study in Brno
Czechia's second city and its most student-dense — two major universities, a real technology sector, and noticeably cheaper than the capital.
Brno is the capital of Moravia and has one of the highest student-to-population ratios in Europe. Masaryk University is the country's second-largest, strong in medicine, informatics and the sciences; Brno University of Technology is a serious engineering institution.
The city has built a genuine technology and research cluster — it hosts significant IT employers and research institutes — which makes it the one place outside Prague with a meaningful English-language job market, if a smaller one.
Living costs sit clearly below Prague's, which on the tuition-free route translates directly into a lower total cost of the degree.
A large general university and a major technical one.
Masaryk University
Czechia's second-largest university; medicine, informatics, sciences, law and social sciences, with English-taught programmes including medicine.Brno University of Technology
Engineering, information technology, architecture and chemistry, with substantial international provision.Brno costs meaningfully less than Prague across housing and daily spending while offering comparable universities. For a Czech-medium student paying no tuition, that gap is the whole saving; for an English-taught student it is still a substantial one.
Against the other cities we cover in Czechia, Brno is one of the cheaper. That is our reading of this country’s own spread, not a published index.
Living costs across Czechia run roughly €400–600 a month — and on the tuition-free Czech-medium route that figure is your entire budget.
The practical texture of the place — what a week actually looks like.
Climate
Continental, marginally warmer than Prague, being further south. Cold winters and warm summers.
Getting around
Trams and buses with heavy student discounts, in a city compact enough to cross quickly.
Housing
University dormitories and a private market clearly cheaper than Prague's. The student population is large, so apply early.
Working
Free labour-market access, as everywhere. Brno's technology sector offers the best English-language work outside the capital.
Language
Less English than Prague outside the technology and student sectors. Czech is more necessary here for ordinary work.
Student life
One of the most student-dominated cities in Europe by proportion, which shows in the bars, the housing market and the pace of the year.
Living costs across Czechia run roughly €400–600 a month, and Brno sits below Prague across the board.
What does not change: holders of a study residence permit have free access to the labour market with no separate work permit — the same in every Czech city
Brno is the balanced option in Czechia: universities that compete with Prague's, a real if smaller English-language job market, and costs closer to the regional cities than to the capital. For a student on the tuition-free route who still wants a technology career, it is arguably the best value in the country — and it is where we would point most applicants who are not specifically drawn to Charles University.
Brno is one of 3 cities we cover in Czechia. Tap any pin to compare — the city you pick moves your total cost more than almost any other choice you make.