Report: Europe's most expensive cities for digital nomads in 2026 revealed, London and Zurich lead

On September 9, the European Commission proposed new rules to help cities tackle housing shortages, including measures targeting short-term rentals and second homes in areas under pressure. As European cities face growing scrutiny over housing affordability, our new report reveals where digital nomads face the highest essential monthly expenses.

To find Europe's ultimate remote work hubs, the team at Players Time compared the 49 European cities with the fastest fixed broadband connections, evaluating them based on equally weighted metrics: internet speed, rent, utilities, food costs, public transport, broadband prices, safety, climate, and air pollution. Data was sourced from Ookla Speedtest, Expatistan, Numbeo, and IQAir, with the full dataset created for this ranking available on Google Drive via a link.

The findings reveal that essential monthly expenses for digital nomads, including rent and utilities, food, transport, and Internet costs, exceed €3,000 in several European cities, with Zürich ranking as the most expensive at €3,799 per month, followed by London at €3,646 and Geneva at €3,475.

Top 10 most expensive European cities for remote workers in 2026 (among 49 analysed)

(monthly expenses for rent and utilities, food, transport, and Internet)

Zürich, Switzerland - €3,799/month

London, United Kingdom - €3,646/month

Geneva, Switzerland - €3,475/month

Manchester, United Kingdom - €2,964/month

Amsterdam, Netherlands - €2,840/month

Oslo, Norway - €2,625/month

Paris, France - €2,547/month

Rotterdam, Netherlands - €2,534/month

Dublin, Ireland - €2,520/month

Copenhagen, Denmark - €2,284/month

Other key takeaways from the report

Zurich is Europe's most expensive city for digital nomads, with essential monthly expenses reaching €3,799, including rent, utilities, food, public transport and broadband internet. Rent for a studio alone costs €2,632, accounting for around 69% of the total, while food adds another €917 per month. Even compared with Copenhagen, one of Europe's most expensive cities, the average rent in Zürich is almost double Copenhagen's €1,391 per month. Despite being the most expensive city overall, Zürich's monthly utilities are just €85, the lowest among the ten most expensive cities.

London and Geneva have different cost pressures despite both ranking among Europe's most expensive cities for digital nomads. London has the highest monthly public transport costs in the study at €241, more than three times Geneva's €73. Geneva, meanwhile, has the highest monthly food costs at €1,016, around 73% more than London's €587. Overall, essential monthly expenses reach €3,646 in London and €3,475 in Geneva, including rent, utilities, food, public transport, and broadband internet.

Rounding out the top five are Manchester and Amsterdam, where digital nomads can expect to spend just under €3,000 a month on essential expenses. Manchester comes in at €2,964, while Amsterdam is slightly cheaper at €2,840, including rent, utilities, food, public transport and broadband internet. Despite its lower overall total, Amsterdam has higher monthly food costs (€604 vs. €493), while Manchester's rent is around 11% more expensive.

Not only are these cities expensive, but they also don't deliver the best remote-work experience. Across the 49 European cities analysed, Zürich ranks 47th overall and London 49th, while Copenhagen places 18th. Meanwhile, the Romanian capital Bucharest emerges as the best city for digital nomads, followed by Spain's Malaga, highlighting that a higher cost of living doesn't guarantee a place among Europe's top-ranked cities for remote workers.

'The digital nomad dream can come with a very expensive catch: the freedom to work from anywhere doesn't mean you can afford to live everywhere. It's easy to fall in love with the idea of waking up in Zürich, spending your evenings in London or making Amsterdam your temporary home. These are cities people travel across the world to experience, and remote work offers the tempting possibility of doing more than just visiting. But once the holiday feeling wears off, the bills are still there. When rent in Zürich averages €2,632 a month and essential expenses approach €3,800, the question becomes whether the experience is worth sacrificing so much of your income for.

There is also a curious contradiction in the numbers: some of Europe's most expensive cities don't necessarily offer the strongest overall conditions for remote workers. London ranks 49th among the 49 cities in the report, while Copenhagen ranks 18th and costs around 40% less per month than Zürich. That's a reminder that a famous postcode doesn't automatically make for a better remote-work lifestyle. If the point of being a digital nomad is to have more freedom, it is worth asking whether spending a huge share of your budget to live in a fashionable destination actually gives you more of it.'

• comments Stanislava Savisheva, data analyst and author at Players Time.

More information on Europe's best cities for digital nomads in 2026, including full rankings and detailed cost breakdowns, can be found in the complete report. The raw dataset is also available via a Google Drive link. You are welcome to use any data or graphics for publications, provided a link to the original report is included for attribution.