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Graz vs Vienna

Austria flagGrazAustria flagVienna

Graz and Vienna are compared across affordability, safety, healthcare, career, culture and food, and public life. Vienna has the broader all-round edge, while Graz leads on affordability. The better fit depends on which of those relocation priorities matters most.

How they compare

AffordabilitySafetyHealthcareCareerCulturePublic life
  • Graz
  • Vienna
Affordability
69
67
Safety
84
82
Healthcare
75
77
Career
56
63
Culture & food
68
76
Public life & spaces
78
85
Overall
68
71

Objective 0–100 scores from source-backed CrossBorders data. Green marks the category leader; gold is the overall leader.

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Category by category

Is Graz or Vienna cheaper to live in?

Graz 69Vienna 67

Graz has the lower open-market one-bedroom rent on a new lease, at about €627 per month, compared with €861 in Vienna. Against one typical employee's mean net pay, Graz is manageable solo at roughly 21%, while Vienna is manageable solo at roughly 27%.

Is Graz or Vienna safer?

Graz 84Vienna 82

Nearly level, in Graz's favour. Both are among the safest big cities anywhere, with rare violent crime and streets that feel secure well after dark.

Does Graz or Vienna have better healthcare?

Graz 75Vienna 77

Vienna edges ahead. Its capital-city hospital network matches the best German-speaking cities, though both plug into the same well-funded Austrian system with low out-of-pocket costs.

Is Graz or Vienna better for your career?

Graz 56Vienna 63

Vienna leads. Its finance, international-organisation and established-industry base gives it real depth that Graz's smaller, more modest market can't match, even if Graz keeps unemployment low.

Does Graz or Vienna have a better food and culture scene?

Graz 68Vienna 76

Vienna's clear win. Its unmatched coffeehouse tradition and world-class museum and classical-music offering outscale Graz's respectable but smaller student-driven cultural life.

Does Graz or Vienna have better public spaces and street life?

Graz 78Vienna 85

Vienna ahead, the widest gap in the pair. Its imperial squares, Ringstrasse and sprawling Prater outshine Graz's own handsome Hauptplatz and Schlossberg, though Graz stays notably cheaper day to day.

The verdict

Choose Vienna for the broader all-round balance, especially if healthcare matters most. Choose Graz if affordability matters more. Compare their rent burden and day-to-day strengths before deciding.

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Austria flagLiving in GrazAustria flagLiving in Vienna

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