24 Tips on How to Live Alone for the First Time Abroad

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Your first studio abroad is a strange mix of freedom and silence. Nobody eats your food or leaves dishes in the sink. Nobody says good morning, either.

Living alone is more common than you might think. In Germany, the Federal Statistical Office reported that 42.1% of households were one-person households in 2025. Here are 24 tips on how to live alone for the first time abroad, from the practical set-up to enjoying your own company.

How to Live Alone: Setting Up Your First Place

Before you think about routines and social life, get the basics right. A safe, registered and comfortable home makes everything else easier. And if the quiet ever starts to feel heavy, BetterHelp offers online psychological counseling, so you can talk to a qualified counselor by video, phone or chat from your own flat. So where do you start?

Register Your Address

In both the Netherlands and Germany, registering your address is one of the first things to do. The Dutch government says on Government.nl that anyone staying more than four months must register with their municipality within five days of arriving, and you get your citizen service number, or BSN, when you do. In Berlin, the city's service portal says you must register within 14 days of moving in, using a form signed by your landlord. Registration unlocks bank accounts, phone contracts and most other admin, so book it early.

Check Your Smoke Alarm

When you live alone, nobody else will notice the smell of smoke at 3 am. In the Netherlands, the government's smoke alarm rules have required alarms in every home since 1 July 2022, on every floor with a living room, bedroom or kitchen, and in a rented home the landlord must provide them. Check that yours works the day you move in, and test it every month. If you are in Germany, Austria or Switzerland, check your local rules and ask your landlord. A working alarm costs little and protects a lot.

Save the Emergency Number

The European Commission confirms that 112 is the free emergency number across the EU, for an ambulance, the fire brigade or the police. Save it in your phone, along with your full address in the local language, so you can read it out under stress. Add the non-emergency police number and a local doctor or GP practice too. Living alone means you are your own first responder, so a few minutes of preparation now saves a lot of panic later. Share your address with a friend in the city as well, and tell someone when you travel or will be away for a few days.

Learn Your Building's Rules

Every building has its own rules, written or unwritten. In German-speaking countries, many rental buildings have a Hausordnung, or house rules, covering quiet hours, bins and shared spaces like the stairwell and bike storage. In the Netherlands, rules are often in your rental contract or posted by the entrance. Read them early, because breaking them by accident is an easy way to start badly with neighbours. Learning the bin days, quiet times and where to leave your bike also makes the building feel more familiar, which matters when you live alone.

Make It Feel Like Yours

A bare studio can feel lonely fast. Spend a little time and money making it yours: photos from home, a plant, warm lighting, a blanket on the sofa and a few things from your own culture. You do not need a big budget; second-hand shops and online marketplaces are full of affordable furniture. Small touches turn a rented room into a place you look forward to coming back to. That sense of home matters more when nobody else is there to make the space feel lived in.

Building Routines When Nobody Is Watching

Living alone gives you total control over your day, which is both the best and the hardest part. Without flatmates, nobody notices when you skip meals or stay in bed until noon. For many people, a weekly session with a BetterHelp counselor becomes one of the anchors in the week, and you can book sessions by video, phone or chat around your timetable. So how do you build structure on your own?

Keep a Wake-Up Time

A steady wake-up time is the most useful habit when you live alone. Without a flatmate's alarm or a shared breakfast, mornings can drift later and later, and then the whole day feels shorter and flatter. Pick a time that works for your studies or job and keep it most days, including weekends. A fixed start makes the rest of the day easier to plan. Open the curtains straight away and get some daylight. Our guide to sleep in a new country covers body clocks and light in more detail.

Get Outside Every Day

When you live alone and study or work from home, it is easy to go a whole day without leaving the flat. Make going outside a daily rule, even for twenty minutes. A 2019 study led by Mathew White at the University of Exeter found that people who spent at least two hours a week in nature were more likely to report good health and well-being, whether that time came in one visit or several. A park, a canal walk or a cycle along the river all count.

Plan Your Week on Sunday

Living alone means nobody else structures your week. Spend ten minutes every Sunday planning it: classes or work, shopping, exercise, social plans and one thing to look forward to. Write it down or put it in your calendar. A plan reduces the empty, drifting feeling that can come with too much free time, and it makes it easier to notice if you have not seen anyone for a few days. Keep it flexible; the point is a shape for the week, not a strict timetable.

Keep the Flat Under Control

When you are the only person living somewhere, mess builds up quietly. There is no flatmate to complain, so dishes pile up and laundry spreads. A messy space can make a flat feel smaller and gloomier, especially in winter. Pick a small daily reset, such as ten minutes before bed to wash up, clear the table and tidy the floor. Do a bigger clean once a week. It sounds basic, but a tidy home makes it easier to invite people over and enjoy your own company.

Create an Evening Wind-Down

Evenings are often when living alone feels most quiet. Build a simple wind-down routine to give them a shape: cook, call someone, read, take a shower, dim the lights and put your phone away before bed. A routine signals to your body that the day is ending, and it gives you something to look forward to instead of an empty stretch. It also helps with sleep, which matters even more when you have nobody else to wake you up or check that you are okay.

Cooking, Money and Admin for One

Running a household alone means doing every job yourself, from cooking to paperwork. A few smart systems save time, money and stress. Here is what works best for one person.

Cook in Batches

Cooking for one can feel like a lot of effort for a small result, so many people end up living on snacks. Batch cooking solves it. Make a big pot of soup, chilli or curry once or twice a week and freeze portions for busy days. It saves money, cuts waste and means a proper meal is always ten minutes away. Cook dishes from home too; the smell of a familiar recipe in your kitchen can make a new flat feel much more like yours. For more ideas, our guide to eating on a budget helps.

Eat at a Table

Sitting down at a table for meals sounds small, but it makes a difference when you live alone. Eating on the sofa in front of a screen every night blurs the day together. A table, even a small one, gives meals a moment of their own. Put music on, light a candle or call someone while you eat. Some people like to invite a friend over once a week, which turns dinner into a small social ritual. These little moments add up to a home life that feels cared for.

Budget for One Income

Living alone usually costs more per person, because there is nobody to split rent, energy or internet with. Write down your fixed costs first, then set a weekly amount for food and spending. Track it for the first few months until you know what is realistic. In the Netherlands, check whether you qualify for housing allowance, and in Germany, look into student support schemes. A clear budget takes away one of the biggest sources of worry when you live alone, and it helps you spot problems before they grow.

Set Up Automatic Payments

Rent, energy, internet and phone bills arrive on different days, and missing one can lead to fees and stressful letters in a language you are still learning. Set up automatic payments where possible, and put the due dates in your calendar for the rest. Keep a simple folder, paper or digital, for contracts and important letters. When something official arrives, deal with it the same week. Systems like these mean that living alone does not turn into a constant pile of admin you have to remember on your own.

Keep a Spare Key With Someone

Locking yourself out is a rite of passage, and when you live alone, there is nobody inside to let you back in. Locksmiths charge a lot, especially at night. Give a spare key to a trusted friend, colleague or neighbour who lives nearby. It also means someone can water your plants or check on the flat when you travel. Having one person in the city who has your key and knows your address is a small but real safety net, and it is often how a friendship starts to deepen.

How to Live Alone Without Feeling Isolated

Living alone is not the same as being alone, but it can drift that way without some care. Building connection takes a little planning, especially in your first year. If the quiet starts to weigh on you, BetterHelp matches you with a qualified counselor after a short questionnaire, which gives you a regular, outside voice to talk to. Here is how to keep people in your life.

Schedule Social Plans

When you live with others, social contact happens by default. When you live alone, you have to plan it. Research by Jeffrey Hall at the University of Kansas, published in 2018, found that people who had recently moved needed around 50 hours together to go from acquaintance to casual friend. That means regular plans matter. Put at least two social plans in your calendar each week, such as a coffee, a sports session or a shared dinner, and treat them like appointments.

Say Yes More Often

In your first months, say yes to more invitations than feels natural: after-work drinks, a classmate's birthday, a language exchange, a neighbour's barbecue. Not every one will be great, but each is a chance to meet people. When you live alone, it is tempting to stay in after a long day, because home is quiet and easy. Push yourself to go out at least some of the time; the effort usually pays off. Many friendships abroad start at events you almost did not go to.

Join One Regular Group

A regular group gives you weekly contact with the same faces, which is how friendships grow. Choose something you enjoy: a sports club, a choir, a volunteering project, a running group or a language course. The repetition matters more than the activity. Seeing the same people every Tuesday builds familiarity with little effort. It also gives your week a fixed point. If you are looking for ideas, our guide to meeting new people abroad has plenty of starting points.

Call Home on a Rhythm

Living alone abroad can make home feel very far away. Set a regular rhythm for calls with family and friends back home, such as Sunday mornings or Wednesday evenings. Regular calls give you something to look forward to and keep the connection strong without it taking over your new life. Video calls while you cook or eat can make an evening feel less quiet. Balance them with local plans, so home stays close without stopping you from building something where you are.

Talk to Someone Neutral

Some things are easier to say to someone outside your life. A qualified psychological counselor can listen without judgement, help you notice patterns and suggest practical strategies when living alone starts to feel heavy. Sessions online fit a life where your schedule and address may still be changing. You do not need a big reason to start; adjusting to a new country and a new home is enough. Many people find that one regular conversation makes the rest of the week feel lighter.

Enjoying Your Own Company

The benefits of living alone are real: freedom, rest, space to think and the chance to get to know yourself. The trick is to choose solitude rather than drift into isolation. How do you tell the difference?

Choose Solitude on Purpose

Time alone can be restful when you choose it. A 2018 study by Thuy-vy Nguyen, Richard Ryan and Edward Deci at the University of Rochester on chosen solitude found that time alone calmed both strong positive and strong negative feelings, and that choosing to be alone brought relaxation and less stress. Plan solo time you enjoy: a long walk, a museum, a slow breakfast. When you choose it, being alone becomes something you do for yourself, not something that happens to you.

Notice Solitude Versus Loneliness

Solitude and loneliness are not the same. A 2023 diary study led by Netta Weinstein at the University of Reading found no single "right" amount of time alone: more time alone brought less stress and more sense of freedom, but also more loneliness, and the downsides eased when people chose their time alone. The participants were older than most of our readers, but the lesson travels. Check in with yourself: does this quiet feel restful or empty? If it feels empty for weeks, reach out.

Pick Up a Solo Hobby

Living alone gives you space for things that are hard to do with others around: learning an instrument, drawing, writing, cooking new recipes or reading more. A solo hobby makes time alone feel full rather than empty. It also gives you something to talk about when you meet people, and it can lead to groups and classes where you meet others with the same interest. Choose something absorbing that you can do in short sessions, so it fits around a busy week. Many cities have cheap evening courses through community centres, universities or libraries, which turn a solo interest into a reason to leave the flat and meet people who care about the same thing.

Celebrate Your Independence

Living alone for the first time abroad is a real achievement. You are running a home, managing money and building a life in a new country, often in a second language. Take time to notice that. Cook yourself something special, arrange your flat exactly how you like it and enjoy the freedom of doing things your way. The skills you learn now, from budgeting to keeping yourself company, will stay with you wherever you live next. Years from now, many people look back on their first solo flat abroad as the place where they learned what they actually like, how they want to live and how much they can handle on their own.

Conclusion

Learning how to live alone abroad starts with the basics: register your address, check your smoke alarm, save 112 and make the flat feel like yours. From there, steady routines, simple systems for money and meals, and regular social plans keep life alone from drifting into isolation.

Solitude can be one of the best parts of living abroad when you choose it.

If you need someone to talk to right away, call TelefonSeelsorge in Germany on 0800 1110111, 0800 1110222 or 116 123, or De Luisterlijn in the Netherlands on 088 0767 000.

FAQ

How do I live alone for the first time abroad?

Start with the practical basics: register your address, check your smoke alarm and save 112. Then build steady routines, plan social contact every week and make your flat feel like home.

What are the benefits of living alone?

Freedom, rest, space to think and full control over your home and routine. Many people find living alone helps them get to know themselves better, especially when they choose time alone rather than drift into it.

How do I stop feeling lonely when I live alone?

Plan at least two social plans a week, join a regular group and keep a rhythm of calls with home. If the feeling lasts for weeks, talking to a qualified counselor can help.

What should I set up first when living alone in the Netherlands or Germany?

Register your address with the municipality, which unlocks most other admin, then sort out your bank account, internet and energy contracts. Check that your smoke alarm works on day one.

Is it normal to find living alone hard at first?

Yes. The first months often feel quiet and strange, especially in a new country. Routines, regular social plans and time outside usually make it feel easier within a few weeks.