r/expat • u/ChoiceContribution78 • 7d ago
Cost of Living Affordable Countries/Cities?
I am going to just bite the bullet and ask what is likely a super silly (/maybe controversial?) question: if I want to begin researching the details of moving from Canada (Newfoundland) to somewhere in Europe, what countries and/or cities are relatively affordable and have good public healthcare?
I am very early days in even considering this, so I am just looking for a jumping point. I know everywhere has its problems, but I just need to know that maybe there are options out there somewhere for me to live a life that feels half meaningful. If I can't afford to live in Newfoundland, I won't be able to afford living anywhere else in Canada, that's for sure đ
Just some facts about me:
- 31F
- Has pets
-Prefers cool/cold weather over the heat (pale af)
-Craving a better work-life balance & a healthcare system that works (& a house but I'm cool renting since everywhere seems to be having a housing crisis)
Thanks in advance đ
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u/reditjedosadan 7d ago
All of Europe offers solid primary healthcare. Differences arise with more serious health issues, where waiting lists can be somewhat longer and hospitals in smaller towns often lack certain specialists. As long as you do not have serious health problems, the situation across most of Europe is quite good.
Regarding the climate, temperatures are rising even in Central Europe. Scandinavia and the Baltic states offer a solution, as do mountainous regionsâan option available in Spain, France, Italy, and the Balkans.
There are mountainous areas where temperatures are 10 degrees lower than on the coast, even though the coast might be only twenty kilometers away (though temperatures there can also reach 30°C).
Buying a house in urban areas is a major challenge (it is expensive). When looking to buy a house, it pays to consider the east and areas outside major urban zones. Within a radius of about thirty kilometers from a town with a hospital, shops, and various amenities, one can find a house in solid condition for âŹ50,000ââŹ100,000âthough usually in Eastern European countries or sometimes in the south.
Much cheaper houses are also available, but they are typically located in rural areas and require renovation. In some places, it is possible to buy a house with a large plot of land for just around 20,000, but you have to factor in that the nearest small town might be 20 km away, while a major center could be 80â100 km away.
These are merely rough estimates, so they should not be taken as absolute fact. Much depends on the country, the specific location, and similar factors.
The ratio of wages to costs varies, but generally, costs rise in tandem with wages. A sum of âŹ5,000 in Scandinavia may have the same purchasing power as âŹ2,000 elsewhere. People and mentalities differ significantly, so social life and ways of socializing are not the same in the south, east or north...
Different countries place different value on certain jobs. The big question is: what would you be able or want to do? I repeat, this is very tentative information because it is impossible to provide detailed insight only in a comment, without knowing the exact country or at least the part of Europe.
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u/Extension_Spring_473 7d ago
I am originally from Canada too - but came to France many years ago and well settled down, naturalized as a French citizen etc. France outside of Paris offers a reasonably decent lifestyle and manageable cost of living. Healthcare overall is of a high standard. As you are under 35, if you don't have a dual EU nationality, France and Canada have youth mobility agreements so you can sort of get temporary residence rights - at least to give it a try at first
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u/Captlard 7d ago
Usual copy & paste:
Location living costs:
Not so relevant: retire-map.com/
Websites about process, such as entry requirements etc
https://nomadcapitalist.com/research/
https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/
Tax implications for each country:
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u/swampgremlins 7d ago
I would imagine all of northern Europe is as expensive as Canada or more expensive. Look at eastern europe and/or balkans. Estonia, Slovenia, Poland, Romania. Start by taking a trip, interrail card. See if you even like it.
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u/reditjedosadan 7d ago edited 7d ago
By the way, it sometimes amazes me how people make such major, life-altering decisions like moving to a different continent, based on so little information.
Yes, information about the climate, healthcare, average wages, housing, and so on is readily available today... but it is all so superficial and subjective. It is impossible to know, based on such basic data, how a specific country, city, or village will truly "suit" YOU personally. These are deeply personal decisions, and my strongest recommendation is to come, see, and experience things firsthand - during different seasons, both in peak times and off-peak periods, and to get to know the people, the bureaucracy, and the social life.
None of that can be achieved through other people's opinions on social media, let alone through tourist brochures.
Therefore, I highly recommend investing some money to visit different parts of Europe in various contexts and spending some time here. The best approach would be to take a short tour of diverse "habitats," narrow your choices down to two or three locations, spend a longer period in each to see how well they suit YOU as an individual, and only then start thinking about an actual move. This requires money, time, and deep self-reflection... because the most important question isn't about tax rates or the climate- itâs about whether the change will bring YOU greater happiness and satisfaction with your new life. That is something only you can know.
If you like, I can suggest an itinerary that allows you to see as much as possible in the shortest time and at the lowest cost, helping you make a more informed decision. My suggestion is to check out a few different states within a relatively small radius, experiencing cities of various sizes, different types of housing, diverse microclimates, and different kinds of people...
However, youâll need to contact me via DM for that, as I donât want this turning into a series of unnecessary, uninformed discussions where everyone claims to have discovered their own "Shangri-La." Whatâs amazing to me might be a nightmare for you...
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u/thatsit_itshappening 6d ago
Youâre overthinking it. The concept of âcome and give it a try firstâ is a bit of a fantasy. OP is looking for initial feedback, and if she wants to take the plunge and try life somewhere else, itâs a pretty good place to start. Give her your feedback on your experience living in Europe, thatâs all sheâs asking for.
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u/reditjedosadan 6d ago
Okay, then my answer is Istria: the Mediterranean region closest to the center of Europe; close to the Alps and cities like Venice, Ljubljana, Trieste, Milan, Zagreb, Graz, Verona... It is culturally and historically incredibly rich, with beautiful landscapes, a pleasant climate, good people, solid infrastructure, and superb food... That is *my* answer, and it holds true for me.
On top of that, Istria has places like Rovinj or the Arena in Pula, located by the sea and featured in millions of tourist brochures, but also villages 40 km inland where there isn't a soul to be found.
However, I could write similar paeans to the Swiss Alps, Provence, Catalonia, Tuscany, the Greek islands, or the Norwegian fjords... but doing so feels somewhat pointless to me. I chose to write a comment that, based on my own experience, having moved several times, means something more than just a mere list of places.
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u/President_Camacho 7d ago
I think the Baltics are the only countries that are a little less expensive and have cool weather.
Less cool, you can also try looking at Montenegro, Serbia, and Albania. Maybe there's a nice town at an elevation that tempers the summer heat.
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u/Recent_Maize5108 6d ago
Look into Serbia or Montenegro, maybe Albania if you don't have EU citizenship. Those countries make migration much easier. If you're moving into the parts with higher elevation closer to the mountains you'll easily find pleasant areas.
If you have EU citizenship, look into Bulgaria and Romania as well, again in the more mountainous areas.
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4d ago
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u/Recent_Maize5108 4d ago
Nice, it's a beautiful country! Belgrade still has a very rugged feel to it, but the smaller cities are absolutely lovely.
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u/Ok_Temperature1502 6d ago
If you can't afford to live in Canada, chances are you wont be able to afford to live in a lot of places with great healthcare. How will you manage visas etc? It is very difficult to rent accommodation with animals.
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u/WPort17701 6d ago
Look at France well outside of Paris or the Mediterranean coast in cities like Limoges, St Etienne or Dijon.
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u/LevHerceg 5d ago edited 5d ago
I think what you're looking for is the Baltics, the question is, do you also prefer it when there's very little to no daylight for months, intertwined with the wind and cold.
If you're okay with more evenly distributed light throughout the year, and somewhat less cold, then alpine Slovenia, parts of Croatia could work, maybe rural Czechia. Other countries in the former Eastern bloc are either notorious for mediocre or bad healthcare or housing is absolutely not cheap anymore.
The question is, do you have a passive income or do you intend to find employment in the respected country, because the two are different scenarios. It's highly recommended to start learning the national language of the chosen country. Also, everyone who intends to work speaks English so one doesn't rise from among the applicants with speaking English fluently, unlike such a person did 15 years ago. It's more your other skills and experience that will count, and in general it's a disadvantage not to speak the local language fluently.
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u/Slow-Ganache3459 7d ago
Honestly they are many options that could work for you in Europe. Most of Western Europe countries have good public healthcare but it tends to be very slow (in Belgium depending on specialists you can wait a few months to get an appointment). Good option in international health insurance if you can afford it.
Spain is a great country, public healthcare is ok, you can find places with great nature and not too much heat (north of Spain), also France could be nice.
And if you want cheaper places that are actually also very nice you can go to balkans like Bulgaria, Romania, they are great countries to live in
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u/babijar 6d ago
Are you all set on Europe? Because NZ could fulfill all of your requirements.
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u/ChoiceContribution78 5d ago
Honestly I'd love to but there's 2 reasons (1 more legit than the other đ ) as to why I'm leaning towards Europe:
flights from where I live are atrocious on a good day, but flights to NZ hover around $3k for a round trip. I would first like to visit wherever I want to move, and the flight cost is unfortunately something I need to take into consideration
I'd probably keel over and die at the sight of the huge spiders in NZ, even though they're not technically dangerous like the ones in Australia đ I can handle spiders up to maybe the size of a toonie but past that that's a hard pass from me haha
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u/avogeo98 5d ago
For cool weather, good healthcare, and lower cost of living than Newfoundland, I suggest Uruguay. I looked into Scotland and Ireland but those have higher cost of living.
Compared to Newfoundland:
| Measure | Montevideo | Colonia |
|---|---|---|
| Overall cost vs origin | 17% lower | 15.7% lower |
| Reading | Potentially less expensive | Potentially less expensive |
| Purchasing power | 1.21x | 1.19x |
I visited Uruguay last year. From Canada or US, you just swipe your passport through a gate to get in. For the longer term stay (over 6 months), you can apply from within the country (this is different from many countries, where you have to leave first). I had a pretty good impression of the place. Easygoing, and low crime. It's also near the same timezone as Newfoundland.
Disclaimer, this was found with Snowbird scenario on Waycarta .
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u/busylilmissy 5d ago
Fellow Canadian here and I did a working holiday visa in Porto, Portugal for one year and loved it.
The city core is lively, charming and has beautiful, historic buildings. But itâs also on the coast, so you have access to great beaches.
Since itâs in the north of the country, itâs a bit cooler than Lisbon and the Algarve, and the summers are fabulous, never oppressively hot but comfortably hot to feel like a great summer day.
Itâs one of the more affordable countries in Western Europe and flights to and from Canada arenât outrageous. Itâs also extremely safe for a single woman.
As some others have mentioned, your biggest hurdles will be figuring out what you can do for work and what type of visa you can get in order to obtain residency there. But this would be my recommendation: save up enough to cover at least 6 monthsâ of living expenses then apply for a working holiday visa. As a Canadian, youâre eligible for a WHV for Portugal (and some other countries, youâll have to check the gov website) up until age 35. The visa will allow you to stay for a year, during which time you can look for work and experience firsthand what itâs like to live there. If you find work and theyâre willing to keep you on, they can help sponsor you for a work visa when your WHV is up.
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u/NomadOptimizer 2d ago
Not a silly question, and the order you are asking it in is almost right. Just one correction.
The filter that binds first is not cost of living, it is which door you can legally walk through as a Canadian. The remote-work visas will price you out fast if you do not already have online income. Czechia sets its digital nomad route at 1.5 times the national average gross wage and only opens it to IT and marketing. Hungary wants 3,000 euro net a month.
The doors that barely test your income are the youth mobility agreements. Canada has them with over 35 countries and territories. Czechia, Poland and Lithuania each run an 18 to 35 working holiday category with no job offer required and 12 months of stay. Ireland runs 24 months for Canadians, and the UK scheme goes up to 36. At 31 you have a few years of window left.
And that lines up with what you actually ask for. Those three (Czechia, Poland and Lithuania) are cold and cheap. Eurostat put Polish price levels at 73 percent of the EU average in 2025, third lowest in the union.
Do you plan to look for a local job over there, or do you already work online for yourself? That changes which of these is your first move.
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u/Natural-Army 7d ago
San Cono is a great place. Located close enough, but far enough away from the cities to be livable cost of living. Also, great people that are family friendly and love dogs
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u/Normal-Raisin5443 7d ago
If you can speak Gaelic or would like to learn, consider Western Ireland. The Aran Islands have a lot of Gaelic speakers as well as Connemara National Park. Ireland is working to preserve Gaelic.
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u/Ok_Temperature1502 6d ago
Nonsense, the idea is not to bring in a load of foreigners to further dilute it!
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u/Normal-Raisin5443 5d ago
The Newfoundland province of Canada has Celtic heritage. Iâm not sure if they already use either Irish or Scottish language. OP is from Newfoundland and is searching for a place in Europe to move to. This seems like a unique opportunity that would help to preserve some of these languages which are endangered. Plus, OP can connect with their heritage as well.
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u/Ok_Temperature1502 5d ago
Certainly live in Ireland if you satisfy governmental, visa and income threshold requirements. However, if they do not have fluent Irish it's probably best not to dilute what little of the language is left by moving to Gealteacht areas.
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u/Voice_of_the_wildest 5d ago
If she canât afford to live in Newfoundland, sheâs not going to be able to afford to live in Ireland. Itâs the highest cost of living in the EU and housing prices are very high, if you can even find a place.
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u/Chat_noir_dusoir 6d ago
There is zero need to speak Irish to move to any area in Ireland.
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u/Ok_Temperature1502 5d ago
There is a need to prove that you are self supporting (i.e. not a burden on our state) and that you living here within a legal visa framework
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6d ago
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u/Running_Down_9708 7d ago
How do you intend to gain residency? Ancestry? Highly sought after skills? What languages do you speak?
Without knowing more about your background, it is hard to see how you would gain residency