Why Tallinn is an amazing city to live in
Have you noticed how many people are complaining about life in Tallinn lately?
Whether it’s on Facebook groups, viral TikTok videos, blog posts, it feels like negativity is everywhere.
One video that made the rounds recently claimed, “I don’t recommend anybody who is not working in the tech sector to move to Estonia, at all.”.
Then, there’s an article from Estonian World saying Tallinn is more expensive than cities like Tokyo, Rome, or Barcelona (then you open the source of the statistics, and see that it is excluding the rent, which is probably the biggest recurring expense of a regular person, meaning that the title is misleading). It’s no surprise these things stirred up frustration.
The thing is, negative news always spreads faster than positive. It’s human nature to react more strongly to what’s wrong than what’s right. But when we only focus on the bad, we don’t get the full story. If we want to fix that, we need to start sharing the good stories, too—the opportunities, the successes, and the reasons why so many of us love living here.
Scrolling through social media, it’s hard not to feel like complaining has become a default reaction. Rising prices? Complain. Not sunny? Complain. Not snowy? Complain. But here’s the thing: this negativity doesn’t tell the whole story, additionally, it won’t make life in Tallinn any better. Sure, costs have gone up, but that’s happening everywhere. Tallinn isn’t perfect, but there’s so much to celebrate about living here.
In this post we will tell you the other side of the coin, the reasons why Tallinn is actually a great city, and most importantly how you can find out what’s improving in Tallinn, what’s happening, how your tax money are being spent to make your life better, and more, every day.
Tallinn is easy.
Sometimes Tallinn feels like playing a game on free mode.
One of the standout features of Tallinn is how easy it makes managing bureaucratic tasks. In many cities, tasks like renewing a driver’s license, paying taxes, or registering a business require long queues, endless paperwork, and multiple trips to government offices. In Tallinn, these tasks can be done in minutes from the comfort of your home.
Gamma, our own newsletter for local news and events, would have not been possible if opening a company wasn’t easy, and cheap to maintain. This means ease of having opportunities, ease of creating something of your own. In how many countries you can open a company in a day from your laptop?
Thanks to Estonia’s e-government system, almost all public services are available online. For example, Estonian residents can vote in national elections, sign official documents, access their medical records online, book appointment with doctors. To not give for guaranteed, these public services’ websites are most of the time in English too, don’t expect the same everywhere in the world. This level of convenience not only saves time but also eliminates much of the stress associated with dealing with public administration.
To put it in perspective, many countries still struggle with basic e-government services. In the U.S. or Italy, for instance, you may need to visit several offices in person for tasks that could be completed digitally in Tallinn.
In the UN e-Government Survey 2020 that rates 193 UN Member States in terms of digital government, Estonia ranks among the top three most digitally advanced countries.
Tallinn is safe.
While Tallinn excels in digital innovation, it also stands out for being one of the safest cities in Europe, enhancing the overall quality of life. In many large cities, safety is often a concern, with residents having to be mindful of their surroundings. However, Tallinn offers a refreshing contrast, where safety is a major factor contributing to its appeal.
What good is a warm sun, if you can’t enjoy it without having to look over your shoulders?
What good is a cheap rent, if your kids cannot safely go around in the city?
What good are no taxes, if women don’t feel safe hanging out alone?
As per Numbeo statistics, Tallinn is the 10th safest city out of 150 main cities in Europe as per Safety Index /Crime Index. Helsinki ranks 16th, Stockholm ranks 104th, Oslo ranks 57th, Barcelona ranks 124th, Milan 125th (Source). Safety is not a guarantee. It is not everywhere.
Tallinn ranked 24th out of 163 countries in the global peace index, with a score improving from the previous year (Source).
Tallinn has top notch education.
Estonia's education system, is renowned for excellence, consistently ranking among the top in Europe and globally.
One of the most globally recognized benchmarks is the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), in which Estonia ranked 7th in the World, first in Europe (Source).
These achievements highlight Estonia's commitment to high-quality education. Notably, Estonia accomplishes this with relatively low expenditure per student.
The Guardian wrote an article about why Estonia has the best schools in the Europe (Source).
The Times did the same (Source).
Tallinn is liveable.
Take free public transport for example. A monthly pass for public transport in Milan costs about 39€, in Helsinki 60€, Berlin 58€…
In 3+ years of living in Tallinn, we never felt obliged to buy a car, we actually still don’t have it.
Public transport are working well, and they are free. Sure, our taxes are funding this incentive, but isn’t it nice when your tax money are actually spent on things that makes your life easier? Doesn’t it almost feel good to pay taxes when they are spent on improving your quality of life?
Every year they are improving the bus lines, adding new rails for the trams, new connections.
For a whole year I’ve heard people complaining because of the road works. Yes, they could’ve been managed better, but isn’t it nice that now we have a new line connecting the city much better? Next year we’ll have new tram lines bringing to Stroomi, and to Liivalaia, in a year the tram to the airport will come back.
Tallinn ranks 7th in the most walkable cities in the world as per Insider Monkey, when taking in consideration distances between major attractions, walkability surveys, air quality and more. It ranks 9th in the world as per Tourlane (Source, Source).
Tallinn plans has planned approximately 40 kilometers of new cycle paths in the city center and improve the safety of existing ones in 2022. Who has been here for long, can probably see that.
Right after our apartment the city of Tallinn built a 1km+ road just for pedestrian and bikes, and they’re doing many more paths like this, this year. In Põhja-Tallinn they are building a 14km linear park. Did you know it?
Tallinn has ranked 9th in Europe for the best air quality , according to the European Environment Agency. This isn’t an obvious achievement—many cities like Warsaw and Milan struggle with high pollution levels due to heavy industry and vehicle emissions, often exceeding the WHO's recommended thresholds.
Bad air quality can lead to severe health issues, including asthma, heart disease, and shorter life expectancy, while also damaging the environment. Tallinn’s clean air reminds us that this shouldn’t be taken for granted. (Source)
Tallinn isn’t expensive.
Recently, many people have been saying that prices in Tallinn are "sky-high," but compared to other major European capitals, it remains relatively affordable (which doesn’t mean cheap).
If we look at Numbeo’s cost of living plus rent index, Tallinn ranks 153rd among 334 big cities in the world.
Let’s compare with the countries we are mostly compared with: Helsinki is 93rd, Stockholm is 75th, Milan is 65th, Oslo is 39th, Copenhagen is 34th.
In Price level index for final household expenditure, Estonia ranks on the EU average, in Price levels for energy, furniture, household appliances and consumer electronics Estonia ranked below EU average, (Source)
The salaries, are steadily growing too at about +8% every year.
Is there room for improvement?
Let’s be honest—no place is perfect. Tallinn, like every city, has areas where it can improve. Winter could feel less harsh, public transport could extend better to surrounding areas, we could all use a bit more sunshine (although, there’s an interesting stats stating that it has more sunshine than Milan!! Source). But here’s the thing: change doesn’t come from endless complaining on Facebook or sharing misleading headlines. Real progress happens when we take action, offer constructive feedback, and actively contribute to making our city better.
Celebrate What’s Working
Start by appreciating the positives: the safety, the digital ease, the walkability, and the vibrant events happening year-round. Share these stories, because positivity inspires action, not apathy.Speak Up With Solutions
Got ideas? Tallinn thrives on innovation. Whether it’s suggesting better bike lanes, more cultural activities in winter, or an improved recycling system, use your voice where it matters—through local councils, community groups, or simply starting conversations.Stay Informed and Stay Inspired
I get it, I’d think that this is a bad place too if the only thing I see every single day is something bad happening. Inflation, sky high prices, dark, cold, low salary, all the stuff we’re used to read about. But do you know how many amazing things are happening in the city? All the new developments? Huge new parks are being made, a new incredible public library is being built by the sea, a circular economy center where you can fix your own bike, or fix your own clothes has been made, free workshops for kids and adults on sports every month, new bicycle lanes, a train line connecting us with Warsaw! Beautiful stuff is happening, you just have to see it.We’re doing our best with our newsletter to share this, so if you want to receive a simple email with positive news, important things to know like traffic changes, electricity prices, and stay up to date with the best events happening in the city, feel free to sign up here below!
Tallinn is already a great place to live, but with the right mindset and a little effort, it can become even better. It’s not about ignoring the challenges; it’s about facing them with optimism and determination. Together, we can create a city where people not only live but thrive—a place where the positives outweigh the negatives, and where every resident feels proud to call it home.
Let’s focus on building, not just critiquing. Because when we work together, great things happen.
And please, if you agree with this post, share this. People need to learn, and be reminded about this amazing side of Tallinn.
