“I loved experiencing city life in New York.”
Quvenzhane Wallis, Actress
Pros and Cons of City Life vs. Living in the Countryside
Many people love to live in the city. In fact, city life has many important advantages compared to living in a village.
However, there are also many issues related to living in a big city.
In this article, the pros and cons of city life are examined in detail.
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Advantages of Living in the City vs. Living in the Countryside
- City life offers much better public transport
- Better education opportunities
- Higher level of tolerance
- Higher chances to find a partner
- More opportunities to play sports
- City life offers various different activities
- Lower distances between different facilities
- Bigger variety of different foods
- Better access to shopping centers
- Better entertainment in general
- Celebrities rather perform in big cities than in villages
- You will have better access to the latest technologies
- Better job opportunities in cities compared to villages
- Salaries are often much higher in big cities
- You may not even need a car if you live in the city
- Easier to meet new people in the city
- Better medical infrastructure in the city
City life offers much better public transport
One key advantage of city life is that you have access to much better public transportation.
Public transport can be a convenient way to get around and is also quite important to slow down global warming and to mitigate several other environmental problems.
Using public transport can also be much faster during rush hour compared to just using your car.
Hence, good public transport systems in big cities can greatly improve your overall quality of life.
Better education opportunities
Also the education opportunities are often much better in big cities compared to villages.
In fact, in many cities, you will have numerous options regarding preschool, elementary school and high school. Many big cities also have universities.
In contrast, there may be a great lack of education opportunities in rural areas.
Therefore, if you have kids and want to offer them the best education possible, city life also offers you many more options in this regard.
Higher level of tolerance
Since people of many different ethnicities live in big cities, there will also be a higher level of tolerance towards minorities in cities compared to smaller villages which often have quite traditional values and are not too eager to open up for different cultures.
Consequently, if you want to live in an area with many different cultural influences or even belong to a certain minority, city life may be better for you since people will be more open towards new cultures and your life will therefore be easier regarding many different aspects.
Higher chances to find a partner
Another benefit of city life is that it will be much easier for you to find a partner.
In big cities, you will have the opportunity to connect to many different people.
In turn, it becomes much more likely that you find a suitable partner.
Therefore, if you currently live in a village and have difficulties to find a suitable partner, chances are that you would have many more options if you lived in the city and you may consider moving to the city in order to increase your chances to find a partner.
More opportunities to play sports
In big cities, you will also have the opportunity to play numerous different sports.
In fact, there will be sports clubs for almost every sport you can imagine.
Hence, whatever sport you want to play, there will be someone who wants to play with you.
In contrast, if you live in the countryside, the selection of sports that are offered may be quite limited.
Therefore, if playing sports is really important to you, you might also be far better off with city life compared to living in a village.
City life offers various different activities
City life offers not only a much better selection of different sports, it also offers plenty of additional activities.
For instance, you can go out at night to various different locations.
Moreover, you can go to museums or do other cultural things. In general, in big cities, you will have a big variety of different activities and chances are that you will never get bored.
However, if you live in the countryside, there will not be too much to do and chances are that you will not be able to spend your leisure in the way you want to.
Therefore, also from an activity perspective, city life should be preferred over village life most of the time.
Lower distances between different facilities
In big cities, everything you need will not be too far away from you.
You will find the next store within walking distance.
You will find the next doctor’s office not too far away.
In general, everything you will need for your daily life will be concentrated in cities and there will not be too long distances to get from A to B.
In contrast, if you live in a small village, chances are that you will have to drive many miles until you find what you are looking for.
Moreover, some facilities may not even be present in villages.
For instance, if you have to attend a hospital, you may have to drive a long time to the next city.
Thus, city life can also be considered to be much more convenient compared to village life since you will be able to reach everything you need in a reasonable timeframe.
Bigger variety of different foods
Since there are many different cultural influences in cities, there will also be a much bigger variety of different foods in cities compared to the countryside.
Hence if you really like to try many different foods, you will be far better off by living in a big city.
Moreover, if you attend all those different restaurants, you can also get some inspiration about what to cook at home.
Therefore, also from a culinary perspective, city life definitely has an edge over village life.
Better access to shopping centers
Shopping is quite important to many people, especially to women.
If you live in a big city, it will be no problem to find suitable stores where you can go shopping all day long, at least if you have the money to do so.
However, if you live in the countryside, chances are that you will not have this opportunity since the number of shopping centers will be quite limited and you may also have to drive long distances to get to one of those centers.
Consequently, if shopping is quite important to you, living in a big city may be much better suited for you compared to living in the countryside.
Better entertainment in general
In big cities, you will also have much more entertainment opportunities compared to small villages.
You can go to many different bars and clubs, watch movies in cinemas or attend an escape room.
All this may not be available to you in small villages.
Hence, if entertainment is pretty important to you, city life will offer you much more of that compared to village life.
Celebrities rather perform in big cities than in villages
Another upside of city life is that you will be able to see more celebrities.
In fact, most big concerts and sports events will take place in big cities and if you want to see your favorite bands and sports stars live in person, chances are that city life will be the right way to go for you.
You will have better access to the latest technologies
If you live in a big city, you will also have much better access to latest technologies.
For example, while the internet connection is usually quite good in cities, it can be rather poor in rural areas.
However, a good internet connection is crucial for various parts of our daily life and if you don’t have such a connection, you may not develop sufficient technological knowledge, which may translate into significantly worse job opportunities in the long run.
Better job opportunities in cities compared to villages
In general, job opportunities in big cities are usually much better compared to villages.
This is due to the fact that many big corporations are located near the city center since they want to have access to as many qualified workers as possible in order to expand their business operations in a proper manner.
Therefore, if you aspire to a demanding corporate career, chances are that you want to go for city life since you will have many different companies from which you can choose from if you are highly-qualified.
Salaries are often much higher in big cities
Not only the job opportunities will be much better in cities, also the salaries are often much higher.
In turn, people in big cities will often be able to afford many more amenities compared to people living in the countryside.
Thus, if money is really important to you and you want to earn a high salary, chances are that you want to go for living in the city to maximize your income prospects.
You may not even need a car if you live in the city
Another advantage of living in the city is that you often do not even need a car.
Especially if you live close to the city center, you will have all the shops you need in your neighborhood.
Moreover, if you have to go for longer distances, you can still use public transport and reach your destination in no time.
Hence, if you are willing to make some compromises, you will not even need a car in many cases, which is not only beneficial for your pocket but also for our environment since you can improve your carbon footprint if you rely on public transport instead of using your car.
Easier to meet new people in the city
If you currently do not have too many social connections or friends, chances are that the city life will also benefit you in this regard.
Since there are so many different bars you can do to, you will soon be able to make new friends.
Moreover, you could also join a sports team and make new connections there.
In general, it will be much easier for you to make new social connections in big cities compared to a state where you live in a small village.
Better medical infrastructure in the city
If you live in a big city, you will also have much better access to medical facilities.
For example, imagine you suffer from a quite rare disease and you need proper treatment for it.
Chances are much higher that you will find a specialist in this field in a big city compared to small villages.
Hence, also from a medical perspective, it can make great sense to decide for city life and against living in the countryside.
Disadvantages of Urban Living vs. Village Life
- City life can be quite stressful
- Urban living is not suitable if you love nature
- Big cities are quite crowded
- You may get stuck in traffic jams
- Parking can be a problem in cities
- Cities can heat up in summer
- City life may not be suitable for pets
- Rents are often much higher big cities
- Only insufficient green spaces in many big cities
- Cities may be less secure compared to villages
- Higher daily life expenses
- Lack of space
- Cities are often quite noisy
- Air pollution is a problem in big cities
- People may lose connection to nature
City life can be quite stressful
While there are many important advantages to living in the city, there are still some problems related to it.
For instance, one downside of city life is that it can be quite stressful.
Many people feel quite overwhelmed by all the noise, by the crowds of people populating the inner city and so on.
In general, living in a city feels much more stressful compared to living in the countryside and stress is never good for our overall health.
Hence, if you feel quite stressed if you have too much going on around you in the city, you may rather prefer to go for countryside living instead.
Urban living is not suitable if you love nature
Also if you are a person who really loves nature, you will likely be better off by living in rural areas in the countryside instead of living in big cities.
In the countryside, you can live close to nature and you will also be able to go to the nearby forest or other nature reserves almost every day.
However, if you live in a big city and there are no nature reserves within the next hundred miles, you will not be able to go for a walk in nature after work at all.
Hence, if you want to be surrounded by nature, chances are that you will be better off by living in villages instead of living in the city.
Big cities are quite crowded
Since there are so many people living close to each other, big cities are often also quite crowded.
Making things worse, many people also commute to work from the countryside to the city every day, which even increases the number of people that will be present in the city.
Therefore, if you hate crowded places and need more space for yourself, chances are that you will also be much better off with village life.
You may get stuck in traffic jams
In big cities, traffic jams are quite normal and if you have to commute through the city, chances are that you will also lose plenty of time every morning and evening in traffic.
In contrast, if you live in the countryside, there will almost be no traffic jams at all and you can use your time much more efficiently due to that.
Cities can heat up in summer
Another problem of living in the city is that cities heat up quite a lot in summer.
In fact, due to the many glass office buildings in inner cities which are closely located to each other, the air inside those inner cities will heat up in an unpleasant manner.
In turn, you will also sweat a lot, especially if your workplace has no air conditioning.
In contrast, if you live in a small village, you may not be affected by heat too much since there will be more space between buildings and the air will not heat up as much due to that.
City life may not be suitable for pets
Also if you have a pet, city life may not be for you.
On the one hand, you will have a much harder time to rent a flat or a house since many landlords do not accept pets in their property in cities.
On the other hand, your pet will also not have too much space in big cities since properties are much smaller on average. In turn, your pet may be kept under unnatural conditions.
Thus, if you have a pet, village life may also be much more suitable for you.
Rents are often much higher big cities
Another disadvantage of living in the city is that rents are often also much higher compared to living in the village.
Many people want to live in cities and while the demand for housing in the city increased quite a lot over the past decade, housing offers are rather limited.
In turn, with increasing demand and low supply, property prices and rents increased substantially.
Hence, if you want to save significant amounts of money on rent, you may want to choose the village life over living in the city.
Only insufficient green spaces in many big cities
In many cities, there will also only be insufficient green spaces.
Hence, if you love nature and want to spend your time in a natural environment, city life may not be the way to go for you.
Cities may be less secure compared to villages
Another benefit of living in a village instead of living in the city is that cities are also less secure on average.
Thus, if you want to live as safe as possible and want to minimize the risk to get robbed, chances are that you will be better off by living in villages also in this regard.
Higher daily life expenses
Also the overall price level is higher in big cities. You will have to spend more money on food, drinks and various other activities of daily life.
Hence, if you want to save money on all those things, village life will be better suited for you.
Lack of space
If you live in a big city, you will likely also suffer from a lack of space.
Cities are often quite crowded and you will often be surrounded by a high number of people.
Moreover, chances are that rents will be quite high and that you will also not be able to afford big homes.
Therefore, if having a big property and space in general is quite important to you, you may be far better off by living in the countryside.
Cities are often quite noisy
Since there are so many people and cars around, big cities are also quite noisy.
Hence, if you are a person who wants to spend his or her time in a quiet atmosphere, city life will not be suited for you at all.
Air pollution is a problem in big cities
In big cities, the air quality is usually also quite bad.
This is not only quite unpleasant, it can also lead to serious health issues.
Consequently, if you want to spend your time in an area with good air quality, the city life may not be for you.
People may lose connection to nature
In general, many people who live in big cities also lost their connection to nature.
This is quite sad since we as humans originally lived in natural environments for quite a long time and breaking with nature means breaking with our identity.
Hence, in order to maintain a better connection with nature, living in villages instead of big cities may also make sense in this regard.
Top 10 City Life Pros & Cons – Summary List
| City Life Pros | City Life Cons |
|---|---|
| City life gives you better job opportunities | City life can be stressful |
| Higher wages in big cities | May not be suitable if you love nature |
| Better overall infrastructure | You may get stuck in traffic jams |
| Better education opportunities in cities | Crowded inner cities |
| Higher medical standards | Heat may concentrate in big cities |
| Easier to find a partner in cities | Parking can be a problem in big cities |
| Higher level of tolerance | Higher rent in cities |
| Better overall entertainment in cities | May not be suitable if you own a pet |
| You may not even need a car | Air pollution in cities |
| Better access to latest technologies | City life implies noise pollution |
Should You Live In A City Or In A Village?
From the previous discussion, it had become clear that there are various advantages and disadvantages of living in the city.
In the end, you have to decide for yourself whether the city life is for you or if you rather want to live in a smaller village instead.
Sources
https://www.topuniversities.com/blog/9-tips-surviving-city-life
https://www.shareable.net/18-hilarious-yet-extremely-useful-illustrated-tips-for-city-living/
https://news.usc.edu/140918/tips-manage-pressure-urban-living/
About the author
My name is Andreas and my mission is to educate people of all ages about our environmental problems and how everyone can make a contribution to mitigate these issues.
As I went to university and got my Master’s degree in Economics, I did plenty of research in the field of Development Economics.
After finishing university, I traveled around the world. From this time on, I wanted to make a contribution to ensure a livable future for the next generations in every part of our beautiful planet.
Wanna make a contribution to save our environment? Share it!
