Romania's four main university cities, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Iași and Timișoara, account for more than 361,000 students, representing 62% of the national total, yet combined public and private student accommodation across the four cities totals only around 80,000 beds. That equates to one bed for every 4.5 students, according to data compiled by Cushman & Wakefield Echinox. Of the identified stock, approximately 94% of beds are in public university halls, with the remaining 6% in privately developed student accommodation.
Competition for a bed is most intense in Bucharest, with approximately 5.1 students per bed, followed by Cluj-Napoca at 4.6, Timișoara at 4.3 and Iași at 3.5. In terms of overall provision rate, the four cities cover approximately 22% of their student populations through public and private beds combined, with Iași recording the highest rate at 28.9%, ahead of Timișoara at 23.5%, Cluj-Napoca at 21.9% and Bucharest at 19.7%. In absolute terms, Bucharest has the largest stock, with approximately 32,300 public beds and at least 4,700 private beds for 187,677 students, while Iași has around 16,500 predominantly public beds for 57,004 students, Cluj-Napoca has 14,800 public and around 700 private beds for 70,617 students, and Timișoara has approximately 10,700 mainly public beds for 45,749 students.
"Two key features stand out when analysing the Romanian student accommodation market: Iași, Timișoara and Cluj-Napoca have a higher combined public student housing capacity than Bucharest, while the capital accounts for almost 90% of the private beds quantified across the four cities. These figures show that opportunities for new private student housing must be assessed on a city-by-city basis. A higher supply of public student accommodation beds does not rule out demand for private accommodation offering a different standard. Student numbers and the student-to-bed ratio are only part of the equation. The quality of the existing stock, rental levels, location, access to public transport, services and alternative housing options are equally important when assessing each market," said Vlad Săftoiu, Head of Research at Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.
The analysis also covered major university cities in Poland and Czechia, revealing significant differences across Central and Eastern Europe. Across eight Polish cities, including Warsaw, the database identifies approximately 83,000 public and private beds, a figure similar to the roughly 80,000 beds across the four Romanian cities, yet the Polish cities have a student population of around 897,000, nearly 2.5 times larger, translating to approximately 10.8 students per bed. Private student accommodation accounts for 23% of total stock in Poland, compared with under 10% in Romania. In Czechia, the picture is closer to Romania: Prague has over 132,000 students and approximately 28,400 beds, including around 3,800 private ones, while Brno has 68,236 students and approximately 13,600 mainly public beds.
On pricing, Romanian students pay comparatively low rates. In Bucharest, public hall fees start at around €50 per person per month and reach up to €80, while private student accommodation ranges from over €100 to around €300 per person per month. In Poland, the average monthly cost is approximately €190 per person in public halls and around €550 in private premises. These cost differences reflect variations in room configuration, quality and services, and any cross-country comparison must also account for the broader housing market, including conventional rentals and shared apartments.
