5 Best Countries to Study In Within Europe

In this guide, we are going to be giving you the five best countries to study in within Europe. If you follow this guide, then 90% of the odds are already with you. At least you’re not going towards those particular group of countries that you should absolutely avoid, and that’s the goal for this guide.

Below are top 5 European countries for international students. You will need to compare jobs, tuition fees, post-study visas, PR pathways, and cost of living. Plus, the hidden cons no one tells you, so you avoid wasting lakhs and costly mistakes.

Ireland

So number five, the fifth country on our list is Ireland. The best thing about Ireland is that there’s a lot of big tech companies. You have Google in there, you have Microsoft, Apple, Meta. All of these companies have offices in Ireland, simply because it’s great for tax purposes. Another pro is that it’s an English-speaking country.

So you’re able to sustain without having to learn a new language. They give you a two-year post-study work visa. So you have quite enough time, actually, to find a job.
And there’s a well-defined PR pathway. Stamp 1G to Stamp 1 to Stamp 4. It is clear and defined. But Ireland is not all great either.

There are some cons. And one of the biggest cons is that the tuition fee in Ireland is sometimes extremely high. It can go up to €25,000 per annum.

This is especially true for IT and business degrees. On top of that, if you’re staying in areas like Dublin, of course, expect your expenses to be extremely high over there as well. Housing is very costly, especially in Dublin, Cork.

Anywhere, it would be in top European cities. But generally, as compared to most of them, Ireland is costly sometimes. And finally, there’s only a very few good universities.

If you’re not going to a good university, such as University College Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, well, you’re probably not going to anything great after that. So of course, that means that there are lesser number of seats. And that’s also why one would suggest keep Ireland as one of the countries on the list, if you can afford it, and then also start applying to some other countries.

France

The fourth one on the list is France. Now, one of the best things about France is that the tuition is extremely low as compared to many other European states. You would find just somewhere around €2,500, €3,000 per annum is the tuition, which is very comparable to the Indian tuition itself. So it’s like you’re studying overseas, but you’re really spending Indian money almost. World-class business schools as well, by the way.

You might have heard of INSEAD. There’s AGC Paris. All of these are schools from France, and they are really well known all across the world.

On top of that, you have a 12 to 24-month work permit after you graduate for your master’s. So that’s, again, a pretty decent period. And then, of course, there’s a pathway towards PR. Luxury, fashion, finance, you name it. Paris is right up there. But there are some cons for France as well.

It’s not a bed of roses again. One of the biggest cons you’ll find with France is that people expect you to learn the language. They don’t want to learn English. In fact, 80-90% of the people, they don’t prefer, especially if you’re not in one of the most metropolitan areas like Paris, you’re probably going to have to speak in French. That means you need to learn. There’s almost no alternative.

On top of that, PR does take its sweet time. It takes about five years to get PR in France. So be ready to invest that time as well. But if you can learn French and you have no problem adjusting to the country by actually learning their rituals, learning their customs and their language, France is a great option.

Sweden

he third one on our list, however, is Sweden. This is one of the Nordic countries like no other. And you know why? The best thing is that people in these Nordic countries speak really great English. You’ll find great English speakers over there and you’ll find great English taught courses without having the difficulty to put in to learn another language.

There’s a 12-month post-study work visa, and you can extend it if you’re basically getting a job. You get PR a bit faster over here with just four years of work. This is, by the way, some of the fastest PR you can get in Europe. So it’s not bad at all.
And they have great research and sustainability indexes.

Overall, Sweden looks attractive. But again, just like all other countries, Sweden does have its cons as well.

One of the biggest cons is that tuition is quite expensive here. It may very well be somewhere between 7,000 to 15,000 euros per annum, especially if you’re not from Europe already.

On top of that, if you’re going to Sweden, you’re probably living in an expensive area like Stockholm or Gothenburg. And these places can be crazy expensive. On top of that, the almost always cold climate and short days, because the days are short, right? Because it’s so cold also. Well, that’s going to sometimes hit some people, and it starts getting depressing after a point.

Look, we are not saying that Sweden has any major cons, but it’s just some cons that you should know about. Because every country, no matter what it is, will have some pros and some cons.

Netherlands

Programs are completely English taught. People speak great English. You don’t have to learn the language over there. On top of that, you have the Zookia visa, which allows you to find work for the next one year after a degree. And then, of course, if you find work, you can continue staying in the Netherlands as well. Some of the best companies in the world, Philips, for instance, is from Netherlands.

They really have a good economy. It is safe, well-connected, and open-minded. On top of that, Amsterdam is a startup hub.

So that’s something that you probably would be looking forward to, especially if you’re looking for jobs. But Netherlands has some major cons as well. The tuition can be high, and so can be the living cost, especially if you’re staying in an area like Amsterdam.

Average tuition itself would be somewhere between 6,000 to 20,000 euros per annum. And it’s a big range, but it is what it is. Housing is small, crinkled up, really, you know, small places people stay in.

If you’re a student, you’re probably not going to get the most lavish big space. So if you have a problem with that, well, you have to get used to that. Winters are long. Just to even find a house sometimes, it’s very difficult because there’s just such heavy demand and very little supply. It becomes very difficult sometimes. And you’re often seen, you know, just sort of obeying the landlord’s demands, pretty much just because you don’t have any other option.

There are strict visa rules. When you get a job, you need to be following a threshold that you have to cross. And on top of that, while you’re studying, you only get 16 hours a week to work per week, which is not a lot less, but if you look at it, most other countries will give you 20 hours per week.

So you’re still working lesser. That means you have a lesser earning potential while you’re studying.

Germany

If you’re going to Europe, you would have to consider Germany. Almost free education in public universities. You’re spending, what, 300, 400 euros per annum, which, you would have spent probably 5, 10 times that even in an Indian school.

The job market is great, especially if you’re going for something like mechatronics, mechanical engineering, or anything related to IT. After education, you get 18 months to search for a job. That’s a longer period than most other countries out there. If you find a job, you can stay longer and you settle down in Germany. There’s pathways to PR. If you work for two years or you stay in Germany for five years, you would be eligible for those.

There’s many student-friendly cities like Berlin, Munich, Aachen. So you wouldn’t have a problem with that either. But before we say that Germany is number one, so it has no cons, that’s not the case.

There are cons. And one of the biggest cons, as you might already know, is German, not one of the easiest languages to learn, but you have to learn it if you want to be in Germany.

If anyone tells you that if you study in this university, it’s an English taught program and then you get a job over here, you probably don’t have to. You have to. You need to know German.

Dealing with the government bureaucracy, dealing with employers, dealing with interviews, and sometimes even school, you need German. And finally, one last thing is that it may not look like a con, but Germany is getting harder and harder to get into because these top universities, these public ones, they are very much in demand.

Because of this zero tuition metric, most people prefer Germany, and that’s why you would see that it gets very difficult for you to get into Germany, into one of these public universities, even with a decent profile sometimes.

Conclusion

Choosing the right country to study in Europe is not a one-size-fits-all decision. Each of these five destinations, Ireland, France, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Germany, offers strong advantages.

However, they also come with challenges that can affect students differently. Your budget, preferred lifestyle, language comfort, long-term goals, and career plans all play a major role in determining which option is truly best for you.

What matters most is understanding where you fit. While Germany may offer near-free education, someone else may thrive better in Sweden’s fast PR pathway or Ireland’s English-speaking environment. In the same way, France and the Netherlands can be excellent choices if you value global exposure, strong graduate opportunities, and high-quality education.