The European Union is facing a “worrying” increase in homelessness, according to a new report by the European Federation of National Associations for the Homeless (Feantsa) “10th Overview of Housing Exclusion in Europe“.
The recent report, published at a time when the EU is racing against time to achieve its ambitious goal of eradicating homelessness by 2030.
European figures reveal that more than 1.27 million people experience homelessness every night across Europe, with around 5% of the EU population experiencing homelessness in their lifetime. Germany records the highest number with 530,000 homeless people, while France reports an increase of 20,000 to 350,000 amid a housing shortage and rising rents.
Homelessness in Europe has reached critical levels, with more than 1.27 million people sleeping rough or in shelters across the continent every night, according to figures released today. But these figures are described as “conservative estimates” that only capture the visible homeless population, while underscoring the deep-rooted nature of the crisis, particularly in large urban centres.
But which EU countries have the highest rates?
Germany, Europe’s largest economy, reported earlier in 2025 that 531,600 people were permanently homeless in the country, although this figure covers different types of homelessness, including people living with friends and relatives.
Calculated in proportion to population, the Czech Republic has the largest number of homeless people, with more than 230,000 people living in other types of housing or being homeless out of the country’s population of 10 million.
According to the Feantsa report, homelessness figures are also increasing in several EU countries, notably Finland, Denmark and Ireland.
Average rents have risen in many European cities, with the result that low-income households cannot afford housing without spending more than 33% of their income on rent.
According to calculations by the Housing Foundation and Feantsa, this is the case in Berlin, Madrid, Rome, Paris, Amsterdam and Dublin, where the average rent per square metre is €31.50.
It is noted that new statistical methodologies have broadened definitions of homelessness to include people staying with relatives or friends due to a lack of alternatives, revealing that almost 5% of the European Union population has experienced some form of homelessness during their lifetime. The crisis has worsened dramatically in cities such as Brussels, where the number of homeless people has increased from around 1,700 in 2008 to around 10,000 today, mainly due to rising housing costs and an insufficient supply of affordable housing.
What does the data mean?
The picture is quite complex, as the quality and scope of the data vary considerably, but the report gives us the impression that homelessness is a substantial and worsening problem in the European Union.
Some countries, such as Bulgaria or Croatia, do not even have up-to-date or sufficient data.
The report also points out that plans to address the housing crisis often fund middle-class housing, which means less support for low-income households.
Can the EU eliminate homelessness by 2030?
The Feantsa report also notes that the political shift to the right in Europe is contributing to the reversal of measures aimed at tackling the growing housing crisis.
Finland, for example, has recorded an increase in the number of homeless people in the last two years, the first increase in the last decade.
In Hungary, the figures are low, but analysts speculate that this is probably due to pressure exerted on observers and NGOs by the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
