Here’s Where You Should Live If You’re Young and Broke

If you’re a young person living in a major North American city, chances are you’re salty as hell about how expensive it is to get by.

From rent to transit to take-out food and booze, shit adds up. If you’re not careful, you’ll very likely end up thousands of dollars in debt and living in a glorified closet (literally me.)

But according to a recent report by MoveHub, an organization that promotes moving abroad, all hope is not lost. MoveHub recently ranked 30 cities around the world to see which ones are best for broke millennials, factoring in things like cheap food, transit costs, and rent versus monthly income. They gave each city a score out of 100.

Unsurprisingly, eight of the top 10 cities are in Europe, with Edinburgh topping the list.

Apparently Edinburgh, which got a score of 82.95, has the “highest density of cheap eats” and monthly rent—roughly $950 a month for a one-bedroom—takes up 32.5 percent of monthly income. Scotland’s capital also has cool architecture and is relatively safe.

Berlin, famed for its insane nightlife, is number three on the list with a score of 78.25, won the housing affordability category, with residents spending 25.6 percent of their income on rent, which is only $790 a month for the average one-bedroom. Vienna, Prague, and Madrid also cracked the top five.

Mumbai, India is one of only two non-European cities in the top 10. (The other one in Melbourne, Australia.) According to MoveHub, monthly transit in Mumbai is dirt cheap at $15.

As for cities to avoid, it’s all the usual suspects. London’s monthly transit costs approximately $240 and its rent takes up more than 52 percent of monthly income, which is why it came in 30th out of 32 cities.

San Francisco, where the average rent is $3,268 a month for a one-bedroom, came in 29th place. New York City came in 26th with the average one-bedroom costing over $2,256.

Toronto, the only Canadian city on the list, placed 18th, with the average rent for a one-bedroom clocking in at around $1,300, according to MoveHub data. (We have a feeling if Montreal had been in the running, it would've done a lot better.)

Sao Paulo, Brazil came in dead last, scoring poorly in cheap eats and safety, while renters there spend around 64 percent of their income on their homes.

In a nutshell, if you’re sick of living paycheque to paycheque, move to Europe.

Follow Manisha Krishnan on Twitter.