The key facts
- Methodology: two net salaries minus the rent of a three-room apartment in the city center.
- Top 3 in Europe: Zurich (€9,140), Geneva (€8,783), Luxembourg (€5,890); the worst are Lisbon (€253), Istanbul (€353), Milan (€697).
- In the global ranking of 69 cities, Zurich and Geneva overtook San Francisco (€7,992); in 11 European cities rent is higher than one salary.
Study Methodology
The report 'Mapping the World's Prices 2026,' prepared by the Deutsche Bank research institute, assesses how much money a household has left after paying rent. It takes two people with the city's average net (after-tax) salary, and the cost of a three-room apartment in the city center is subtracted from their combined income. The calculation accounts only for rent — expenses on food, utilities and transport are not included. Among 28 European cities, the figure ranges from €253 in Lisbon to €9,140 in Zurich.
Leaders of the Ranking
Zurich tops the list: with the highest rent among the 28 cities (€5,502), it also has the highest net salary (€7,321), so a couple is left with €9,140 a month. Geneva is second with €8,783 thanks to the second-highest salary (€6,516). Third is Luxembourg (€5,890): salary €4,548, rent €3,206 — lower than in London, Dublin and Amsterdam. Next come Birmingham (€5,238) and Copenhagen (€5,233). More than €4,000 is also left in Oslo (€4,936), Frankfurt (€4,786), Munich (€4,575) and Amsterdam (€4,431); Vienna (€3,709) and Stockholm (€3,674) are close to this level.
Birmingham vs London, Berlin vs Paris
Couples in Birmingham have €2,090 more per month than in London (€5,238 versus €3,148). Salaries in Birmingham are lower, but rent is significantly cheaper: €1,949 versus €4,362 in London. Similar logic in the Berlin–Paris comparison: salaries in Paris are higher (€3,171 versus €2,946), but due to more expensive rent (€3,005 versus €2,339), Berlin couples are left with more — €3,554 versus €3,336. In Dublin, the salary (€3,455) is higher than in Paris, Berlin, Vienna and Stockholm, but rent — the fourth highest in Europe (€3,873) — exceeds one salary, leaving only €3,038.
Southern Europe at the Bottom of the List
The worst figures are in Southern European cities. In Lisbon, €253 is left after rent (salary €1,408, rent €2,561), in Milan €697, in Madrid €1,905, in Barcelona €1,832, in Rome €1,265, in Athens €1,148 (rent €1,164 slightly above the salary of €1,156). Istanbul closes the European list with €353 (salary €1,027, rent €1,701). Cities of Central and Eastern Europe look better: Prague (€2,054), Warsaw (€1,985) and Budapest (€1,548) outperform Rome and Athens.
One Salary Is Often Not Enough
In 11 cities, rent for a three-room apartment in the center exceeds one net salary: Athens, Barcelona, Budapest, Dublin, Istanbul, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Milan, Prague and Rome. The biggest gap is in Lisbon — rent is 82% higher than the salary. In Milan, the salary is €1,940 with rent of €3,184. In Prague and Budapest, rent is almost equal to one salary.
Europe Against the World
In the global ranking of 69 cities, Zurich (€9,140) and Geneva (€8,783) outperform San Francisco (€7,992); seven of the top 10 are in Europe. No European city made it into the ten worst — they are all located in Latin America, Asia and Africa, and in six of them rent exceeds two salaries. At the very bottom are Manila (−€882) and Bangkok (−€759). In Moscow, a couple is left with €313 (salary €1,570, rent €2,827). A number of European cities outperform New York (€1,921). According to the publication, younger generations in Europe have lower home ownership levels than previous ones, and in 2026 housing prices and rents continue to rise, outpacing inflation in many countries.
