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Ever pondered the best place to live in the Netherlands? Most people live in an area that’s convenient for work or family, regardless of whether it is the best place in the country to reside in. But if you could live anywhere in the Netherlands, which province would you choose?

Factors that Determine a Good Place to Live

What would be on your list of factors that determine the best place to live in the Netherlands? The factors that would make you want to move away from where you are? Which factors are important for your quality of life?

Work and Education

I guess employment chances are one of the top for most of us. No work, no money. Do employment rates factor? I know for many expats and immigrants work opportunities, particularly English speaking opportunities are the top priority. And there are more numerous in the Randstad than in other parts of the country.

What about education choices? Education levels?

Housing

And housing – the price, quantity and quality? As you’ll be aware, there’s a housing crisis in the Netherlands right now, so affordable housing is a real concern if you are looking to move to or around the Netherlands.

Crime Rates

I guess high crime rates won’t attract you to an area. So crime rates are important right? I know it’s one of the factors that contributed to our move from the west to the east of the country.

Population Density

This has to be an interesting factor in the Netherlands, a country with the second highest population density in the EU. Eight million people live in the Randstad (the crescent encompassing the big cities of Amsterdam, The Hague. Utrecht and Rotterdam, in the west of the Netherlands) alone.

Which makes sense: there’s a mega busy seaport, the busiest airport in Europe, and the majority of corporations with a Dutch base, to be found in this area. Economically, the Randstad is highly significant, not just in the Netherlands, but in Europe. Where there’s work, there are people.

When it comes to provinces, Zuid-Holland (3,7 million in habitants in 2021, ) and Noord-Holland (2,9 million in 2021) are the two highest populated provinces. Noord Brabant (main city being Eindhoven), Gelderland and Utrecht follow in that order.

But population numbers don’t tell the whole story. I live in Gelderland and I can assure you it is not densely populated where I live.

Is space a factor for you personally when you are choosing the best place to live in the Netherlands? It was a huge factor for us when we were looking to move in 2017.

Health Services

For some the close proximity of health and medical services weighs heavy. The older you get, the more you are likely to take into account how far you need to travel to get to your nearest hospital. What about the availability of GP practices, dentists and paramedical services?

Leisure and Culture

Are leisure facilitates important to you? If you hike, I guess somewhere near an area like the Veluwe is attractive. If you are a swimmer, then a lake or great pool facilities are on your wish list. What about culture facilities? Is it important to be near a theater, or have access to heritage sites?

The Best Province to Live in in the Netherlands?

So if you take all these quality of living factors into account, determine which factors weigh heaviest for you, you can determine which province is the best to live in.

A company called Rentola has thankfully done this for us, and the results are interesting and useful for anyone considering a move to or within the Netherlands. Here’s a snippet of their results:

• Best province overall: Gelderland
• Worst province overall: Zuid-Holland
• Best province in terms of health: Zeeland
• Worst province in terms of health: Noord-Holland
• Best province in terms of criminality: Drenthe
• Worst province in terms of criminality: Zuid-Holland

Anything surprise you? If you want to delve more deeply into the stats (converted into an index rating for each province) then head to Rentola’s table.

So Which is the Best Place for you to Live in in the Netherlands?

As I said, I now live in Gelderland, having moved from Zuid-Holland, so I am happy to see my province heading the table here and feel assured our move was a good one.

Of course, the best place for you to live in the Netherlands may not be the best place for me. We all have different needs and different necessities in our lives.

So, if you had to choose the best place for you to live in in the Netherlands right now, which province, city or place would you choose? Which factors weight heaviest? Let me know in the comments below.

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