Club or run club? New HousingAnywhere data reveals how students really make friends

University clubs top the list at 65%, while online groups rank just 7th, new HousingAnywhere survey shows.

Amsterdam, 22 September 2026 — As the new academic year gets underway, new data from HousingAnywhere reveals how international students really build their social circles in a new city, and it is not what most people expect. HousingAnywhere, the leading rental platform for international students in Europe, helped over 15,000 students find a home for the new school year across 540 cities and towns in 30 countries. The company surveyed a group of them on how they are making friends.

University clubs and student associations are students' top way to make friends (65.3%), followed by roommates and flatmates (45.8%) and bars, cafés or nightlife (27.8%). Sports clubs or gyms (25.8%) and part-time jobs or internships (25.7%) round out the top five. Online groups, from Facebook to Discord, rank just 7th (14.7%), and friendship or dating apps rank 11th (8.5%), showing how analog student socialising still is.

Age changes the picture. For 18 to 21-year-olds, nightlife ranks third as a way to make friends (32.8%). For 22 to 25 and 26 to 30-year-olds, part-time jobs and sports clubs rank higher instead. Reliance on part-time jobs and internships climbs steadily with age, from 19.7% among 18 to 21-year-olds to 30.2% among 22 to 25-year-olds and 28.2% among 26 to 30-year-olds. Reliance on flatmates falls the other way, from 52.9% to 37.4% over the same age range.

Students over-plan the obvious social channels and under-plan the everyday ones that actually deliver. University clubs are the biggest under-deliverer: 70% of students planned to make friends this way, but only 50% of movers actually did, a gap of 19.7 percentage points, even though clubs remain the number one channel overall. Everyday channels over-deliver instead: friends of friends or family (+13.8 percentage points), part-time jobs (+10.1 points) and online groups (+7.4 points) all outperformed what students expected before they moved.

Within Europe, how students make friends varies by destination. The Netherlands has the heaviest reliance on university clubs (71.5%, against a European average of 65.3%). Germany stands out for part-time jobs and internships (34.8%, against a 25.7% average) and has the lowest reliance on nightlife (18.8%). Italy has the highest reliance on roommates (53.9%) and the second-highest use of nightlife (33.8%). Spain has the highest use of sports clubs (31.0%) and local events or meetups (26.5%).

"Between May and August alone, we helped 15,000 students find their new home for this school year, and many are moving in this month. But finding a bed is only the start. We help them settle into a new city, make friends, and often live independently for the first time. That's a defining step in any young person's life. This year we wanted to understand how students really build community and the results challenge assumptions. Young people aren't turning to social media to make friends. University networks and flatmate living matter far more," said Antonio Intini, CEO of HousingAnywhere.

HousingAnywhere does more than help students find a bed. The platform helps them settle in easily, as they can book a furnished home before arriving to their destination, so they can focus on exploring, studying and growing in a new city. It also helps cities attract the next generation of talent by making it safe and simple for students to find a home. Property advertisers are ID- and bank-verified, listings come with in-platform reviews, a direct landlord chat, scam prevention, and secure payments. Students can secure a home entirely online before arriving, with rent guarantor and insurance coverage available, and a student-friendly inventory of rooms, studios, apartments and purpose-built student accommodation.

Methodology

In July 2026, HousingAnywhere surveyed 686 international students who had recently used its platform to search for accommodation in Europe.

All respondents were current students or recent graduates (within the last six months), aged 18–30. By age: 40% were 18–21, 41% were 22–25, and 19% were 26–30.

Respondents spanned different stages of the housing search: 30% were still looking for accommodation, 44% had secured housing but not yet moved in, 24% had already moved in, and 3% had changed their plans.

Respondents were searching for or had found accommodation in Spain (23%), Italy (22%), Germany (20%), the Netherlands (18%), France (4%), and other European countries (13%). By origin, 56% of respondents were from Europe and 43% from outside Europe — primarily Asia & the Middle East and the Americas — with 1% preferring not to disclose their country of origin.

About HousingAnywhere

HousingAnywhere is Europe's leading rental platform for students. The marketplace offers a safe, online booking experience by connecting students from around the world with verified property providers across 125 European cities. Advertisers (from landlords to property managers) list their rooms, apartments and studios and collect their rent safely, while tenants stay protected online. HousingAnywhere users are usually 18–35 year-old students seeking mid-term rentals (6–12 months) to unlock the potential of the next chapter in their lives.

The HousingAnywhere Group represents three student-focused brands: HousingAnywhere (Europe), Kamernet (the Netherlands) and Studapart (France). In 2024, the HousingAnywhere and Studapart marketplaces collectively generated 60,000 bookings, and Kamernet had 80,000 paying subscribers. Headquartered in Rotterdam, the company employs 250 professionals.

Press contact

For more information, please contact press@housinganywhere.com. For more reports, go to the press page.