We tried building our dream life in Portugal. After 3 years, we realized living abroad was actually holding us back.

Tech Insider : Business
Author Yvonne Ivanescu, cat, and partner at home in Portugal
Portuga

Yvonne Ivanescu

I moved from the US to Spain and fell in love. Despite the difficult language barrier, we're still together 2 years later.

Tech Insider : Business
Author Kiersten Brown and a man smiling
I moved from the US to Spain and fell in love with a man who doesn't speak English. In some ways, the language barrier made our communication skills stronger.

Kiersten Brown

I moved to Malaysia in my 30s. I didn't know where to go or what to do, so I started a club to connect the expat community.

Tech Insider : Travel, Business
A man posing in front of a street hawker in Malaysia.
Joshua Webley settled down in Malaysia last year and started an expats community to meet new people.

Provided by Joshua Webley.

I moved from the US to France. It took 4 years and one great piece of advice for the country to finally feel like home.

Tech Insider : Business, Travel
Sand beach beneath the colorful old town Menton on French Riviera, France
When I moved from the United States to France, one piece of advice and a few years of living in my new country helped me adjust.

Xantana/Getty Images

The US cities with the best quality of life for expats, ranked

Tech Insider : Business, Sports, Travel
Aerial view of Boston showcasing the Charles River.
Boston clinched a spot in Mercer's top 50.

Sergii Figurnyi/Shutterstock

I was an expat working in Dubai for 4 years. The culture of splurging on luxuries made saving harder than I expected.

Tech Insider : Travel, Business
Victoria Blinova on a yacht.
Victoria Blinova left Dubai in 2021 after four years of working in the emirate.

Courtesy of Victoria Blinova

We left the US and moved to Mexico when I got pregnant 4 years ago. It's more affordable and our family is thriving.

Tech Insider
View from coast of Puerto Vallarta that shows many buildings up mountains and a rocky coastline along blue waters
Puerto Vallarta is a popular spot for tourists.

Carlos Flores/Getty Images

A 'peak boomer' working in Germany plans to retire in the US because he believes the healthcare is better

Tech Insider : Economy, Economy, Travel
A photo of George in Munich, Germany. George is an American who lives and works abroad.
George, an American, lives and works in Munich. He loves the lifestyle but plans on retiring in the US for Medicare benefits.

Courtesy of George

I gave up my dream life in Japan to move to the Netherlands — now, I couldn't be happier

Tech Insider
Brie Schmidt on a widmill balcony in Deift
As an American, I'm glad I was able to move to Europe.

Brie Schmidt

This Canadian city has found the sweet spot between low cost of living and high quality of life

Tech Insider : Economy
Mount Royal Park Montreal
Montreal, Canada.

Alph Tran/Shutterstock

Subscribe to Expats