Berlin vs. Amsterdam - Which city is better to live in?

Berlin or Amsterdam - which of these two cities is a better city to live in? Where should you move as an expat? We've lived in both of these great cities we give you our insights and opinions on both, comparing on categories such as cost of living, job opportunities, nightlife, lifestyle etc.
Check out our other Berlin and Amsterdam vlogs as well!
A + L
/ one99four
/ lilianmbrilliant

[@mariatrinks3615]

I lived in both cities many years, I love the many parks and lakes and space in Berlin but it is very big and as a Dutchie I use my bike in Berlin, it is pretty ok compared to other cities in the world but of course cycling in NL is easier. Weather for me both bad (Berlin winters are sooo long and dark), summer better in Berlin. I prefer the work culture in the NLs as I really suffer the grumpiness in Berlin, no small talk, no smiles or greetings, still a lot of hierarchy and very inefficient (paperwork, bargeld etc). Germans in general like to have rules and tell you what they are, so if you break them they really go out of their way to let you know, very annoying for me as I like to be independent and I feel judged a lot more here in Berlin. But on appearances in Berlin you can look however you want, age doesn't matter and I love that. In Amsterdam I feel I don’t follow fashion and I am too old for a lot of things (you only see young people working in restaurants and shops) Anyway, I am glad I live in Berlin now but I do not have the love for it as I had for Amsterdam.

[@AlexisLilian]

Happy new year! Time for our Amsterdam vs Berlin showdown - Which city do you prefer?

[@lisaroan9029]

Amsterdam ❣️

[@punkrachmaninoff]

Happy New Year! 🥳

[@inanadaher8399]

oh my. not been in Amsterdam often and long enough to really make a statement BUT i lived in Berlin my whole life. and you nailed it down quite accurately. Berlin has a lot to offer- beautiful and ugly things… so i used to be very much in love with my hometown whereas now i wish to resettle - preferably in another country… talking of which: would you be interested to do a similar video comparing Copenhagen as well? i’d be very interested in your assessment 😌 i follow you since the very early days where you had the ocean in between and one day i saw Lillian in Berlin on Weserstrrasse very close to the organic store biosphäre BUT i didnt say hello to not (maybe) creep her out. i do regret that a bit. big love to you adorable two and kudos to how you deepened your bond and developed a ling distance relationship into a country - changing now marriage 💓 xoxoxoxo

[@lilianabohren9179]

as someone from the states who is planning on moving to Amsterdam, Utrecht, Munich, or Berlin for college (and probably the rest of my life) this video was so helpful, thanks! I can't wait to move, and I'm visiting again in the spring. :)

[@klarissaclairiton9010]

@@inanadaher8399 I HAVE lived in Berlin my entire life :) cheers

[@lamb8625]

Berlin has a ton of lakes in and outside the city! It has the river and canals. Beaches,.. Outside the city are forests. There are a ton of big parks. It’s really green for a big city.

[@IIIOOOUS]

And also quite a view hills.

[@robinhazen8034]

I love grit and chaos, so Berlin would be my pick! It's important for any city I might visit to have a good queer scene, and also thriving goth/industrial, burlesque, and art/theater scenes. Also I LOVE German language. I have a feeling Berlin would feel like heaven to me!!

[@marisolrivera5369]

I missed you guys! Happy New Year and thanks for the useful information!

[@Michael-ps4vn]

Thank you both for this great video and the insightful information. I've been considering whether I should settle in Berlin for a while now. Well, after you've shed some light on certain aspects so effectively, I feel even more determined. Thanks!

[@pantherpauli749]

That was such an interesting and helpful video! Also you both have great haircuts :> I would be very interested in seeing day to day life vlogs of amsterdam

[@ricardosf777]

Great video!!!! Thank you, so insightful !!!

[@gillianslattery1765]

Nice to see you folks. Happy New Year 🥰🥰

[@katpablo]

Such a great video, thank you! I am a NYer and have been living in Berlin for nearly two decades and I have to agree on what you’ve said about Berlin. I’m a mother, a street artist and vegan, and Berlin is wonderful for all three! I have to say though i am reaching my limit with the rudeness. It is so extreme . Anyway!! So glad to have found your channel ❤

[@amandacadiz7444]

Such a useful and informative video, Thank you!💗🍒

[@mixgb]

This might be my favorite hair, lilian! Always experimenting :)

[@luksornsorapinya6430]

This is a really nice comparison. Thank you :)

[@leamaro8377]

haha as a german young person I'm just... woaaa, Berlin became sooo expensive! Everyone I know in germany is complaining about how expensive the rent is in Berlin. Really funny to get an international perspective on that xD

[@josepha133]

Ich glaub das liegt vorallem daran, dass die Miete in Berlin die längste Zeit tatsächlich unter dem Durschnitt lag, vorallem im Vergleich zu anderen Großstädten wie München oder Hamburg. Wobei es auch im Vergleich zu denen wohl noch immer die günstigere Option ist.

[@icecreamforeveryone]

Yes, I agree. I also lived in both places. I am from Berlin and when I did Erasmus in Amsterdam back in 2014 I thought it was super expensive. Now Berlin is definitely on a similar level unless you have an old rental contract :(( and the increase was soooo steep.

[@noellemaria5591]

Same here! Es ist super teuer geworden. Wg Zimmer für 700 Euro und so 😬

[@leahstumm9662]

Happy New Year ladies!💜🥂💜

[@pleaseusernamework]

Really nice video guys.

[@maryddd3546]

Happy New Year Love your videos, did you promise us more wedding pics?

[@crashlikewaves]

I really appreciate the nature category! And I’m curious about pet friendliness?

[@mayangn]

Thanks so much for the video! I know that you've compared Toronto to Berlin before but I would really like to know your opinion on living there! (I am moving there in a month and really afraid of the wrong choice vs berlin)

[@annamatic85]

I love how in most of your videos, Alexis has her dark hair and wears a white shirt, and Lilian has her black shirt with her platinum hair ☺️

[@marcoprolo7318]

love?

[@elisabethsphilosophy6459]

Love this video! I am from Amsterdam but have a huge weakness for Berlin.

[@sarahd.4065]

Super nice videos as always :) Are you planning to share the video of your wedding, the videographer made? I love to follow your journey :)

[@allynvillanueva9019]

Finally a new video

[@michelleoliveira121]

I'm living in Berlin for 6 years and I come from the northeast of Brazil, a tropical area. My experience is that even though the city is cheaper compared to any big city I've been in Europe, the rents are increasing in the past few years. I have a 70m2 place and when I arrived it was around 600 euros and now you usually find a similar place for 1000. Still more affordable than other cities but it's increasing. I love the fact public transportation can take me anywhere in Berlin because in my place I'd take at least 1h to go to close places and there's no special lane for bikes. I lived near the beach and humidity was a thing, but there wasn't much rain, just the heat eased by the sea's breeze. I'm not sure which weather I prefer, the gray winter from Berlin let's me very down but it's a thing in the whole Europe, right? I don't know. And I totally agree about local people...wish they were less grumpy in Berlin and more patient with learners

[@konichiwa7374]

really missed seeing a video from you

[@Tom.Kez215]

Omg I love you guys sooo much ❤️>_

[@imaginaara]

What are your favourite things to do in Amsterdam? What would you recommend to do if visiting Amsterdam for a few days? Favourite places to eat, museums, bars, activities etc? I'd love seeing a video of your recommendations

[@LenaSunstar]

Happy New Year Lilian and Alexis! Interesting topic I must say! I live in Berlin since 2011. Never thought about moving to Amsterdam but now I am thinking: „Why not moving to Amsterdam or Den Haag?“ I miss the North Sea and cycling really sucks in Berlin.

[@faleravanbalen8175]

Hey there, I live in the Hague, DO NOT move here. If you're doubting between Amsterdam and another Dutch city, go for Rotterdam. The Hague is for 40+ people, tho there are some students (like myself, but not a lot, and if you want to go out you gotta to to Amsterdam or Rotterdam). It's a city for the government, not much more than that. But everybody experienced it differently, and maybe it's your thing, but just thought a local's opinion might help.

[@scubagoldfish45]

I might need to do some food tourism in Berlin someday!

[@Tara........]

In the language area, Berlin reminds me of the province of Quebec here in Canada. Many people just refuse to speak English to tourists even though they speak it fluently.

[@Mandobanjoman]

Funnily enough, to us Dutchies, German sounds a lot harsher than our own language... 🙃

[@iupiter.161]

This ch or kh sound however you describe it sounds harsh to a lot of people. And I think u use it more in Dutch. I think Dutch is quite cute tho…(I’m German)

[@mayaflici374]

As someone who speaks neither of those languages, dutch sounds cuter than German to me and I don't know why. Maybe it's because my native language also has those "harsher" sounds so I'm not scared by them

[@michelleoliveira121]

As a brazilian, when I was learning german I mistook both languages on the streets. It sounded similar to me and as I was in Germany I thought dutch was a german dialect with more vowels, until a dutch friend told me it was dutch :) both sound nice to me

[@gerrylanter8109]

The problem is that you can't judge the sound of your own first language for the simple reason that it's actually impossible to really hear the sound of your mother tongue, because it's the meaning of the words you speak or hear that are the dominating factor. To appreciate the sounds of those words, you would have to be able to listen to them, as it were, from a distance, which is impossible in the case of your own language. By the way, to me personally (I'm Dutch) German doesn't sound harsh at all. How Dutch sound to non-Dutch speakers I can't know, but I do know that it is often jokingly described as a throat disease.....

[@myflyingkidney]

I always thought berlin is great for young people while, amsterdam is great for families and kids and maybe a slower lifestyle. On the other hand I recently researched berlin a bit more and realized that berlin also has a lot of quieter parts of town as well. But I am from croatia and our view of germany is a bit warped by the past, and it is almost in our culture to consider germany the best country in the world, which is completely irrational. But it's due to the fact that in the past all croatians went to work in germany (those were the famous gasarbeiter) and so many people had germany as only comparison to our own country, so it was considered "west" and automatically better. So in my subconscious germany is always a winner eventhough rationally I see that it is much more complicated.

[@myflyingkidney]

Oh and also, I know Berlin is nothing like the rest of Germany, I am obviously generalizing here

[@landen2482]

Same situation! I think "Ireland is the new Germany" for us croatian folk 😆. I need to decide between Berlin/Dublin but now im thinking perhaps Amsterdam would be nice I just need to research it a bit more. Im really confused tbh, but Lilian is right about that theres no thing such as perfect city and we should decide based upon what matters to us the most.

[@myflyingkidney]

@@landen2482 absolutely. And now more than ever one should consider things like taxes and fuel prices and health system. Eventhough they usually come as an afterthought. People mostly look at culture, climate and job offerings, but the older I get more I think about pension and taxes and those things. But in the end it all depends on the time that you plan to live somewhere and how adaptable you are. But the decision definitely isn't easy.... digital nomads are lucky to be able to try out many countries before deciding :)

[@maiianthe3280]

Thank you!!

[@shanksnayar4699]

happy new year guys.................

[@judithhodgins5337]

Managed the first Canadian Womens Sovver team in GERMANY< FRANCE & SWITZERLAND in 1973,,Now live in London Canada, When you get here LUNCH is my treat!

[@IIIOOOUS]

Every lake has a sandy beach in Berlin and the ocean is also not far away and the landscape is hilly not flat.

[@maximesng]

Hello Alexis& Lilian I really like you content , carry on If you have to choose between this 2 cities do you prefer live in Amsterdam or Berlin ? with your personal opinion (opportunities of job, quality of life, nightlife, nature, cost of living...)

[@NickVenceil]

Thanks ladies.... jdore

[@soniayi7870]

yess

[@Leflab]

How does Alexis manage or used to manage tho whole working visa situation .

[@Linoxus]

As a Hispanic person, It's kind of funny to hear English speaking people complaining about locals that won't speak their language...In America, very few (non-Hispanic, non-Spaniards) know spanish and many even get angry of just listening someone speaking any other language that's not English...but I guess that's the difference between "EXPATS" and immigrants, I've been in Berlin and very rarely someone spoke English to me and It's normal, I'm in their country I should have a minimun of knowledge.

[@alexandrachiripuci2567]

would you ever consider moving to italy? :)

[@BlazinPianoDrummer92]

Holy hell the rules in Germany make my head spin at times. Hit the nail on the head with that lol ( im in rural Bavaria)

[@Anna-fq2vc]

hey you two, I‘ve been watching your Channel for a while because I like your vibes and enjoy following your journey as a couple (so first of all thanks for all the content), but there is something I want to get off my chest: you guys seem super privileged and I was wondering why youre hardly adressing that in your Videos? like multiple holidays a year, moving around pretty expensive citys in just a couple of years. of course you have every right to do what makes you happy and in you have the means for it thats amazing, but videos like this make it seem like everyone can just choose to live in the city with the best „lifestyle“ which is just not true. also in any big city many people struggle with poverty i.e Berlin, and it doesnt sit right with me to say the city is rough of the Lifestyle isnt that nice, when that is something that relates to the existence of poor people in Citys. I think your content would be accessible to more people if you were a little more mindful of this :)

[@holiheinrich2115]

Very well said.

[@belcardozo417]

I don’t agree at all! I think you are missing the point of their content, if you want to hear something that you find more inclusive, there are other channels out there 😊

[@Anna-fq2vc]

@@belcardozo417 But inclusiveness and awareness of some inequalities are things that only work if there are people being mindful of it everywhere its not an interest some people have and others dont.

[@belcardozo417]

@@Anna-fq2vc I don’t fully understand your answer but in my understanding these girls are sharing their point of view from their own experiences, this is not an opinion on Berlin and Amsterdam on a budget 😊 doesn’t seem to me that economic inclusiveness is the point of their videos

[@annieink1363]

❤❤❤

[@christianoster_sole]

Is it maybe possible that Berlin is 4 times bigger than Amsterdam, so of course you have to spend more time to get to some spots??? When you only go to Friedrichshain, Kreuzberg and Neukölln, you are at least as fast as spending time in the whole of Amsterdam. By size Amsterdam (219,3 square kilometer) is a village compared to Berlin (891,8 square kilometer), so how can you compare the transfer times???

[@monimares2357]

Hi U guys miss U .saludos from Tijuana Mexico

[@codingpineappl3480]

Would be cool, if you guys would do some reviews to some popular lesbian movies like "Below her Mouth", "Carol" etc. Would be Interesting to see how you guys think about those movies.

[@martab.7463]

Could you make a video of how to find friends in new cities? Because I found it hard to do especially when I'm introvert and has a partner so everything for single people isn't for me 😆 would really appreciate that! I hope you haven't made it and I'm not repeating myself lol

[@thaver5740]

Amsterdam is not the second expensive city in EU, i believe copenhagen or stockholm much more expensive .

[@anhaicapitomaking8102]

No offense, but having no friends does not mean one is miserable. I am autistic and even though I would certainly cherish real friends if that happens, having no friends is absolutely fine. Even neurotypical highly sensitive people would be way better off with no friends than with trying to blindly be friends with whoever because of the preconceived idea.

[@renan8699]

No offense but maybe, just maybe, their message is for MOST people, not everybody? Overall humans eager for connection and having friends is mostly a good thing. Your message sounds a bit contradictory as well because you''re saying that if you ever happen to know real friends that would be great. I'm not an autistic person myself, I am neurotypical though and when I think about a huge city I see more possibilities of connection because of the diversity itself (like trial and error, I may not get along well with 10 people I meet but with the 11th I might) not being friends with ANYone. I don't know, I read your message and it sounded like you're watching an apple pie recipe video and questioning "what about those people who don't eat apples?".

[@T-MobileMobile-pt2ok]

You definitely need friends , it tends to be you may already have family you see as friends so you don’t need more. But saying you don’t need friends is borderline crazy

[@Yiw9706]

Well, most people would not be okay with dying alone

[@yesiamabnormal]

Hey , Lilian you always been my crush 🙈🙈😍

[@yashprajapati4176]

one stop shop video

[@dirtshaman]

I party in Berlin, but relax in Amsterdam.

[@rosshart9514]

I work in Stuttgart

[@georgekassaras8862]

I have lived in both cities,I don't believe that Amsterdam dominates when talking about lifestyle,the locals and safety.

[@judithhodgins5337]

Been to Gay bars in both Amsferdam & Berlin!

[@gyorgygajdos1657]

Berlin is better. Sure, you have to filter the people in Berlin, but there are opportunities

[@kevincc]

Dutch sounds harsher than German?? This is crazy talk 😅 (I’m Dutch)

[@movies_songs88]

Main bhi aap dono se milana chahata hoon please bata dijiye

[@ComeonmyIcelandicface]

OMG two LEZZIES

[@zeballos5757]

I’m in Vancouver. Lots of rain and everything is over priced. I went to England before the pandemic, they were very rule ish there too. I was born in England but that’s the first time back in decades. I actually appreciated the people reminding people of the rules. In Canada it’s just a free for all of multiculturalism and everyone just makes up their own “rules”. In fact half the time I wonder what country I am actually in. It’s hard to tell these days

[@nathalieharson3580]

Amsterdam 100%

[@Slimshady316]

Amsterdam sounds like Vancouver 😄

[@ll-li9pz]

SOoo cute together u too

[@virgilmcclendon5072]

😎😃😊😜😍😘💖🌹

[@RoryTeeV]

Amsterdam has been ruined by people who use words such as “lifestyle “

[@rafigladboy]

Give tips about gay sex.💛

[@marcoprolo7318]

Crazy faces.

[@servantoflordgod5963]

Jude 1:7 (KJV) Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

[@autumnjacaranda106]

Sorry couldn't hear you over the sound of the gay sex we're having

[@bjornekdahl721]

Which city is best according to your husbands and children?

[@Siz_LiveLifeLive]

Lol what

[@bjornekdahl721]

@@Siz_LiveLifeLive You can read English, right?

[@renan8699]

@@bjornekdahl721 the way your sentence was phrased sounded like you were asking about the ladies' husbands and children and they are clearly queer, so lol.

[@Anonymous-sb9rr]

Berlin is cheap because it's basically Eastern Europe.