In short
Saxony has 27 universities and colleges offering 1,171 degree courses (393 Bachelor's, 553 Master's), and 25% of them are taught in English or bilingually. A student flat costs about €454 a month (30 m² flat in Leipzig incl. utilities, MLP Studentenwohnreport 2026). Tuition for non-EU students: €0 — Most public universities charge no tuition for regular degrees, only the semester contribution (about €300–400). Exception: the music colleges in Leipzig and Dresden charge non-EU students.
Baroque Dresden, creative Leipzig and some of the lowest student rents in Germany. Saxony has a big research scene, with TU Dresden and Leipzig University at its core, and Europe's largest microelectronics cluster around Dresden.
University cities
Every city in Saxony with a university. Cities with a guide link to it.
Leipzig
6 universities 394 courses 22% in English
Dresden
10 universities 365 courses 30% in English
Chemnitz
1 university 118 courses 33% in English
Freiberg
1 university 81 courses 30% in English
Zwickau
1 university 69 courses 32% in English
Mittweida
1 university 57 courses 9% in English
Zittau
1 university 47 courses 11% in English
Glauchau
1 university 12 courses 17% in English
Riesa
1 university 9 courses 11% in English
Breitenbrunn/Erzgebirge
1 university 8 courses 0% in English
Bautzen, Sachsen
1 university 6 courses 0% in English
Plauen, Vogtland
1 university 5 courses 0% in English
Cost of living
What studying in Saxony costs, from the latest figures we could source.
- Rent for a student flat
- ≈ €454 / month30 m² flat in Leipzig incl. utilities, MLP Studentenwohnreport 2026
- Tuition for non-EU students
- €0 / semesterPlus the semester contribution every student pays. The rules are summed up in In short.
- Proof of funds for a visa
- €992 / monthThe proof of funds German missions currently ask of student-visa applicants (€11,904 a year) — confirm with the German embassy or consulate handling your application.
Good to know
- Chemnitz has the cheapest student flats of all 38 cities in the MLP 2026 study — about €277 for 30 m².
- Leipzig (≈ €454) and Dresden (≈ €538) are about an hour apart by train, so you can enjoy both.
- Prague is about two and a half hours from Dresden by direct train.
Industries & employers
Big names that hire graduates, and offer internships and working-student jobs, in and around Saxony.
Infineon · Bosch · GlobalFoundries
Semiconductors
Chip fabs in Dresden — the heart of 'Silicon Saxony'.
ESMC (TSMC)
Semiconductors
TSMC's joint-venture chip fab is being built in Dresden.
Volkswagen
Automotive
Electric-car plant in Zwickau.
BMW · Porsche
Automotive
Both have car plants in Leipzig.
DHL
Logistics
Its largest air-freight hub is at Leipzig/Halle Airport.
Culture & people
Saxons are proud of their heritage — of Dresden's baroque skyline, Leipzig's music history (Bach, Mendelssohn, the Gewandhaus Orchestra) and the 1989 Monday demonstrations that helped bring down the Berlin Wall. The Saxon dialect is soft and much teased in the rest of Germany.
Coffee and cake are taken seriously: try Eierschecke and, at Christmas, Dresden Christstollen. Leipzig has a large alternative and arts scene in old factory spaces, while the Ore Mountains are famous for wooden Christmas crafts like nutcrackers and incense smokers.
Events & festivals
Striezelmarkt, Dresden
Advent
One of Germany's oldest Christmas markets, held since 1434.
Leipzig Book Fair
March
A huge book fair open to the public, with the Manga-Comic-Con alongside.
Wave-Gotik-Treffen, Leipzig
Pentecost
The world's largest goth festival, which takes over the whole city for four days.
Bachfest Leipzig
June
Concerts of Bach's music in the city where he worked for 27 years.
Places to see
Frauenkirche, Dresden
Landmark
The baroque church destroyed in 1945 and rebuilt stone by stone, reopened in 2005.
Zwinger, Dresden
Palace
A baroque palace complex with the Old Masters Picture Gallery.
Augustusplatz, Leipzig
City
The big square with the opera house, the Gewandhaus and Leipzig University's main building.
Saxon Switzerland
Nature
Sandstone towers above the Elbe, including the Bastei bridge — an easy day trip from Dresden.
Chemnitz
City
European Capital of Culture 2025, known for its giant Karl Marx head.
Ore Mountains mining region
UNESCO
Centuries of silver and tin mining on the Czech border, with old mines you can visit.
Getting around
Most universities include the Deutschland-Semesterticket in the semester contribution. The S-Bahn Mitteldeutschland links Leipzig with Halle and the surrounding region, and Dresden has a dense tram network.
Leipzig is a major rail hub with ICE trains to Berlin in about 1 hour 15 minutes and to Munich and Frankfurt. Dresden has direct trains to Prague, and both cities have airports — Leipzig/Halle and Dresden.
Student experiences
First-hand posts from students in Saxony, read by our team before they appear.
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Studying in Saxony: FAQ
Is Saxony cheap for students?
Yes. A 30 m² student flat costs about €454 a month in Leipzig, €538 in Dresden and only €277 in Chemnitz, the cheapest of 38 cities in the MLP Studentenwohnreport 2026.
Do international students pay tuition in Saxony?
Not at most universities: Leipzig University, TU Dresden and TU Chemnitz charge only the semester contribution. The music colleges are the exception — HMT Leipzig charges non-EU students €1,800 per semester, and HfM Dresden also charges some non-EU students.
Can I study in English in Saxony?
Yes — 25% of the 1,171 degree courses listed for Saxony on Where Is My Uni? are taught in English or bilingually.
Leipzig or Dresden: which is better for students?
Leipzig is cheaper and has a more alternative, creative scene; Dresden is strong in engineering and microelectronics, with TU Dresden and the chip industry, and has a more classical, baroque feel.
How do I get around Saxony as a student?
The Deutschland-Semesterticket included at most universities covers trams, buses and regional trains; Leipzig and Dresden are about an hour apart by train.
Every district in Saxony
A guide to each district and district-free city in Saxony: universities, housing, jobs, transport and weather.
Sources
- MLP Studentenwohnreport 2026 (IW Köln) (opens in a new tab)
- Leipzig University — overview (tuition and semester fee) (opens in a new tab)
- HMT Leipzig — fees for non-EU students (opens in a new tab)
- HfM Dresden — fees (opens in a new tab)
- Wikipedia — Saxony (opens in a new tab)
- Wikipedia — Silicon Saxony (opens in a new tab)
- Wikipedia — Dresden Frauenkirche (opens in a new tab)
- University and course numbers: the Where Is My Uni? catalogue, rebuilt from official university data.
Ready to find your course in Saxony?
Open the map on Saxony: every university, every course, filtered by degree, subject, language and cost — free.