How do university fees in the UK compare to those of the rest of the world? We tracked down the minimum yearly university fees in 59 countries around the world to answer this question.
Prospective students balking at the size of a UK student loan won’t be surprised that the UK is the fifth most expensive, at £9,250, but the USA sits comfortably at the top with yearly fees of almost £20,000. See the map above for the rest of our findings.
If you’re an aspiring student who’d consider leaving the UK for your studies, it’s worth taking into account living costs as well as the university fees themselves. In the table below, we’ve combined the uni fees with estimated yearly living costs for each country’s biggest city, so you can compare the total costs you could expect in each.
Many countries in the EU offer free tuition to other EU citizens (which, for now, we still are). However, higher living costs in these countries compared with some of the Latin American and Middle Eastern countries mean that they might still not be the cheapest options, although they do still turn out significantly cheaper than staying in the UK.
If you really want to study on a shoestring, our analysis suggests that Turkey could be your best bet, with yearly fees of only £468, and cheap living costs. In Istanbul, for example, you could get by with less than £5,000 for the whole year.
| Country | Minimum yearly fee for students from UK | Most populated city | Estimated yearly living cost | Total costs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | £19,968 | New York | £22,281 | £42,249 |
| New Zealand | £14,335 | Auckland | £13,649 | £27,984 |
| Australia | £11,453 | Sydney | £16,358 | £27,811 |
| Canada | £10,376 | Toronto | £14,060 | £24,436 |
| United Kingdom | £9,250 | London | £17,368 | £26,618 |
| Hong Kong | £8,963 | Hong Kong | £18,604 | £27,567 |
| Singapore | £7,794 | Singapore | £13,934 | £21,728 |
| Israel | £7,015 | Jerusalem | £12,892 | £19,907 |
| Lebanon | £6,266 | Beirut | £10,141 | £16,407 |
| Cuba | £5,250 | Havana | £4,954 | £10,204 |
| Saudi Arabia | £4,676 | Riyadh | £7,617 | £12,293 |
| Chile | £4,455 | Santiago | £8,453 | £12,908 |
| Uruguay | £4,318 | Montevideo | £8,919 | £13,237 |
| Hungary | £4,287 | Budapest | £7,342 | £11,629 |
| Qatar | £4,053 | Doha | £14,409 | £18,462 |
| South Africa | £4,053 | Johannesburg | £7,611 | £11,664 |
| Czech Republic | £3,507 | Prague | £8,668 | £12,175 |
| Japan | £3,227 | Tokyo | £14,249 | £17,475 |
| Russia | £3,040 | Moscow | £8,192 | £11,232 |
| China | £2,728 | Shanghai | £9,623 | £12,351 |
| Pakistan | £2,728 | Karachi | £3,847 | £6,575 |
| Ireland | £2,695 | Dublin | £16,690 | £19,385 |
| Latvia | £2,695 | Riga | £7,859 | £10,554 |
| Bulgaria | £2,604 | Sofia | £6,205 | £8,809 |
| Taiwan | £2,572 | Taipei* | £10,417 | £12,989 |
| India | £2,338 | Mumbai | £5,354 | £7,692 |
| Indonesia | £2,338 | Jakarta | £6,495 | £8,833 |
| Ukraine | £1,949 | Kiev | £4,931 | £6,879 |
| Romania | £1,796 | Bucharest | £6,198 | £7,994 |
| Poland | £1,793 | Warsaw | £7,767 | £9,559 |
| Netherlands | £1,752 | Amsterdam | £15,791 | £17,543 |
| Belarus | £1,559 | Minsk | £5,449 | £7,008 |
| South Korea | £1,559 | Seoul | £13,520 | £15,079 |
| Colombia | £1,510 | Bogota | £5,769 | £7,280 |
| Malaysia | £1,284 | Kuala Lumpur | £6,265 | £7,548 |
| Switzerland | £1,013 | Zürich | £22,398 | £23,411 |
| Estonia | £898 | Tallinn | £8,757 | £9,655 |
| Lithuania | £898 | Vilnius | £7,747 | £8,645 |
| Portugal | £853 | Lisbon | £9,290 | £10,143 |
| Belgium | £812 | Brussels | £12,480 | £13,292 |
| Maldives | £779 | Malé | £12,576 | £13,355 |
| Italy | £764 | Rome | £11,989 | £12,752 |
| Thailand | £714 | Bangkok | £8,743 | £9,457 |
| Spain | £624 | Madrid | £10,832 | £11,455 |
| Turkey | £468 | Istanbul | £4,432 | £4,899 |
| Iceland | £366 | Reykjavik | £19,109 | £19,475 |
| Mexico | £273 | Mexico City | £6,501 | £6,773 |
| Germany | £225 | Berlin | £12,097 | £12,322 |
| France | £170 | Paris | £15,570 | £15,739 |
| Kazakhstan | £156 | Almaty | £5,246 | £5,402 |
| Norway | £27 | Oslo | £17,679 | £17,707 |
| Argentina | £0 | Bueno Aires | £6,535 | £6,535 |
| Austria | £0 | Vienna | £12,394 | £12,394 |
| Brazil | £0 | Sāo Paulo | £6,965 | £6,965 |
| Denmark | £0 | Copenhagen | £15,550 | £15,550 |
| Finland | 0 | Helsinki | £13,344 | £13,344 |
| Greece | £0 | Athens | £8,472 | £8,472 |
| Malta | £0 | Malta* | £9,426 | £9,426 |
| Sweden | £0 | Stockholm | £13,430 | £13,430 |
Where available, the cheapest option for an undergraduate degree was used. All fees are for UK nationals studying at a public university.
The cost of living in each city was taken from Numbeo. We used Numbeo’s estimate for a single person’s living costs excluding rent in each city, and added on a third of the average rent for a three-bedroom flat outside of the city centre.
*In Taiwan the largest city is actually New Taipei. However, the cost-of-living data was unavailable for this city, so we used Taipei (the capital) instead.
– Jon Ostler, UK CEO at finder.com
Calling all students. Take advantage of the massive price drops on Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2019 with our daily updated guide. Use our tool to search hundreds of deals on fashion, PS4s, gifts and more. Read more…
We explored all the latest student and education statistics to see how many Brits are continuing their studies into further education. Read more…
Over 4.6 million 16-year-olds in England took their GCSE exams this year. We unpacked the statistics to find out how they got on. Read more…
Read about key stats about the UK’s education system, like the expenditure, number of schools, exam results and apprenticeships. Read more…
When preparing to study, it can seem like you have an endless list of things to do. But spending a bit of time learning how your finances will work while you study could prove to be invaluable to your future. Read more…
Heading off to university for the first time? Read our ultimate checklist to ensure you've got everything covered. Read more…
