10 Honest Truths (Not Just Magic & Castles)

Coming up: narrow roads, friendly faces, useful resources, horrible little bugs, endless miles of cycling and walking, a surprisingly-liberal visa-free policy, lots of prices, the difficulties of living long-term, and all the pros and cons of living in Scotland!

I’m from the most northern city in England (Newcastle, if you’re interested)—so I was born and raised 90 minutes from the Scottish border.

Because of that, I’ve spent long chunks of my life exploring Scotland.

❤️ … and of the 50+ countries I’ve visited, it’s one of my favorite places on the planet.

But: what’s it like to live there? What are the pros and cons of living in Scotland? What are the visa options for non-natives? And are there any cons of living in Scotland I might have overlooked?

In short, is Scotland a good place to live?

Coming up, all that and more: here are 10 pros and 10 cons of living in Scotland. On we go! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

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✅ Pro 1: It’s remote

🌲 Scotland is WAY more remote than most people expect.

Yep, Glasgow and Edinburgh are busy and urban—and the nation is home to many smaller cities and towns.

… but the nation’s overall population density is around 70 people per square kilometer (that’s 184 people per square mile):

• That’s one of the lowest population densities in Europe
• … and around 6x less dense than the population of England

If you’re from the US: that’s around the same population density as Georgia, Indiana, South Carolina, and Michigan.

As you head further north, the nation becomes MUCH LESS populated—the vast majority of Scottish people live in the region in and around Glasgow and Edinburgh.

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BTW, to explore some of those remote places—here are 16 must-see loved-by-locals Highland gems.

❌ Con 1: it’s remote (again)

But, you see, remote isn’t always good 🤷

When you head north of Inverness, life gets very quiet and sparse:

• You can drive for miles without seeing another car
• You can hike for a full day without seeing another person
• In small towns or villages, you might need to drive 30 minutes to get to a supermarket
• Some small northern settlements don’t have a big shop, or any public transport

So, yeah, it’s romantic and cute and quaint. But for the times when you need immediacy and convenience, Scotland can be frustrating.

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🚘 When I first started traveling to northern Scotland, I was SUPER surprised by how untouched some places are. It’s one of the most remote places I’ve ever been—NOT what most people expect from Scotland.

✅ Pro 2: it’s cheaper than England…

Some English people move to Scotland for its lower cost of living*.

(*that lower cost of living isn’t MASSIVE, but it’s still significant)

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Although it’s difficult to compare entire countries against each other, here are some stats on how London (England’s capital) compares to Edinburgh (Scotland’s capital):

• The cost of living in London is 18.2% higher than in Edinburgh
• The cost of living including rent in London is 37.9% higher than in Edinburgh
• Rent prices in London are 85.6% higher than in Edinburgh
• Restaurant prices in London are 5.8% higher than in Edinburgh
• Grocery prices in London are 3.9% higher than in Edinburgh

So, you can see that London is more expensive than Edinburgh—and that broadly extends into both England and Scotland as a whole 💸

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❌ Con 2: … but it’s more expensive than most of Europe

But it’s not all good news:

If you’re choosing to move to Scotland because you want to live in Europe, then you’ve chosen one of Europe’s most expensive countries 😬

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Again, let’s compare Edinburgh (Scotland’s capital) to some other significant European capital cities:

• The cost of living in Edinburgh is 23.2% higher than in Madrid 🇪🇸
• The cost of living including rent in Edinburgh is 15.9% higher than in Madrid 🇪🇸
• The cost of living in Edinburgh is 35.3% higher than in Lisbon 🇵🇹
• The cost of living including rent in Edinburgh is 21.6% higher than in Lisbon 🇵🇹
• The cost of living in Edinburgh is 4.0% higher than in Berlin 🇩🇪
• The cost of living including rent in Edinburgh is 4.5% higher than in Berlin 🇩🇪
• The cost of living in Edinburgh is 15.4% higher than in Rome 🇮🇹
• The cost of living including rent in Edinburgh is 13.6% higher than in Rome 🇮🇹

❌ … and Edinburgh is SIGNIFICANTLY more expensive than the vast majority of capitals in Eastern Europe.

✅ That said, Edinburgh isn’t as expensive as ALL European capitals—and is cheaper than places like Paris, Stockholm, and Copenhagen.

✅ Pro 3: it’s the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen

Because I’m a travel writer, I’ve done lots of traveling (cos, you know, it’s basically my job).

… and, because of that, I’ve visited over 50 countries (including tourist favorites like Vietnam and Thailand, and hyper-mountainous lesser-known places like Georgia, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan).

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Of them all, Scotland is the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.

You get mountains, hills, farms, fields, islands, castles, beaches, fishing villages, waymarked hiking trails, and a massive coast measuring in at (around) 11,646 miles/18,743 km. And some parts of Scotland even have palm trees!

It’s one of the most alluring and diverse places I’ve ever been—and as you head further northwest, Scotland starts looking like something from a different planet 👽

🌴 If I could only explore the outdoors of ONE country for the rest of my life, Scotland is the one I’d choose. Not only cos it’s beautiful and diverse, but also because of the next pro on our list (that’s the outdoor-adventure infrastructure).

❌ Con 3: it’s windy and rainy (and DARK)

On average, Scotland’s west gets around 250 rainy days a year—while the east gets around 150–200 rainy days a year.

💦 The west coast can see over 2,000mm (78.7 inches) of rain annually—while the drier east usually gets around (or under) 800mm (31.5 inches).

🌪️ Meanwhile, many sources reckon Scotland is the windiest country in Europe. Along the coast and on the islands, gusts can regularly hit up to 60-70 miles per hour (that’s 95-115 kilometers per hour!).

🌚 Even worse, the winter nights are LONG:

In Edinburgh, for example, during the darkest period of the year (mid-to-late-December), the sun rises at around 8:15am-8:30am, and sets at around 3:30pm-3:45pm. That’s around 7 hours of daylight all day (and btw, ‘daylight’ probably doesn’t mean ‘sunlight’).

… and as you head further north, the winter days get even shorter. I can speak from experience here—the worst thing about living in the north of the UK is the grim darkness of the winters. The weather is tolerable, but the nights can feel very bleak.

🌦️ Anyway, for dodging the bad weather, here are 21 activities to do in Edinburgh in the rain.

✅ Pro 4: the outdoor-adventure infrastructure

Scotland is BEAUTIFUL…

… but I know what you’re thinking: whatever, LOADS of countries are beautiful 🤷

And, yep—that’s true:

But many countries don’t have good outdoor infrastructure; so as beautiful as they may be, it’s hard to find adventures, it’s difficult to explore freely, you can’t find routes for hiking and cycling, and there’s very little helpful information online ❌

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 But Scotland is the exact opposite of that—with some of the best outdoor-adventure infrastructure on the planet. Every weekend, for the rest of your life (if you wanted to), you could find trails and information on a new accessible Scottish adventure.

For example, the nation is home to 29 ‘Great Trails.’ These officially-waymarked hiking trails are well-managed, largely traffic-free, and outrageously beautiful—and although they’re remote and wild, they’re also accessible and approachable. They range in length from 24 miles to 210 miles (that 40km to 340km!).

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🚘 You also get lots of official road trips*. The most famous of these is the iconic North Coast 500—and it’s the best road trip I’ve ever been on.

You’ll also find loads of waymarked cycling routes (both long and short), and 100s of hikes that aren’t signposted, but are well-trodden.

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🪧 Some of my favorite resources for finding outdoor adventures in Scotland include:

• The official Great Trails website, which we already mentioned above!
• WalkHighlands: this honestly might be the best outdoor-adventure website I’ve ever found. A database of over 2,000 Scottish hikes, it has detailed explanations, lots of photos, and specific stats and details on distance and elevation.
• The National Cycle Network Map: the National Cycle Network is massive—serving up over 12,000 miles (19,312km) of signposted UK cycling routes. It includes major roads, quiet rural lanes, traffic-free paths, forest trails, canal routes, and more. Admittedly, it’s more useful in England—but you’ll still find plenty of Scottish routes. While we’re on the topic of bikes, here are the 13 best cycling routes in Edinburgh—and the 13 best cycling routes in Scotland.
• Travelness (yep, that’s us!): we’ve published loads of guides on some of Scotland’s best-known long-distance adventures. Some of our most popular guides include those on The West Highland Way, The Rob Roy Way, and the Coast and Castles Cycling Route.

*Btw, for more road trips in Scotland, here are:

❌ Con 4: it might not be exactly what you think it is

Non-natives have a romantic notion of Scotland. And it’s a beautiful, brilliant place—but it’s often not what foreigners expect it to be.

For example:

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For more, here are the 10 biggest myths about Scotland that Americans just can’t seem to shake.

✅ Pro 5: the seasons aren’t too extreme

As we’ve already mentioned above, Scotland’s weather has a bad reputation…

… but at least the extremes aren’t too… extreme 🎉

You’ll rarely see 30°C (86°F) in summer, or anything below -5°C(23°F) in winter (and you’ll only see those low temperatures very sporadically, and only then in the mountains).

🍂 The seasons shift gently, so you get crisp falls, cool but bearable winters, fresh springs, and mild summers that don’t melt your face off.

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In short, you get actual seasonal change (enough to keep things interesting!), without the extremes that might make other countries frustrating or near-unlivable. This is nothing like Eastern Europe, or some parts of the United States.

❌ Con 5: oh my god the midges

Midges are weird.

🪰 Because they’re tiny and don’t transmit any diseases, non-natives underestimate their power.

… but let me tell you: these little things are HORRIBLE and relentless.

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Tiny little biting insects, midges make you horrendously itchy even if they DON’T bite you. And in the heart of summer, they can honestly transform your best days into your worst days if you don’t take the right precautions.

One time, midges made me itch so bad that I scratched my own skin off and made my face bleed. Cool 😬

(There is good news though: midges are—generally speaking—more of a rural thing. In the cities, they’re not gonna bother you)

👉 Anyway, for much more info on seasons and prevention and avoidance, here’s our full guide to Scottish midges.

✅ Pro 6: friendly locals

Scottish people are the UK’s friendliest people 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

(and I’m from England—so when I say this, I’m not even being biased).

In general, the entirety of Scotland has a small-town feel. People know their neighbors, everyone smiles and says hello, and you’ll quickly feel part of the community.

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Even in cities, locals are chatty, helpful, and genuinely interested—and people love giving recommendations for pubs and restaurants and adventures.

In short, Scotland is one of the easiest places in the world to feel at home ♥️

❌ Con 6: dark winters

Yep, we’ve already mentioned this, but it’s worth mentioning again.

In Scotland, winters are DEPRESSING.

🗓️ From around October until around February every year, you won’t see much daylight at all (especially if you have a 9-5 job). And the more north you go, the worse it gets.

I know many UK residents who work online—and they often leave the UK every winter, because the winters can be so bleak 😟

✅ Pro 7: good public transport

In southern Scotland, public transport is pretty good…

… and it’s especially good in and around Edinburgh and Glasgow*.

🚂 *Trains between the two cities run every 15 minutes at peak times, buses are frequent and cheap, and most towns in central Scotland have regular and reliable connections to the big cities. You can easily live car-free in central Scotland without feeling stranded.

On top of that, the nation’s rail network measures in at 2,819 km (1,752 miles)!

In general, for Americans who are used to relying on Uber, Scotland’s mix of trains, trams, ferries and buses is a hefty upgrade.

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All that said, it’s not all good news:

• Public transport is a little more sparse and infrequent in southern Scotland
• … and it’s VERY sparse and infrequent in northern Scotland

🚛 Most importantly: once you get north of Inverness, you can’t survive without a car—well, unless you want to hitchhike (which incidentally is VERY easy in Scotland).

❌ Con 7: it’s pretty gritty

This isn’t necessarily a con for all people…

(and many Eastern Europeans might even enjoy it)

… but if you’re from the US, for example—you might find the Scottish personality a little jarring at first.

🌑 Scottish people (and northern English people) are sarcastic, they have a dark sense of humor, and they aren’t outwardly-enthusiastic. Jokes are harsh, communication can be blunt, and people really don’t have time for chirpiness or flamboyance.

At first, you might find this a bit odd.

But once you realise that false glumness is a way for people to bond (and that cruelty is secretly a way to express affection here), you’ll (hopefully) fall in love with it 🤝

✅ Pro 8: high safety, and a good sense of community

Compared to most places I’ve visited, Scotland feels like one of the safest:

People drive carefully, there’s a real community spirit, and I’ve always felt very relaxed there.

🗒️ … and the stats back up how I feel:

For more, here are the 10 most dangerous places in Scotland (but, to be honest, compared to many parts of the rest of the world, they’re really not dangerous at all).

❌ Con 8: driving challenges

Obviously, Scotland has many highways and major roads.

… but when you get rural (both on the islands and on the mainland), you’ll find MANY single-track roads.

🛣️ In case you don’t know what they are, they work as follows:

Scottish single-track roads only have enough width for one car to drive on them (they’re narrow, and they don’t have two lanes).

… BUT (crucially), traffic can drive on these roads in both directions. So, when you’re driving on them: you have to drive slowly… and if you see a car approaching, either you or them have to pull into a designated ‘passing place.’ These relatively-frequent passing places look like mini rest stops, but they aren’t rest stops—they’re instead for the road and its drivers to negotiate the problem of two-way traffic on a narrow one-lane road.

Oh… and in the UK, the vast majority of cars are manual transmission 🤯

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✅ Pro 9: many people can visit for a long time without a visa

🫤 Let’s say you still don’t know whether or not Scotland is the right place for you.

Well, good news: if you’re from the USA (and many other countries, including most European countries), you can visit the UK for 6 months with no visa.

In this case, you just need to get an electronic travel authorisation (ETA)—it’s quick and easy, and costs £16.

But, it’s not all good news: If that 6 months passes and you realize that Scotland IS for you, then things DO get a little tricky…

❌ Con 9: getting a visa really ISN’T simple

🥱 I won’t bore you with too many details of how to retire to the UK, because they’re here…

… but, in short, the UK doesn’t have a traditional retirement visa*—and since 2022, it’s now A LOT harder to live in the UK.

💡*The UK ‘investor visa’ and the UK ‘Retired Persons of Independent Means permit’ no longer exist.

*As you can see at the above link, you only really have two ways to retire in the UK. They’re if:

1. “You have family ties to the United Kingdom”
2. “You have established business connections in the U.K”

In short, it’s now very tricky to live in the UK 😬 And if you were considering using your 6-month visa-free eligibility to ‘live’ in Scotland, it’s not possible: if you use this scheme as a way to attempt to be in the UK for more than 6 months of every 12 months, you’ll probably be questioned by border patrol. And UK border rules are strict.

If you’re not RETIRING to the UK, and instead moving to the UK to get a job, that makes life a lot easier. There are many types of work visas—but you usually need to secure your job before you arrive, and the process can be pretty strict and lengthy. You have a better chance of getting some type of employment visa if your job is a highly-skilled or highly-desirable one.

✅ All that said, if you’re from England, Wales, or Ireland (because of the rules of the Common Travel Area), you can move to Scotland with ZERO bureaucracy:

“The Common Travel Area (CTA) is an arrangement between the UK, the Crown Dependencies (Bailiwick of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Isle of Man) and Ireland.

Under the CTA, British and Irish citizens can move freely and reside in either jurisdiction and enjoy associated rights and privileges, including the right to work, study and vote in certain elections, as well as to access social welfare benefits and health services.” Simple!

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✅ Pro 10: the healthcare

In general, the UK’s healthcare is excellent.

❤️‍🩹 Although it’s not technically ‘free,’ it’s paid for via a small-cost national insurance system—and, crucially, all residents are entitled to free treatment at all times, no questions asked… no matter how much or how little of this insurance they’ve ever paid.

So it’s not a points system, and you’ll never be left stranded because you haven’t made enough contributions to the system.

… which means you never get a surprise bill, you never argue with an insurer, and you never have to wonder whether you’ll be able to afford your treatment. Much better than most countries, and infinitely better than the US system 🏥

There are many intricacies (as you can see here), but in general, If you are a permanent resident of the UK, you get free and easy access to the NHS:

1. “General practitioner and and nurse consultations in primary care, treatment provided by a GP and other primary care services are free of charge to all”
2. “For secondary care services, the UK’s healthcare system is residence-based. This means that you must be living lawfully in the UK on a properly settled basis to be entitled to free healthcare”

❌ Con 10: the healthcare is getting worse

Because of the terrible right-wing governmental rule of the last several years, the NHS system is now brutally underfunded:

• The waiting lists are long
• You have to wait forever to even get an appointment
• … and the care isn’t as good or attentive as it once was

So, although UK healthcare is a LOT better than US healthcare (being pregnant or breaking your leg isn’t going to bankrupt you), it’s not as good as it used to be.

Importantly, like in many other countries, you can’t simply walk into the hospital and see a doctor immediately (you can only see a doctor immediately if you have an urgent reason, or have had an emergency or an accident—and in these cases, ‘immediately’ might still mean waiting around for a few hours) 😬

So, typically, you have to make an appointment for your health problem, then attend that appointment on the set date. Depending on the condition, you might have to wait many months. On some rare but possible occasions, you might even need to wait for years. Like I said, things have gotten worse in recent years.

(all that said, the UK also has private healthcare—which some residents choose instead of the public healthcare system we’ve just outlined above)

Before You Pack Your Bags

So, they’re all the pros and cons of living in Scotland! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

To sum up:

✅ Top pros of living in Scotland include: the outdoor adventures, the outdoor infrastructure, the friendly locals, the community vibe, and all the beauty.

❌ Top cons of living in Scotland include: the midges, the rain, the dark winter days, and… most crucially… the difficulty of getting valid long-term residency (which, as we’ve covered, is very difficult for the vast majority of people).

For more on Scotland: