Study in Vienna

Vienna for students

Vienna ranks 12th in this year's Best Student Cities ranking. The city is home to Austria's two highest-ranked universities, the University of Vienna (130th in the world) and the Vienna University of Technology (joint 184th). It also offers some of the lowest tuition fees around for international students, earning it a top 75 score for affordability.

Vienna earns its highest score in the desirability indicator, placing in joint fourth. It’s frequently ranked as one of the world’s most livable cities. With its unique charm and grand architecture, it's easy to see why.

While its selection of universities is much smaller than cities such as London or Paris, Vienna is pretty hard to beat as a European city offering high quality of living combined with cultural activity and affordable tuition fees.

Would Vienna get your vote? Tell us why.

Best universities in Vienna - QS Best Student Cities ranking: 12th

More about Vienna

As well as providing a fantastic study environment, Vienna is also an ideal European base for anyone looking to explore the wider continent, with Germany, Italy and eastern Europe just a short journey away. While Vienna has fallen in our rankings this year, it has improved its performance for desirability, helped by extremely low tuition fees.

To find out how each of the above categories is calculated, view the methodology.

Why study in Vienna?

It's affordable

Vienna ranks 74th globally for affordability, with low tuition fees and a cheap cost of living.

High quality of life

Students in Vienna enjoy a high quality of life, reflected in its top 10 score for desirability.

Beautiful architecture 

With Baroque buildings to contemporary architecture, Vienna blends the old with the new, helping to make the city beautiful. 

Good prospects for graduates

Vienna scores in the top 50 for employer activity and the city is a hub of many international organisations.

What is the cost of studying in Vienna?

Vienna is one of the most affordable student cities in the world, with low tuition fees and a cheap cost of living in comparison to other European countries, such as the UK. The city ranks 74th for affordability. 

This year, students can expect to pay around US$900 per year for tuition at Vienna's universities. According to Numbeo, students should save around £670 per month for general living expenses, plus an additional £807 for an apartment in the city centre.

Life & culture in Vienna

One of Europe's most historic capitals, Vienna is awash with cultural riches, from the theatres and concert halls that witnessed the earliest performances of masterpieces by Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, to the Sigmund Freud Museum, and numerous galleries displaying the works of Viennese artists such as Gustave Klimt and Egon Schiele.

In the winter, Vienna’s main square, Rathausplatz, becomes a huge ice rink. It's Wiener Eistraum (or Ice World) is a must-see attraction. 

Careers in Vienna

Vienna continues to rank among the world's top 50 cities for employer activity, showing that graduate employees rate degrees from Vienna’s top universities very highly, which is excellent news for graduates.