City guide Antwerp
- Dividend Withholding Tax 30% (can be reduced to 15% under VVPRbis scheme) 30% on dividends, interest and royalties, with treaty reductions. Under VVPRbis, the…
- E-commerce/Online Store Bol.com, Amazon.com.be, Coolblue.be bol.com is the main Benelux marketplace for general goods, with delivery across Antwerp.
- Gaming Lounges The Playground (Vestingstraat 21) for board games and social play none
- Grocery Delivery Albert Heijn (ah.be), Delhaize, or Crisp Collect&Go (Colruyt) delivers groceries at home in Antwerp: €5.95 to prepare the order…
- Gyms & Fitness Centers The Brick (Waalsekaai 57); premium gym. Basic-Fit (multiple locations) for budget Basic-Fit Comfort is €24.99 per 4 weeks for clubs in Belgium (offer window 9 October to 5…
- Highest Income Tax Bracket 50% for income over €46,440 50% on 2026 income above €51,070 (assessment year 2027). Only the slice above that…
- Highway Access The R1 Antwerp Ring connects to E19 (Brussels/NL) and E313 The Ring, a six-lane motorway around the centre, links towards Brussels, Ghent, Bruges and…
- Historic Buildings Het Steen (11th-century castle on the river Scheldt) Het Steen, the old riverside castle at Steenplein 1, and the city hall on the Grote Markt…
- Historical Sites Plantin-Moretus Museum (UNESCO World Heritage printing press) Museum Plantin-Moretus, Vrijdagmarkt 22, the historic printing house. It is closed for…
- Internet Speed Avg. 95 Mbps (Fiber widely available via Telenet or Proximus) Ookla's September 2026 Speedtest page for Belgium shows a fixed-broadband median download…
- Language Classes Linguapolis (University of Antwerp) or CVO Vitant Linguapolis, the University of Antwerp language institute at Kleine Kauwenberg 12, runs…
- Laundry Services Wasbar (Graaf van Egmontstraat 5); eat and wash at the same time Wasbar at Graaf van Egmontstraat 5, in Het Zuid, is a laundromat with a café. Open every…
- Libraries & Study Spots Permeke Library (De Coninckplein 26); excellent workspace Permeke, the city library at De Coninckplein 25, north of Centraal.
- Local Brewery De Koninck Antwerp City Brewery (Mechelsesteenweg 291) De Koninck Antwerp City Brewery, Mechelsesteenweg 291. Tours Tuesday to Sunday…
- Local Heritage Diamond District near Central Station; world capital of diamond trading The diamond district south of Centraal is the city's trading heritage. Wikipedia describes…
- Local Markets Vogelenmarkt (Sunday bird market at Theaterplein) The weekend market on Theaterplein, in front of the Stadsschouwburg, with food, household…
- Main Train/Transit Hub Antwerpen-Centraal (considered one of the world's most beautiful stations) Antwerpen-Centraal, Koningin Astridplein, is the main station. NMBS lists Antwerp–Brussels…
- Museums & Art Venues MAS (Museum aan de Stroom) and KMSKA (Fine Arts Museum) Museum aan de Stroom (MAS), Hanzestedenplaats 1, on Het Eilandje, and KMSKA, the Royal…
- Music Scene Trix (Noordersingel 28) for indie/rock; De Roma for historic acoustics Trix, Noordersingel 28 in Borgerhout, for indie and rock, and De Roma, Turnhoutsebaan 286…
- Must-See Landmarks Cathedral of Our Lady, Grote Markt Town Hall, port of Antwerp The Cathedral of Our Lady on Groenplaats, the Grote Markt with the city hall and Brabo…
- National Parks Nearby Kalmthoutse Heide (30 mins by train); huge heathland and dunes Grenspark Kalmthoutse Heide, the cross-border heath on the Dutch border north of the city…
- Nearby Nature Escapes Park Spoor Noord (urban park) and Middelheim Sculpture Park Park Spoor Noord, the park on the old railway yard north of Centraal, and Middelheim Open…
- Networking Events Silicon Antwerp meetups for tech; Creative Mornings Antwerp ESN Antwerp, the Erasmus Student Network, runs activities for international students.
- Parcel Delivery Service Bpost points, PostNL, and DHL ServicePoints widely available bpost is the national postal operator, with pickup points around the city for parcels.
- Popular International Cuisine Mission Masala (Indonesian fusion) at Dendermondestraat 68 Chinatown on Van Wesenbekestraat, just north of Centraal, has Chinese and other East and…
- Population Approximately 530,000 565,615 residents on 1 January 2026, the most populous municipality in Belgium (Statbel…
- Power 230V, 50Hz, 🔌 Type C/E sockets 230 V, 50 Hz. Sockets are Type E (Belgian/French earth pin) and also take Type C…
- Property Tax Annual 'Onroerende Voorheffing' based on indexed Cadastral Income Annual onroerende voorheffing on the indexed cadastral income. Antwerp charges 850…
- Property Transaction Tax 12% standard Registration Duty; 3% for sole own residence in Flanders In Flanders the standard registration duty is 12%. A qualifying sole own home is 2% on…
- Public Transport Passes De Lijn; €17.00 for a 10-ride card via Lijn-app De Lijn buses and trams: a single ticket is €3, a 10-ride card is €22, and a day ticket…
- Regional Travel NMBS Trains to Ghent (50m), Bruges (1h20m), and Brussels (45m) NMBS lists Antwerp–Brussels from 39 minutes (the route page averages 45) and Antwerp–Ghent…
- Religious Sites St. Paul’s Church (Sint-Pauluskerk) with Baroque interior The Cathedral of Our Lady, Groenplaats 21, and Sint-Pauluskerk at Sint-Paulusstraat 22…
- SIM Card Proximus (Meir 20), Orange (Meir 16), Base. Expect €15-€30 for 10-20GB Identify a prepaid SIM before first use. Proximus Pay&Go+ is €5 for €10 credit and 3 GB…
- Scenic Viewpoints Roof of the MAS Museum (Floor 10); free access for panoramic views The MAS roof at Hanzestedenplaats 1 is free and does not need a museum ticket…
- Short Term Rentals Airbnb, Spotahome, and HousingAnywhere; monthly rates €1,200 - €1,800 Flatio lists furnished monthly stays. One Antwerp one-bedroom on that site was €1,650 a…
- Social Events for Expats Antwerp Expats Facebook Group; Internations Antwerp events ESN Antwerp organises student meetups. Den Engel on the Grote Markt is the classic local…
- Street Art Kopstraatje and the 'Comic Book Route' walls across the city none
- Street Food Stalls Fritkot Max (Groenplaats 12) for traditional Belgian fries Frietkoten (chip stalls) are the standard street food, and a smos (a stuffed sandwich from…
- Studio Purchase Price (City Center) Approx. €4,100 per m² (e.g., 40 m² = €164,000) Immoweb asking prices in July 2026 were about €4,316 per m² on Scheldekaden Noord (a 40 m²…
- Studio Purchase Price (Outside City) Approx. €3,100 per m² (e.g., 40 m² = €124,000) The cheapest neighbourhood in the July 2026 Immoweb study was Eigen Heerd at €2,253 per m²…
Museums & Art Venues and Religious Sites add street addresses; Historic Buildings adds Steenplein 1 and the city-hall UNESCO line from Wikivoyage; Corporate Tax adds the 20% SME band; Tax System drops the unsourced social-security line and states worldwide income with 25–50% brackets; Dividend Withholding Tax VVPRbis 15% -> 18% from 1 July 2026; Highest Income Tax Bracket 50% over €46,440 -> over €51,070 for 2026 income; VAT adds the 1 March 2026 lodging change to 12%; CFC names the entity approach from tax year 2024; Property Tax adds 850 municipal and 160 provincial centimes; Property Transaction Tax sole-home 3% -> 2% from 1 January 2025; Best Area to Stay for Tourists drops Het Eilandje as the stay; Best Area to Stay for Digital Nomads Zurenborg and Sint-Andries -> Het Zuid and Berchem; Attractive Tax System for Digital Nomads states there is no nomad exemption and the expat regime is for recruited employees Source