Apartment prices in urban and tourist centers vary greatly from country to country in Europe, according to the report “Mapping the World’s Prices 2026”
Housing remains a major issue throughout Europe, not only in terms of housing availability but also in terms of affordability, as homes tend to be more expensive in capital cities, major urban centers, and tourist areas.
Especially in Greek tourist destinations, the rise in prices is largely driven by interest from foreign buyers. According to the data, Greece appears to have become a “safe haven,” combining quality of life with prices that are still considered competitive compared to other mature European markets.
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However, apartment prices in urban and tourist centers vary greatly across European countries, while only two of Europe’s five major economies have their capitals ranked among the top 10 most expensive cities—London and Paris.
According to the report “Mapping the World’s Prices 2026,” published by the Deutsche Bank Research Institute, of the 28 European cities examined, the highest prices per square meter for residential property are in Switzerland (center photo).
Athens is at the other end of the list along with Istanbul, as the two cheapest cities for buying a home; however, the housing problem in Greece appears to be particularly acute compared to other European countries when considered in relation to income.
According to a study by the ETUI on behalf of the European Trade Union Confederation, Athens is proportionally more expensive than traditionally “pricey” European capitals when the comparison is made relative to the minimum wage.
Housing Market in Europe: City Rankings
At the top of the list, as presented by Euronews, two Swiss cities dominate the housing market in city centers. Zurich, where the average price for an apartment is 22,910 euros per square meter, and Geneva, with a corresponding price of 19,439 euros.
London ranks third, at 17,241 per square meter. In fact, prices there are 35% higher than in Paris, which follows in fourth place. According to the report, real estate in the French capital is comparatively cheaper than in the British capital, with the price per square meter standing at 12,771 euros.
Vienna rounds out the top five, with a purchase price of 12,483 euros per square meter. The Austrian capital is followed by Munich, the most expensive of the three German cities on the list. In Munich, the average/indicative purchase price is 11,435 euros per square meter, which is significantly higher than in Berlin and Frankfurt, where prices hover just above 7,000 euros.
Luxembourg City ranks just below that (11,011 euros), followed by three Scandinavian cities. The capitals of Denmark and Sweden —Copenhagen at 10,191 euros and Stockholm at 10,037 euros—while the top ten is rounded out by the capital of Norway, Oslo, with a market price of 9,785 euros per square meter. The next Scandinavian city, Helsinki in Finland, ranks 13th at 8,431 euros per square meter.
Next, we find cities in Italy, the Netherlands, and the Czech Republic. Milan and Amsterdam are just above the Finnish capital, at 9,378 and 9,273 euros per square meter, respectively. Prague, just below Helsinki, is more expensive than the capitals of Spain and Germany, Madrid (7,831 euros) and Berlin (7,613 euros). The average/indicative price in Prague’s city center stands at 8,352 euros.
Next are Rome at 7,328 euros per square meter, Dublin at 7,185 euros, and Frankfurt at 7,162 euros. Lisbon (€6,636) and Barcelona (€6,485) are above the €6,000 threshold.
The least expensive of the cities surveyed in Europe are Athens and Istanbul, at 3,442 euros per square meter and 2,646 euros per square meter, respectively. Just above them is Brussels, the EU capital, ranking third from the bottom. The price per square meter for purchasing an apartment there is 4,380 euros.
Birmingham in the United Kingdom (4,671 euros) is below the 5,000-euro threshold, while Budapest (5,243 euros), Warsaw (€5,443), and Edinburgh (€5,708) are above that level. The simple average across the 28 cities is €9,090 per square meter.
Price variation for an 80-square-meter home
According to the report’s data, the cost of purchasing an 80-square-meter apartment in cities across three European countries—Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and France—exceeds one million euros.
Based on the average/indicative list price, the cost of buying a home in Zurich is close to 2 million euros, while in Geneva it exceeds 1.5 million euros. Next comes London, with a purchase price of nearly 1,380,000 euros, and Paris, at just over 1,000,000 euros. Across all cities on the list, the average price for an 80-square-meter apartment is approximately 727,000 euros.
Of all 69 cities analyzed in the report, the most expensive is Hong Kong and the least expensive is Cairo—at 23,790 euros per square meter and 784 euros, respectively. Next are Zurich (22,910 euros) and Seoul (21,897 euros). In addition to Cairo, Johannesburg (€913) also falls below the €1,000-per-square-meter threshold.
However, market prices in absolute terms reflect only one side of the housing problem. Athens may rank among the cheapest European cities in terms of price per square meter, but disposable income remains the critical factor determining our ability to buy a home.
Source: in.gr
