Living & studying in Amsterdam
The Dutch capital is a very popular city to live and study in and finding a place to live in Amsterdam is very difficult due to housing shortage and the high rates. As a student you are responsible for arranging your own housing. Therefore, we recommend that you start looking for suitable accommodation as soon as possible and to consider not starting your studies if you have not found a room before the start of the academic year.
You can register with ROOM, even if you are not a student yet but expect to start studying in Amsterdam. On this page, we would like to give you more information and tips on how to find accommodation.
Jan Pietersz House Foundation
Especially for music students
The Amsterdam University of the Arts does not have its own student houses, but students of the Conservatorium van Amsterdam (CvA) can benefit from the offer of the Jan Pieterszoon Huis Foundation, which aims to create suitable living and working spaces for music students (fitted with sound insulation) in collaboration with the CvA. All bachelor and master students of the CvA may apply for inclusion on the waiting list of Jan Pieterszoon Huis (JPH).
JPH has a portfolio of about 350 houses. Most of the houses are specifically fitted out for music students to study at home. If you have registered with JPH, you will be put on the waiting list and receive regular emails with available rooms. Keep in mind that the average waiting time can be up to two to three years.
Are you interested in a JPH flat? You can register via the web-app on the JPH website, but consider the following:
- you can only register with an AHK email address. You will receive this email address at the beginning of the academic year;
- there is a waiting list of approximately two to three years;
- costs for a spot on the waiting list are € 26.50 per calendar year;
- tenancy is for a minimum of one year, which means exchange students cannot register;
- subletting (via Airbnb for example) is strictly prohibited;
- after graduation you have to leave the residence;
- housing is unfurnished unless otherwise indicated;
- more information and conditions can be found on the website of JPH.
Do you have any questions or want more information? Then please contact housing@janpieterszoonhuis.nl.
Please note:There are no priority or urgency possibilities available with JPH housing.
Accommodation in Amsterdam
In Amsterdam and the surrounding areas, you can find a room via housing corporations, special institutions or private individuals. While searching for a place to live consider the following:
- Start searching as soon as possible. You want to make sure you have a place to live before the beginning of the academic year.
- Most official institutions work with a waiting list. Rooms in popular areas are in high demand.
- Try to broaden your search area. Look for rooms outside Amsterdam too.
- Let people within your network know you are looking for a room.
- Be critical about the reliability of room offers from private individuals. Unfortunately, there are scammers at work.
- Never sign a tenancy contract without having seen the room. If you do not have the option to see the room in person, plan an online tour and make sure you clearly see the person you are talking to.
More tips and information about the way housing in the Netherlands works, can be found on Study in NL.
- ROOM: here you can find student rooms in Amsterdam, Delft, The Hague, Deventer, Groningen, Leiden, Leylstad, Haarlem, Rotterdam, Tilburg, Utrecht, Wageningen or Zwolle. You can register if you are 16 years or older.
- The Social Hub (TSH) offers rooms that can be let to both Dutch and international students. The maximum length of stay is 12 months. Permanent accommodation is not possible. Check out: Amsterdam City or Amsterdam West.
- StudentenWoningWeb: On this platform housing corporation Lieven de Key publish their room and flat offers for students that are available in Amsterdam and Diemen. You pay a one-off registration fee of €22,50. Rooms are assigned based on the registration time and priority arrangements. (Information on the website is only available in Dutch)
- Student Experience offers self-contained studios with a private bathroom and kitchen.
- ASVA is the student union in Amsterdam. They provide several services for their members such as mediation between landlords and students. They also give tips on how to find a room in Amsterdam.
Do you need advice about renting in Amsterdam? You can reach out to WOON!. This is an independent non-profit foundation, partly subsidised by the municipality, that gives residents information and advice on renting and buying, among other things.
You can rent a room from a private landlord – for example through a letting agency (Dutch website), in a student house or with a family. This is called ‘house sharing’ and is subject to strict rules in Amsterdam. A landlord must have a permit for this.
There are two important legal rules to bear in mind when it comes to ‘house sharing’:
- each resident must have their own rental contract with the landlord;
- you must be permitted to register your room address with the municipality. Not permitted? Then the landlord is probably letting the room illegally.
For more information about all of your housing rights, please take a look this article at Iamsterdam.com.
Students going on an exchange or an internship abroad who want to sublet their room or rent a room themselves can do so via the website HousingAnywhere.com. Read more about this initiative.
Warning
Unfortunately, there are illegal landlords active. Do not pay ‘key money’ (sleutelgeld): a payment demanded before you can enter the house. It is not permitted by law to ask for key money. It is however customary and legally permitted to ask a deposit from a new tenant; you will get this money back if you leave the house in good order at the end of your tenancy. More information about additional costs a landlord is permitted to ask, can be found at Rijksoverheid.nl (information only available in Dutch).
There are also other safety matters to keep in mind when searching for a place to live, so please read the information on the website of WOON! and I Am Expat on how to avoid housing scams. If you are unsure about an offer or you have other questions about rental housing, you can contact WOON!.
Housing outside Amsterdam
Finding a room in Amsterdam can be very difficult, therefore, it is worthwhile to search in the cities and villages around Amsterdam. This will add the cost of public transport, but the rent prices are generally speaking lower than the ones you will find in Amsterdam.
North of Amsterdam the rooms are cheaper and some of the villages or small towns have a good train connection, such as Zaandam Kogerveld, Purmerend Weidevenne, Purmerend, Santpoort Noord, Santpoort Zuid, Driehuis, Beverwijk, Halfweg-Zwanenburg, Haarlem Spaarnwoude, Zaandam, Koog aan de Zaan, Zaandijk Zaanse Schans, Wormerveer, Krommenie-Assendelft.
For example, when you register for a renting website, you can search within a radius (‘straal’ in Dutch) of 25 km or so. In addition to the rooms in Amsterdam, the website will most likely show you rooms that are available in the cities mentioned above.
However, please be aware that some, if not most websites require you to pay a monthly fee before you can actually see the rooms or apartments you are interested in.
Be warned that there are also websites that list rooms that are not available anymore. There are unfortunately a lot of scammers out there that know how high demand is for housing.
Renting websites you can check out that require a subscription are Stekkies, Huurzone and RentSlam.
Public transport costs
Renting a place outside Amsterdam can cost you roughly €150,- to €600,- per month in travel expenses. Via the NS website (a Dutch railway company) you can check the price of a one-way ticket without and with a discount.
For example, if you were to live in Beverwijk (about 35 minutes from Amsterdam by train) you will find that the price of a day return without a discount or subscription in second class in 2026 is €7,80. Should you travel for 5 days a week from Beverwijk to Amsterdam (Central Station) for about 4 weeks, it will cost €312 without a discount. If you were to start your lessons around 10.00 am and travel back after 18.30 pm, then it might be worthwhile to get a monthly subscription such as a NS Flex Dal Voordeel subscription. This will allow you to travel during off peak hours with a discount. Read more about the details and conditions for this subscription here.
Rent benefit
Rent benefit is an allowance for rental costs that is paid out by the national government. When you meet the conditions, rent benefit can help you to afford the house you are renting.
Whether you are eligible for rent benefit depends on your age, rent, income, nationality and whether the rented accommodation counts as an independent accommodation. On the Tax Administration website you will find an overview of the conditions for receiving rent benefit and how to apply for it.
For the application you can use the test calculator on the Tax Administration website (only available in Dutch). This calculator helps estimate how much rent benefit you can expect. After you have done the test calculation, you can submit your application via the Tax Administration’s website, using “Mijn toeslagen” (only available in Dutch). You will then receive a message from the Tax Administration whether you are entitled to rent benefit and how much you will receive.
You can also receive rent benefit retrospectively. This means that you can still apply for rent benefit for the year(s) you were entitled to it but did not receive it.
If you need help with your application while located in the Netherlands, you can call the Tax Information Line.