Choosing to buy a home is more than just a purchase. It is also a clear statement about one’s outlook on life. Those who value peace and quiet look to the countryside or the mountains. Those who can’t do without the sea opt for a home on the coast.
But even in 2026, plenty of people still can’t resist the pull of living in a historic city center. That’s the finding of the Mapping the World’s Prices 2026 report, recently published by the Deutsche Bank Research Institute, which — alongside showing that the city-center apartment is far from out of fashion — maps average property prices in 69 cities worldwide, 28 of them in Europe.
The ten most expensive city centers in Europe
Switzerland dominates the ranking of Europe’s priciest city-center real estate. Zurich takes first place, where a city-center home costs almost €23,000 per square meter (about $24,840 at current exchange rates). Geneva takes silver, at €19,439 per square meter (roughly $20,990).
Third and fourth place go to two of Europe’s most prominent capitals, London and Paris. What stands out here is the gap between the two: in the UK capital, a city-center home costs €17,241 per square meter (about $18,620), against €12,771 (roughly $13,790) in the French capital — nearly 35% less.
Just off the podium is Vienna, at €12,483 per square meter (about $13,480), followed closely by Munich, Luxembourg, and three Scandinavian capitals: Copenhagen, Stockholm, and Oslo.
The most affordable cities
One notable absence from the top of the ranking is Spain, a country with strong economic growth that is still working through a serious housing-supply crisis. Its two largest cities, Madrid and Barcelona, sit at 15th and 21st place respectively, with prices of €7,831 and €6,500 per square meter.
Both are considerably cheaper than Milan, Italy’s top-ranked city, which comes in 11th place at €9,378 per square meter.
At the other end of the scale, the most affordable European city for buying a home downtown is Istanbul, at €2,646 per square meter. One step up is Athens, at €3,442, while the bronze medal among the cheapest — somewhat surprisingly — goes to Brussels, at €4,380 per square meter.
Other notable cities among the more affordable options include Budapest (€5,243 per square meter), Warsaw (€5,443), and Edinburgh (€5,708).
The most and least expensive cities in the world
Even pricier than Zurich, according to the report, is Hong Kong, which tops the global ranking with homes costing an average of €23,970 per square meter (about $25,890) — based on data from Numbeo and Deutsche Bank itself. Seoul ranks third worldwide, at €21,897 per square meter (roughly $23,650).
Among the 69 cities surveyed, the report also names the two most affordable in the world: Cairo, at €784 per square meter, and Johannesburg, at €913.
Editor’s note
This article was originally published in Italian on money.it by Andrea Fabbri on September 05, 2026 as «Da €2.650 a €23.000 al m². Dove conviene acquistare un appartamento in centro in Europa?». It has been translated and adapted for an international audience by the Money.it International desk.
