In this blog post, we’ll look at rental prices in Helsinki. We base this discussion primarily on Sara-Ellen Laitinen’s blog post on the Statistics Finland web pages.
This is not our first blog post about renting in Finland. Very early on, we published a blog post about tenants’ responsibilities in Finland. We also have a whole blog series on apartment ownership in Finland.
Rental homes in Finland
About a third of all households in Finland live in rental homes. Rental living is most common among 20-29 year-olds.
The share of households living in rental homes has been increasing over the years. In 2009, 30 % of all households lived in rental homes. In 2019, their share had increased to 34 %.
This increase is more pronounced in larger Finnish cities, particularly in Helsinki, Tampere, and Vantaa.
In urban areas, rental living, in general, is more common than in the countryside. In 2019, 39 % of all households in cities lived in rental homes. Only 18 % of households in the countryside do.
Rental living is particularly common among households comprising of only one person. In 2009, 44 % of people living alone lived in rental homes. In 2019, 49 % of them did.
Rental homes tend to be in apartment buildings and they tend to be smaller in size. 86 % of those living in apartments between 20 and 29 square meters in size rented their homes.
Once the apartment size grows to 60 square meters less than half of the occupants are tenants. Furthermore, only about 15 % of apartments over 120 square meters in size are rental homes.
Rental prices in Helsinki
In Finland, there are basically two different types of rental homes.
Some rental homes are rent-controlled (so-called ARA apartments). Owners (often municipalities or non-profit entities) rent these apartments out based on need. Thus residents of these apartments need to meet certain criteria. Rental prices of these types of homes in Finland are often quite low in comparison to the rental price level of uncontrolled rental prices of that same area.
Most rental homes, however, are not these types of apartments. Their rental prices are market-determined.
In this blog post, we’ll ignore the ARA apartment and focus on rental homes the rent of which is not controlled. We will also mostly look at smaller apartments since those, as we mentioned, are more often rented.
Rental prices of studios in Helsinki
In Helsinki, the most expensive studios are located in the very center of Helsinki and in Etu-Töölö (postal code area 00100). There, the rental price by square meter is 29.14 €.
The second most expensive area in Helsinki for studios is Northern Meilahti which is the postal code area 00270. There, the square meter rent price is 28.94 €.
The third most expensive area to live in a studio apartment in Helsinki is Katajanokka. There, the rent price per square meter is 28.59 €.
The least expensive area to rent a studio in Helsinki is Tapaninvainio (postal code 00780). There, the price per square meter is 20.05 €.
Other inexpensive areas are Koskela (20.33 € per square meter, postal code area 00600) and Mellunmäki (20.51 € per square meter, postal code area 00970).
The median rental price for studios in Helsinki is 26.67 €. Rental prices in Eastern Pasila are closest to this median rental price. There, the rental price of studios is 26.60 € per square meter.
Based on average square meter rents, a 25 square-meter studio in central Helsinki (postal code area 00100) costs about 728 € per month. In the most inexpensive area (postal code 00780), a studio of the same size costs about 500 €.
Rental prices of one-bedroom apartments in Helsinki
For one-bedroom apartments, the rental price per square meter for the five most expensive areas in Helsinki falls between 23 and 24.50 €.
The most expensive area for one-bedroom apartments in Helsinki is Kaartinkaupunki (postal code area 00130). There, the price per square meter is 24.50 €.
The most inexpensive areas to rent a one-bedroom apartment in Helsinki are Northern Vuosaari (16.02 € per square meter, postal code area 00960), Pukinmäki-Savela (16.23 € per square meter, postal code area 00720), and Laajasalo (16.59 € per square meter, postal code area 00840).
The median rental price for one-bedroom apartments in Helsinki is 20.12 € per square meter. Rental prices for one-bedroom apartments are closest to this in Munkkiniemi. There, the rental price is 20.02 € per square meter.
A 50 square-meter one-bedroom apartment in the most expensive area of Helsinki (postal code area 00130) costs 1 225 € per month. In the least expensive area of Helsinki (postal code area 00960), in turn, an apartment of the same size costs about 800 €.
Rental prices in Helsinki compared
Renting in Helsinki is significantly more expensive than elsewhere in Finland.
Studios in the most expensive areas of Helsinki are nearly three times as expensive as the least expensive studios in Finland.
The least expensive studios in Finland are in Ähtäri center. There, the square meter rental price of a studio is 10.01 €.
Whereas the most expensive one-bedroom apartments in Helsinki cost around 23-24.50 € per square meter, in the least expensive areas of Finland one-bedroom apartments cost 7.90-8.21 € per square meter.
Comparing Helsinki rental prices to those in very small towns and municipalities is perhaps like comparing apples and oranges. A fairer comparison would be to compare Helsinki rental prices to rental prices in other large Finnish cities.
Even then, the differences are quite noticeable. For example, rents in the least expensive areas of Helsinki are about the same as rents in the most expensive areas of Tampere, Turku, or Oulu.
For example, studio rental prices in the least expensive area of Helsinki (Tapaninvainio) are the same as in the most expensive area of Tampere (Vuores, postal code area 33870).
As Laitinen explains, for 900 € a month one can rent a 30-square-meter studio in central Helsinki (postal code area 00100). In the Myllypuro and Kalkku area of Tampere (postal code area 33330), spending 900 € on a studio would mean renting a studio that is over 60 square meters in size.
Our self-guided online course on renting in Finland
We at Finnwards have published our self-guided online course about renting in Finland. In this online course, we tell you, for example,
- what Finnish rental homes are like;
- who are Finnish landlords and what they expect from their tenants;
- what you should pay attention to when house hunting;
- about rental agreements in Finland; and
- we give you tips about moving.
You purchase the course here. Also, check out what else we have to offer.Â
Get the “Your Crash Course to Finland” online course – your gateway to all things Finnish – now from our online store.
The mission of Finnwards is to help internationals thrive in their life abroad. We provide coaching, consulting, and training services that help them do just that. Check out our Services for Businesses and Organizations or our Expat Inspiration Catalog for more information! While we serve internationals and their employers all over the world, our specialty is Finland. With our help, internationals can build a uniquely Finnish life for themselves and their family. In addition to the coaching, consulting and training services, we also offer a wide selection of self-guided online courses about Finland. Contact us and let us help you or your employees succeed in their professional and private lives abroad and in Finland.
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