The City of Prague’s Institute of Planning and Development (IPR) has published an analysis of life in Prague, comparing it with ten other European cities. The study, named “Prague in a European Context,” analyzes salient aspects of daily life, such as salaries, housing, transportation, and leisure time, detailing whether Prague’s citizens have a higher or lower quality of life than residents of other major European capitals.
The report is divided into four main sections: living (focusing on housing); work (based on the assessment of wages and unemployment); urban mobility (focusing on the use of public transport, cycling, and cars); and free time. The study, available in English, compares Prague with Barcelona, Vienna, Budapest, Amsterdam, Milan, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Munich and Bucharest.
HOUSING
According to the analysis, Prague has the least affordable rental housing of all the other cities, with average rents costing nearly 40% of gross monthly salaries. Prague is also the third-most expensive city for home ownership, ranking only behind Amsterdam and Barcelona, while the cheapest rates of homeownership are in Vienna, Stockholm, and Copenhagen. In fact, a parallel report revealed that people in Prague must earn around 15 gross annual average Czech salaries to purchase a 70-square-meter apartment. This has an impact on the rate of homeless people populating the Czech capital: the second highest of all cities surveyed, with Milan coming top.
The real estate prices situation in Prague is alarming; in fact, despite a continued decline in mortgage rates, experts estimate that rental costs in the Czech capital will increase by an additional 5%.
WORK
In accordance with purchasing power standards, which take how far your money goes based on different cities’ prices, Prague has a below-average wage. Although higher than Warsaw, Budapest, and Bucharest, the Czech capital remains significantly below cities such as Milan, Munich, and Amsterdam. Even in nearby Vienna, workers with average incomes earn almost a third more than those in the Czech capital. In contrast, however, should be highlighted the low tax burden of Prague, and the Czech Republic in general. Indeed, it is noted that only 1% of total taxes go directly to the Czech capital, while in Denmark and Sweden, for example, local taxes range from 25% to 37%.
It is important to note, however, that the report’s salary is referred to the year 2021 and therefore does not take into account the increase in the average salary in recent years, which in three years has brought the figure to CZK 46,000 per month, a full CZK 10,000 more.
Further data analyzed by the IRP study concerns the Czech Republic’s low unemployment rate, which often proves to be the lowest in the entire European Union. This is confirmed by a 2023 report that showed eight in ten people agree that it is easy to find a job in Prague.
URBAN MOBILITY
The report proclaimed Prague as a car-dominated city based on the data obtained: in fact, Prague has the second-highest rate of vehicle ownership among all cities surveyed, trailing only Warsaw. Since 2012, Prague has seen an average increase of 205 cars per 1,000 people. While Western European cities aim to reduce the number of cars, Prague and other east Europe’s cities show the opposite trend, due to a spontaneous and poorly controlled development that has led to the creation of new neighborhoods with limited access to public transportation.
In contrast, cycling is not very popular in the Czech capital. In fact, the report shows that only 1% of Prague’s inhabitant cycle daily, due to inadequate bike lanes.
The IRP study then praises the efficiency of public transportation, with an extensive network of streetcars and metro stops located almost everywhere, with relatively low fares. Yet the Czech capital’s public transport fares do not allow it to rank among the most affordable of the cities surveyed. If, in fact, a monthly transportation pass in Prague accounts for 1% of the average monthly salary received, in Vienna and Barcelona that percentage is reduced to 0.5% and 0.7%, respectively.
LEISURE AND WELLBEING
Prague’s citizens have more free time than they had in past decades, but they still work for longer hours than almost any other city surveyed. Moreover, despite a significant amount of green areas, the percentage of urban areas covered by parks and trees in Prague is lower than in “neighboring” Warsaw and Vienna.
Finally, the report draws attention to the Czech’s mental health and suicides: in fact, Prague has the second highest rate of suicides out of all cities, with up to 12 in 100,000 people deciding to end their lives each year.
In conclusion, the detailed analysis conducted by the Prague Institute of Planning and Development provides a comprehensive view of life in the Czech capital, highlighting its challenges and resources. This comprehensive analysis can serve as a basis for informed policy decisions that aim to look at the city’s future development, addressing challenges and capitalizing on opportunities to improve the quality of life of its citizens.
