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Living in Westende

The unemployment rate was 6.41% at the start of 2011. Annual PM2.5 in the air was 8 µg/m³ at the end of 2024.

Last checked 2026-10-0724 sources

Median gross salary (region)3,711EUR/month31 Dec 2022Official source · Salaires mensuels bruts moyens des salariés employés à temps plein 2000-2022
Median rent700EUR/month31 Dec 2025Municipality figureOfficial source · Baux immobiliers – version annuelle / Real Estate Rents Annual; MunicipalityWideRealEstateRentsAnnual; RentP50
Unemployment rate6.41%1 Jan 2011Municipality figureIndependent source · Statbel be.STAT — unemployment rate of 15–64-year-olds by municipality, Census 2011
Recorded crime8,216incidents per 100,000country median 5,167 — 59% aboveOfficial source · Tableau des statistiques de faits criminels par commune, 2025
PM2.5, annual mean8µg/m³31 Dec 2024Nearest stationOfficial source · European Environment Agency (EEA)

More recorded crime than 89% of Belgian cities that publish it and dirtier air than 65% of Belgian cities that publish it.

Which Belgium-wide rules apply when you move to Westende?

National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.

Visa and entry rulesPassport-specific entry and national residence context.BenefitsCountry-wide eligibility and official application routes.Taxes in BelgiumNational rates and thresholds that apply in Westende.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

What recurs every month2 published recurring costs, € per month
Westende recurring monthly costs, € per month

€ / month

Internet, 60 Mbps€60
Mobile plan, 10 GB€50
MetricValuePeriodSource
Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited59.99 EUR/month30 Sept 2026Proximus Internet Go10Official · national market
Mobile plan, 10 GB49.99 EUR/month30 Sept 2026Proximus Mobile Maxi11Official · national market
Median monthly rent700 EUR/month31 Dec 2025Baux immobiliers – version annuelle / Real Estate Rents Annual; MunicipalityWideRealEstateRentsAnnual; RentP501Official · parent municipality

Is Westende a good place to live?

There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.

Try your profile
Remote worker52%strong on work, weak on safety · range 38–66%
Skilled employee56%strong on work, weak on education · range 44–68%
Student34%strong on cost, weak on education · range 21–47%
Family39%strong on housing, weak on education · range 28–50%
Retirement49%strong on housing, weak on admin · range 36–62%

Work and income

What is the unemployment rate in Westende?

The unemployment rate is about 6.4 % (January 2011).

  • Unemployment rate: 6.41 % · Statbel be.STAT — unemployment rate of 15–64-year-olds by municipality, Census 201121
Unemployment across cities in BelgiumUnemployment in Westende is 6.4%. Of 509 cities with data, 160 have unemployment of 2 to under 4%.

Unemployment rate (%)

MetricValuePeriodSource
Average gross earnings4,028 EUR/month31 Dec 2022Salaires mensuels bruts moyens des salariés employés à temps plein 2000-202212Official · regional context
Median gross salary (regional)3,711 EUR/month31 Dec 2022Salaires mensuels bruts moyens des salariés employés à temps plein 2000-202213Official · regional context
Unemployment rate6.41 %1 Jan 2011Statbel be.STAT — unemployment rate of 15–64-year-olds by municipality, Census 201121Independent · parent municipality

What does a salary buy in Westende?

Take-home pay after tax, minus rent and the everyday bills this city publishes. Each line names its source.

regional median gross pay: €3,711 (Salaires mensuels bruts moyens des salariés employés à temps plein 2000-2022, 2022-12-31).
Left over each month€1,677of €2,487 take-home
  • Rent
  • Internet
  • Mobile
  • Left over
Line-by-line breakdown and sources
Each month€
Take-home payOECD Taxing Wages 2025, single, no children. Includes central and local income tax and employee social contributions.€2,487
Rentmedian rent of a whole dwelling · official · Baux immobiliers – version annuelle / Real Estate Rents Annual; MunicipalityWideRealEstateRentsAnnual; RentP50 · 2025-12-31− €700
Internet€60 · official · Proximus Internet Go · 2026-09-30− €60
Mobile plan€50 · official · Proximus Mobile Maxi · 2026-09-30− €50
Other everyday billsnot published for this city: public transport pass, utilities—
Left overbefore the bills this city does not publish€1,677
Take-home pay for other salaries and households Compare with another city Check a job offer in Westende Salary needed to live in Westende

Public employment service

No exact public employment office is currently linked to Westende. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.

Country-level information

Actiris — Public employment service

Actiris Brussels public employment service

Job Search
Search jobs

Le Forem — Public employment service

Le Forem Walloon public employment and training service

Job SearchRegistration
Register Search jobs
Open the Belgium service overview

Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Westende. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.

Safety

How safe is Westende?

Police recorded about 8,216 incidents per 100,000 (2025). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: Tableau des statistiques de faits criminels par commune, 202514

Recorded crime across major citiesWestende highlighted among comparable cities
Recorded crime across major cities with Westende highlighted

recorded incidents per 100k residents

Brussels24,104
Liège17,918
Ixelles14,236
Charleroi14,026
Leuven12,730
Ghent12,110
Anderlecht11,116
Schaerbeek10,141
Molenbeek-Saint-Jean10,075
Hasselt9,031
Namur8,912
Brugge8,780
MetricValuePeriodSource
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents8,216 incidents per 100,000country median 5,16731 Dec 2025Tableau des statistiques de faits criminels par commune, 202514Official

Mobility and administration

Westende's nearest airport was OST, 9 km away and offered 1 direct destinations.

MetricValuePeriodSource
Direct destinations from the nearest major airport1 count3 Aug 2026OpenFlights8Official
Distance to the nearest major airport9 km3 Aug 2026OurAirports9Official
Nearest major airport (IATA code)OST3 Aug 2026OurAirports9Official

Climate and air quality

Westende's monthly mean temperatures were 4.1°C in January and 17.3°C in July. Westende's monthly precipitation totalled 61.5 mm in January and 68.1 mm in July. Westende's average monthly sunshine was 65.5 hours in January and 238.7 hours in July.

Is the air quality good in Westende?

The annual PM2.5 mean is 8 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: European Environment Agency (EEA)2

Annual mean at the measuring site(s) serving the city; current-day readings differ.

Temperature through the yearAverage daytime high and night-time low, °C
Rainfall through the yearAverage monthly precipitation, mm
Sunshine through the yearAverage monthly sunshine, hours
Air quality vs health guidelinesAnnual means against WHO 2021 guidelines and EU legal limits

City values from the published air-quality observations. WHO 2021 guidelines and EU limit values are published constants.

PM2.5 across cities in BelgiumAnnual PM2.5 in Westende is 8.0 µg/m³. Of 442 cities with data, 142 have annual PM2.5 of 8 to under 9 µg/m³.

Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)

MetricValuePeriodSource
PM2.5 — annual mean8 µg/m³31 Dec 2024European Environment Agency (EEA)2Official · nearest-station reading
Average daytime high by monthJan 6.7 · Feb 7.4 · Mar 10 · Apr 13.3 · May 16.3 · Jun 19.1 · Jul 21.3 · Aug 21.7 · Sep 19.1 · Oct 15 · Nov 10.4 · Dec 7.3 °C31 Dec 1991NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO3Official · nearest-station reading
Average night-time low by monthJan 1.4 · Feb 1.2 · Mar 2.8 · Apr 4.8 · May 8.5 · Jun 11.5 · Jul 13.3 · Aug 13.1 · Sep 10.7 · Oct 7.7 · Nov 4.7 · Dec 2.2 °C31 Dec 1991NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO4Official · nearest-station reading
Average temperature by monthJan 4.1 · Feb 4.3 · Mar 6.4 · Apr 9 · May 12.4 · Jun 15.3 · Jul 17.3 · Aug 17.4 · Sep 14.9 · Oct 11.4 · Nov 7.6 · Dec 4.7 °C31 Dec 1991NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO5Official · nearest-station reading
Average precipitation by monthJan 61.5 · Feb 55.6 · Mar 46.3 · Apr 40.6 · May 54 · Jun 62.6 · Jul 68.1 · Aug 81.7 · Sep 73.4 · Oct 80.1 · Nov 88.6 · Dec 85.6 mm31 Dec 1991NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO6Official · nearest-station reading
Average sunshine by monthJan 65.5 · Feb 86.6 · Mar 143.4 · Apr 205.1 · May 229.8 · Jun 232.5 · Jul 238.7 · Aug 223.7 · Sep 171.8 · Oct 120.6 · Nov 67.3 · Dec 53.4 hours31 Dec 1991NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO7Official · nearest-station reading

Similar climate. In Belgium: Ghent ±0.7 °C. Elsewhere: Werl (Germany) ±1.1 °C, Bremerhaven (Germany) ±1.1 °C, Saanich (Canada) ±1.1 °C, Neustadt in Holstein (Germany) ±1.1 °C, Heide (Germany) ±1.2 °C. Twenty closest, compared month by month

Monthly highs and lows against the 1991–2020 station normals of the nearest station; ± is the average monthly difference.

Alternatives for people set on Westende

Three places for the three reasons people leave a city on the shortlist: stay in the region, stay in the country, or keep the budget and change the country. A percentage appears only where both cities publish that metric from the same source, period and grain. Distances are straight lines — travel times are not collected yet.

Cities near Westende

Published cities within 25 km, nearest first. Distances are straight-line.

Nieuwpoort 3.3 km away
Rent
750 EUR/monthMedian monthly rent · 2025-12-31
Middelkerke 4.6 km away
Rent
700 EUR/monthMedian monthly rent · 2025-12-31
Koksijde 10.5 km away
Rent
800 EUR/monthMedian monthly rent · 2025-12-31
Veurne 13.5 km away
Rent
800 EUR/monthMedian monthly rent · 2025-12-31
Gistel 13.9 km away
Rent
790 EUR/monthMedian monthly rent · 2025-12-31
De Panne 14.5 km away
Rent
745 EUR/monthMedian monthly rent · 2025-12-31
Diksmuide 15.6 km away
Rent
745 EUR/monthMedian monthly rent · 2025-12-31

How does Westende compare?

Pick a city. The answer appears here and the address bar keeps it, so the comparison can be shared; the page stays Westende's.

Open the full comparison

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Westende when the national insurance or residence conditions are met.

Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.

Open the official coverage guide
Country rule verified 2026-08-03.

School for children who move here. School is compulsory from age 5 to 18. Newly arrived pupils get support in the school language: OKAN/OKATN (onthaalonderwijs, reception education for foreign-mother-tongue newcomers). How to enrol a child (belgium.be).

A country-wide rule for Belgium; Westende's school authority applies it locally.

Sources: eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu · 2025–2026.

Put Westende's key facts on your site — a card with this page's figures and a link back, free under CC BY 4.0.

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

Is the air quality good in Westende?

The annual PM2.5 mean is 8 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: European Environment Agency (EEA).

How safe is Westende?

Police recorded about 8,216 incidents per 100,000 (2025). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: Tableau des statistiques de faits criminels par commune, 2025.

What is the unemployment rate in Westende?

The unemployment rate is about 6.4 % (January 2011). Source: Statbel be.STAT — unemployment rate of 15–64-year-olds by municipality, Census 2011.

What is the typical salary around Westende?

The median gross salary is 3,711 EUR/month. Source: Salaires mensuels bruts moyens des salariés employés à temps plein 2000-2022.

Is Westende a good place to live?

Westende may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.

Which cities are near Westende?

Nieuwpoort, Middelkerke, Oostduinkerke, Koksijde, Veurne are near Westende. Typed relationship labels are shown where published; other rows use straight-line distance from admitted coordinates.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation
ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Westende, Belgium: rent, salary, cost of living, jobs [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 48f829a55dde032651f227c0e2d573e7]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/be/westende/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_westende-belgium-rent-salary-cost-of-living-jobs_9c72a270e529,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Westende, Belgium: rent, salary, cost of living, jobs},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-10-16},
  version = {48f829a55dde032651f227c0e2d573e7},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/be/westende/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}
Markdown citation
[Westende, Belgium: rent, salary, cost of living, jobs](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/be/westende/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 48f829a55dde032651f227c0e2d573e7; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

JSON Markdown
  1. Baux immobiliers – version annuelle / Real Estate Rents Annual; MunicipalityWideRealEstateRentsAnnual; RentP50 opendata.fin.belgium.be · checked 2026-09-23
  2. European Environment Agency (EEA) air.discomap.eea.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-06
  3. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-06
  4. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-06
  5. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-06
  6. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-06
  7. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / WMO nodc.noaa.gov · checked 2026-08-06
  8. OpenFlights raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-08-03
  9. OurAirports davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-08-03
  10. Proximus Internet Go proximus.be · checked 2026-09-15
Show 14 more sources
  1. Proximus Mobile Maxi proximus.be · checked 2026-09-15
  2. Salaires mensuels bruts moyens des salariés employés à temps plein 2000-2022 bestat.statbel.fgov.be · checked 2026-09-23
  3. Salaires mensuels bruts moyens des salariés employés à temps plein 2000-2022 bestat.statbel.fgov.be · checked 2026-09-23
  4. Tableau des statistiques de faits criminels par commune, 2025 police.be · checked 2026-10-05
  5. Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
  6. Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
  7. Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
  8. Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
  9. Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
  10. Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
  11. Statbel be.STAT — unemployment rate of 15–64-year-olds by municipality, Census 2011 Statbel be.STAT · bestat.statbel.fgov.be · checked 2026-07-26
  12. Wikidata identity and coordinates — Q465545 Wikidata identity and coordinates · wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-05
  13. Wikidata identity and coordinates — Q492369 Wikidata identity and coordinates · wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-05
  14. Wikidata identity and coordinates — Q815948 Wikidata identity and coordinates · wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-05

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