Costs Of Studying And Living In Belgium: With The Most Affordable Tuition Fees

Would you love to study and live in Belgium at a very low cost? Then, this article on the Costs of Studying and Living in Belgium with the most affordable tuition fees is for you.

Studying In Belgium is one of the dreams of most International Students who want to study abroad. There are many offers which include Studying in Belgium in English.

The Kiiky Team has arranged all the details you need, including the Cost of Living In Belgium. Take your time and go through this post am sure you will get answers to your questions.

Costs of Studying and Living in Belgium: With the Most Affordable Tuition Fees

Belgium is a fantastically charming country that simply conquers your heart, whether you’re just a visitor or an international student. With nice landscapes, breathtaking architecture, and a highly multicultural environment, you can truly feel at home in Belgium.

As a student here, you can benefit from excellent higher education, and overall, the cost of living and tuition fees are pretty affordable.

University tuition fees in Belgium

Universities in Belgium charge different tuition fees, depending on each of the three central regions of Belgium, most of them not exceeding 835 EUR/year.

Foreign students from outside the EU pay specific tuition fees set by ARES (Academy of Research and Higher Education). Still, they are usually not allowed to exceed five times the amount of the ordinary tuition fees (a total of 4,175 EUR/year).

Tuition fees in universities from the Flemish community

• EU students: around 50 EUR/year
• non-EU students can be charged from 40 to 1,500 EUR/year.

The variable rate depends on the student’s income, study program, and whether the student is eligible for a grant/scholarship.

Tuition fees in universities from the French community

• EU students: from 374 to 840 EUR/year, depending on their income
• Non-EU students: from 890 to up to 4,175 EUR/year.

Tuition fees in universities from the German community

• Tuition fees range from 100 to 600 EUR/year.
• The majority of students pay an average fee of 425 EUR/year.

Most affordable universities in Belgium

Check the list of universities in Belgium with the most affordable tuition fees:

1. UC Leuven-Limburg– average tuition fee 1,800 EUR/year
2. University of Namur– average tuition fee 835 EUR/year
3. Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) – average tuition fees between 835 and 1,700 EUR/year
4. University of Liège– average tuition fee 835 EUR/year

Tuition fees at top-ranked Belgium universities

Here is a list of average tuition fees at the top-ranked Belgium universities:

1. KU Leuven– average tuition fee 3,000 EUR/year
2. Ghent University– average tuition fee 2,800 EUR/year
3. Universite Catolique du Louvain– average tuition fees 700 – 800 EUR/year
4. University of Antwerp– average tuition fee 1,500 EUR/year

Living costs in Belgium

Living costs in Belgium are variable, depending on the city you live in, with Brussels, the capital, as the most expensive city in the country. The highest amount of your budget would be spent on accommodation, and if you decide to eat mostly at the restaurant, you should be aware that some of them have expensive prices.

Check the average costs of living in some Belgian student cities:

• Antwerp: around 850 EUR/year
• Brussels and Gent: between 800 and 950 EUR/year
• Leuven: around 720–820 EUR/year
• Liege: around 750–800 EUR/year

Accommodation in Belgium

Accommodation prices align with the international average (200 – 400 EUR/month) only for student residence halls. For the rest of the housing options, especially when renting an apartment, prices are usually higher than 400 EUR/month.

The main accommodation options for students in Belgium are:

1. University halls of residence – a room in a student campus varies between 200 and 450 EUR/month.
2. Rent/share an apartment – the average price for rent in a one-bedroom apartment is 400 EUR/month (not including the utility costs).
3. Homestay – in some Belgian cities, the homestay option can be very expensive, but the usual price is between 400 and 600 EUR/month for one person, with at least one meal/day included.

If you lived with your partner and child(ren), the rent price would range from 600 to 850 EUR/month, and in some cases, you could pay even more. Utility bills (electricity, water, internet) would be another 150 EUR/month.

Food costs in Belgium

Buying from the supermarket and cooking at home is the cheapest option when it comes to food costs. On average, you would spend around 150 EUR/month on your groceries, and you should check the cheapest supermarkets: Lidl, Aldi, Red Market, and Colruyt.

However, eating out occasionally is a nice experience, and in Belgium is worth it. A meal in a budget restaurant is between 7 and 12 EUR, and even less in Antwerp.

With prices between 4 and 16 EUR, you can eat soups, salads, platters of cheese, cold meats, and patisserie at Le Pain Quotidien restaurant chain.

Try a fancy restaurant in Brussels called La Mer du Nord / De Nordsee, serving croquettes aux crevettes, escargots de mer (whelks), fish soup, pickled herring, smoked mackerel, and salmon, hot dishes of crab and scallops all at about 6 – 8 EUR.

Transportation in Belgium

The easiest and cheapest travel methods while living in a Belgian city are trains and buses.

A monthly pass for students on public transportation usually costs around 20 EUR/month.

The train network in Belgium is one of the best in Europe, and fares have low prices. For example, a forty-minute trip from Ghent to Brussels costs 7.50 EUR.

Prices for taxi rides: around 25 EUR for inner-city trips.

Extra costs

Here are a few examples of other expenses while living in Belgium:

• Books: 35 – 50 EUR/month
• Entertainment: 50 EUR/month
• Insurance/ health care: 30 EUR/month

Tip: Buy second-hand books; you can look for announcement boards at your campus, as some students sell their books for good prices. You can also check Studbooks. be an online platform where students buy and sell their books second-hand (available in Dutch only).

Scholarships in Belgium

Some universities, the government, the Academy of Research and Higher Education, and other Belgian agencies or organizations offer scholarships for international students in Belgium.

Examples of scholarships:

• Master Mind Scholarships provided by the government of Flanders.
• ARES Scholarships in Belgium – for students coming from developing countries
• Erasmus Mundus Scholarships for International Students

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