Student rents slow down: down rents, big differences between countries

HousingAnywhere, Europe's largest rental platform for students, presents the International Rent Index by City for the fourth quarter of 2025, a report that analyses rental price trends in 25 European cities based on the advertisements published on the platform, which focuses mainly on furnished accommodation for students and young professionals.
By the end of 2025, the rental market in Europe showed clear signs of cooling down. After several years of strong upward pressure on prices, rents have decreased across the board. This trend is particularly relevant for students, who paid on average 3.1 % less for a room in the fourth quarter than in the same period of the previous year. Rental prices also declined for those renting flats (-1.3%) and studios (-4.4%).
"This is encouraging news to start the year with and the clearest sign we have seen for some time that rents in the student housing sector are starting to decline," said Antonio Intini, ceo of HousingAnywhere. "While we observe stabilising trends in markets such as Germany and Italy, other countries, such as the Netherlands and Spain, have yet to catch up. 2026 should be a time when the housing ecosystem takes a step forward, increasing supply, expanding dedicated student housing solutions and ensuring that more choice ultimately translates into more affordable prices."

At the end of 2025, the rental market in Italy mirrors the European trend, with an overall easing of pressure on room rents after several years of sustained increases. Rome is the only major exception, registering year-on-year growth of 4.8%, while in the other cities analysed, prices have fallen or remained stable.
Milan and Bologna remain the most expensive cities for students in Italy, with average monthly rents of €664 and €655 respectively.
Turin remains the most affordable of the cities analysed, with prices stable between €520 and €530 over the course of the year, demonstrating a market less prone to volatility than other major university poles.
Overall, the Italian room rental market is slowing down in most major cities, with a few local exceptions such as Rome. Although there are significant price differences between them, the general trend is increasingly aligned and indicates a gradual normalisation after years of growth.

On a European level, single rooms - the most popular type of accommodation among students - recorded an average annual decrease of 3.1%. Northern European cities continue to occupy the top positions among the most expensive markets.
Amsterdam remains one of the most expensive cities, with an average monthly rent of € 990, followed by Rotterdam (€ 850) and Munich (€ 808). Paris is also firmly at the upper end of the market. In contrast, rooms are significantly more affordable in the cities of Eastern and Southern Europe: Budapest (€ 370) and Athens (€ 400) present the lowest price levels, followed by Valencia (€ 430) and Porto (€ 460).
In the course of the year, several markets historically characterised by high rents have experienced significant corrections. In Germany, for example, Hamburg (-11.2 per cent), Berlin (-9.6 per cent), Stuttgart (-9.4 per cent) and Frankfurt (-7.3 per cent) marked the most pronounced decreases in room rates, confirming a gradual return after years of strong growth. Price reductions were also observed in a number of Italian cities, such as Bologna (-6.4%), Florence (-3.2%) and Milan (-2.4%), which in 2025 interrupted the trend of increases recorded in previous years.
However, there are no exceptions. Rotterdam (+6.3%), Düsseldorf (+5.7%) and Valencia (+4.9%) recorded increases in rents, followed by Rome (+4.8%) and Budapest (+2.8%).
Overall, despite the European average decrease, the cost of a student room continues to vary considerably from city to city, with differences that can translate into monthly expenses even double between one market and another.

On a European scale, rents for furnished flats fell by an average of 1.3% year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2025, confirming a cooling of the market for this type of housing as well. Amsterdam, Rome and Paris remain the cities with the highest rents, at €2,300, €1,990 and €1,908 per month respectively, demonstrating that the large urban poles continue to exert strong pressure on prices despite the general slowdown.
The most affordable markets once again include Budapest and Athens (both at €900), followed by Turin (€1,200), which stands out, however, for the significant increase recorded over the year (+21.2%), representing the sharpest rise among the cities analysed. Porto also recorded growth (+5.2%), although remaining at relatively low price levels.
In many other European cities, by contrast, flat prices remained stable or fell. Frankfurt (-16.2%), Stuttgart (-7.7%) and Athens (-5.3%) showed the most significant declines, signalling an adjustment phase in markets that had experienced strong increases in previous years.

Studio apartments recorded the sharpest decrease among all housing types, with an average annual decrease of 4.4%, confirming this alternative as the most sensitive to supply and demand dynamics. Munich (€1,498), Rome (€1,350) and Paris (€1,300) remain the most expensive cities, reflecting above all constant pressure in the large urban centres despite the general slowdown in the market.
In more accessible cities, however, the cost of a studio apartment is comparable to that of a room in the most expensive markets: €650 in Budapest, €680 in Turin and €760 in Athens, highlighting how this type of apartment represents an alternative for those seeking greater independence at low prices. The limited availability of studios, however, contributes to greater volatility in rents.
In 2025, the most significant increases occurred in Rotterdam (+19.0%), Cologne (+11.9%) and Valencia (+11.0%), while the steepest declines were in Hamburg (-21.7%), Frankfurt (-13.3%) and Florence (-8.3%), confirming how this segment reacts particularly quickly to local market conditions.