities
Have you studied in one of these cities?
Share your experience and help future students make better Erasmus decisions.