My heart belongs to Europe, 100%. I’ve been very ill and disabled since childhood, I couldn’t afford my medications in the USA, just one essential medication was 2.000 USD per month.

So that was the primary reason I left. There are others, like:

the human rights violations committed by the American state, domestically and abroad,

and the mass shootings.

and the apparent reluctance to acknowledge, much less prepare for, climate change in some circles.

and the lack of abortion rights.

and how shite the American public education can be, and how expensive private education can be.

It’s possible Trump could get elected POTUS.

Etc, etc., etc. I don’t want to raise my kid there for a plethora of reasons.

I love how dynamic, open-hearted and fun Americans are, and of course the USA contains many natural wonders. I don’t dislike America or Americans at all, this isn’t personal.

But life in Norway is better by pretty much every metric, so I’m staying put here.

I love the walkability, the social culture, quality of healthcare and low violent crime. In the US my daughter’s school had several lock downs because of an active shooter and one student who was a self proclaimed white nationalist said he was going to shoot up the school and posted videos of himself on Facebook shooting in the woods with a confederate flag draped. I lived in a predominantly white suburb just outside of a military base in a DC suburb. I’m glad I don’t have to raise anymore kids in the US and sad that people think this is normal or dismiss these things as being “woke”. The politics in France isn’t perfect but it is less toxic and polarizing. The food is also better and has helped me heal from my autoimmune disorders

I have enjoyed living in Europe but it has never felt like home. Partly due to the fact that the move was kind of forced on us and partly due to the fact that our kids were not able to join us due to their ages. My heart resides in the US because of family and the fact that where I live it was impossible for me to find employment that was even close to what I had in the US.

I feel that the US is better for giving people a chance than where I am in Europe.

On a final note. You are trying to compare living in a continent vs living in a country. That is a bad comparison. There are so many different personalities and cultures when looking at Europe vs the US that my feelings might be 100% different if I lived in a different country but still in Europe.

I picked Europe for cultural and economic reasons.

I find Europeans generally more “down to earth”, interested in other things aside money, slightly less materialistic, not as fake as Americans, not as easily to offend means I don’t walk on eggshells. More importantly, not obsessed with guns despite sometimes owning them, not pretending they are the only ones having freedom and rule of law. Less stressed out, and generally in a better mental state. People are also less entitled (aside some cities).

Economic reasons means I don’t have to make a great salary in order to live in a nice, clean area which isn’t a crime infested den. Organic food isn’t as expensive, and the normally priced food is also better. The salary threshold to have the same lifestyle in the US is quite high depending on which areas we compare. And its get even higher if you want a better lifestyle, with similar amount of vacations, healthcare level etc.

However, I am not sure I would recommend Europe for up-starters from non-EU places. The salaries are quite low, assimilation is difficult, properties quite expensive. Many Europeans have already a decent quality of life, and Europe generally lacks the “rat race hustler” dynamic as in the US. The weather in the US is also better for the most parts.

I miss the salaries and the vastness of the US, as well as the cold and snow. In the UK, I enjoy the general appreciation for and value placed on nature, the landscape, and history as well as the work-life balance. Not sure it makes the bad salaries worth it though as my partner and I earn 3-4x our current salaries in the US.

One thing I detest is the façade of safety people like to flaunt here. I could say “I don’t have to worry about gun crime” here in the UK but that’s simply not true. Guns are here, just less “loud”. Shootings are less prevalent, of course, but that doesn’t mean I’m safer in my town here than in the US. 4 men were just convicted for killing Ashley Dale in Liverpool with a fucking Skorpion. Shouldn’t be possible here should it? But then you also have to consider the stabbings and random assaults on the street. My partner was in Belgium in October, a day before a man decided to shoot two guys for no fucking reason. Children getting stabbed in a playground in the French Alps by a Syrian refugee residing in Sweden. North African gang in Crépol who declared “We are here to stab white people” and proceeded to stab & injure 17 and kill a 16 y/o boy. Yeah piss off with the safety.

USA (NY) Pluses: Central Park, the Met, free concerts (Central Park Summerstage), Shakespeare in the park, Upper West Side, great jazz scene, black/Latino culture, excellent (unhealthy) food, vibrant ethnic scenes.

Germany (Rheinland-Pfalz, BW and Bavaria): more polite than NY, neutral news reporting, ease of travel to EU countries, excellent (healthy) food, hiking and camping, clean and safe public transit, free university, adorable villages.

Game Changer/Dealbreaker: health insurance, safety, lack of crime/gun violence, more democratic, fair elections, cost of living is lower, life quality is higher due to vacation time and perks… and lastly, after the horrors of GW Bush, I thought it could not go lower. I was wrong. Donald Jackass Trump and his cronies have ruined things for me.

I’ve been in Germany for 6 years now and I am so happy to be here instead of in the US. There are aspects of life in the US that I miss terribly, but all of the drawbacks are much bigger.

I am a lot lonelier in Germany. I moved at 30 and it’s hard to make new friends as an adult, let alone in a foreign country where you need to learn the language. Yeah, people will try to speak English with you, but it’s still exhausting for the majority of them.

And now that I am fluent I’m even older (funny how that works) and it’s even harder to make new friends.

Still, the benefits outweigh the costs. I hate work culture in the US and how so many people just go along with it. I hate car dependency. I hate copays and deductibles. I hate seeing people walking around with guns. I like the fact that I can hear a loud bang in a city center and not feel the need to run, because I know it’s just a firework some kids have let off.

Everyone already summarised pretty much the differences. I was born in the US and raised there but am a dual EU citizen and have spent the last 4 years in Germany. The taxes can be very hard to stomach here, even with a high salary. You trade financial independence in the US for slower pace of life in Europe. You’ll always be foreigner in Germany though even when fluent in language and ties to community, that’s probably the worst part other than the slow and excessive bureaucracy.

Dual US/UK citizen. I grew up in US from 5-40, now live in the U.K. with my 5 kids and wife. There was a time in the 80-90’s where the US was the better place to raise a family. This changed sometime in the last 20-25 years. I get 5.6 weeks off, health care is free at the point of use, and there is an actual social safety net. Now all of this is important to me now. However, I believe that someone single and in their 20’s would probably be happier on the US. It’s just not great for raising a family there.

The odd thing is, that although I technically earn less in the UK, I have far more disposable income then I didn’t in the US. I was on low six figures when I left.

Oddly, my wife gave me 5 years when we moved. Now she’s doesn’t want to go back. I think it’s because the old adage; in the US people live to work, in U.K. it’s work to live.

I currently live back in the US. I love Europe for the architecture, good public services, food and culture, but somehow I always feel stifled there. I am just more free to be myself in the US. You can be anybody you want to be and nobody really cares. One small example is bumper stickers. They might not say it, but Europeans think you’re weird if you have them, and while they are less common than they used to be, they’re kind of unremarkable in the States. I don’t even have bumper stickers but I like the fact that I could have them if I were so inclined and nobody would bat an eyelash. I move frequently so even in the US, I’m not a local, but as others have said, you are never truly accepted in Europe unless you are a native. Americans are just more accepting of people’s differences. Although political polarization is definitely becoming the exception to that tolerance.

Dual US/EU citizen, had three priorities:

• good career prospects
• good food
• good weather

Nowhere in Europe provides all three. It’s either one or two of these. California it was and it is. Don’t regret the move here at all

I was born and raised in the US, and have lived in Europe 13+ years. I love how the EU feels more simple, not necessarily convenient. Granted, I don’t live in a big city, and I’ve only lived in big cities in the US. Overall, I feel like the quality of life ( on my small salary) in small town France is above and beyond what I ever had in the US.

Mixed bag. I found my eurolike American dream and now struggling to find a comparable high quality European option. People in Europe are a lot harder to connect to. It is a lot safer, better for kids, and travel is much more accessible though.

I’m just here to follow this cuz I wanna know too. I’m Canadian expat currently 8 yrs in USA. I have southern France/ Spain/ Portugal on my mind.

I’m a dual American/Swedish citizen. Grew up in the states but been in Sweden the past 7 years. I can say virtually most things are better in Europe but the US felt more fun and exciting to me. I miss the nature where I’m from also, but Europe has many beautiful places obviously as well.