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Study Abroad Decision Tool

Avoid a Costly Mistake. Compare Before You Commit ₹30L+

A first year abroad runs from about ₹19 L to ₹71 L depending on where you go — and the wrong call is expensive to undo. Pick up to three destinations and get a ranked verdict: one 0–10 score each on total cost, visa ease, work rights and your odds of settling, built from verified 2025-26 figures with the arithmetic shown.
Estimate My Budget
  • Verified 2025-26 figures
  • 8 destinations scored /10
  • Cost · Visa · Work · PR
Your ranked verdict
Sample
  • #1Australia Flag

    Australia

    6.1
  • #2Canada Flag

    Canada

    5.6
  • #3UK Flag

    UK

    4.4

Live scores update as you pick your shortlist below.

Choose up to 3 destinations — 3 selected

Your Ranked Verdict

The Overall Score

Last updated 21 July 2026Methodology v2.4

Overall score weighs total first-year cost (30%), visa ease — processing, cost, policy stability and dependants (20%), work rights while studying and after (20%), and settlement / PR outlook (30%). Each destination is scored against all eight, so adding or removing a country you're comparing never changes anyone's number.

Scores are absolute, not relative to your shortlist: swapping which countries you compare never moves a country's number. The methodology itself is dated and versioned, and we revise it as policies change.

What changed in v2.4: The policy-stability, dependant and settlement scores were regrounded on verified 2026-27 immigration facts — a materially harder Canada, a stronger Germany — each with a dated rationale and an official source. And the post-study-work factor now reads a structured taught-master's window instead of the longest duration in the prose, so a PhD-only or nationality-specific ceiling is never surfaced as a general figure.

Recommended for you

Australia Flag

Australia

Scores 6.1/10 on your current priorities

Close call

0.5points ahead of Canada

That is 5% of the full 0–10 scale.

What “Close call” means: This is the gap between your top two, measured as a share of the full 0–10 scale — not a confidence level, an accuracy score, or a prediction of your visa or admission outcome.

Updated 21 July 2026 · Methodology v2.4 · Exchange rates as of July 2026 · 5 of 8 factors are computed from verified figures; 3 are AEOC editorial assessments.

AEOC expert weighting

  • Cost 30%
  • Visa 20%
  • Work 20%
  • PR 30%

Answer a question above to re-weight these. The four factors always add to 100%.

Top Pick
Australia Flag

Australia

Rank #1 of 3

6.1/10

Best of your 3

Best PR PathwayBest Value

Why Australia is #1

  • Strength: The longest post-study stay — up to 3 years (10.0/10)
  • Strength: Generous term-time work — ≈ 1,248 hrs/yr (9.6/10)
  • Strength: Comparatively workable if a partner travels with you (7.0/10) AEOC assessmentDependants are generally permitted, and a partner can work up to 48 hours a fortnight (uncapped where the primary is on a research master's or a PhD).

Why it might not suit you

  • Trade-off: Among the priciest first years — ≈ ₹42 L (4.6/10)
  • Trade-off: The steepest visa bill of the eight — ≈ ₹1.6 L one-time (0.5/10)

Figures checked July 2026Home Affairs

Explore Australia
Canada Flag

Canada

Rank #2 of 3

5.6/10

Best of your 3

Lowest CostBest Work Rights

Where Canada is strongest

  • Strength: A long post-study stay — up to 3 years (10.0/10)
  • Strength: Generous term-time work — ≈ 1,248 hrs/yr (9.6/10)
  • Strength: A low visa bill — ≈ ₹16,000 one-time (5.2/10)

Why it might not suit you

  • Trade-off: Settling permanently is hard from here (4.5/10) AEOC assessmentStill a genuine study-to-PR ladder via the PGWP, but materially harder than a couple of years ago: Express Entry CEC cut-offs sat around CRS 514-518 in 2026 with no general all-program rounds, and the 2026-28 levels plan trims annual PR admissions to about 380,000.
  • Trade-off: Year one still costs ≈ ₹40.1 L (4.8/10)

Figures checked July 2026IRCC · Statistics Canada

Explore Canada
UK Flag

UK

Rank #3 of 3

4.4/10

Best of your 3

Fastest Visa

Where UK is strongest

  • Strength: Fast visa decisions — 3 weeks (10.0/10)
  • Strength: You may work ≈ 1,040 hrs/yr (8.0/10)
  • Strength: You can stay up to 2 years after graduating (6.7/10)

Why it might not suit you

  • Trade-off: Among the priciest first years — ≈ ₹56.1 L (3.4/10)
  • Trade-off: Settling permanently is hard from here (3.5/10) AEOC assessmentThe Graduate Route is temporary work permission, not a settlement route — settling means switching to a sponsored Skilled Worker visa, and a proposal now under consultation (not yet law) would double the qualifying period from 5 to 10 years.

Figures checked July 2026gov.uk

Explore UK

Scores are a starting point, not a ruling — the right country depends on your course, city and family plans. Use them to shortlist, then pressure-test the detail in the table below.

The methodology, in full

Version v2.4 · last updated 21 July 2026

Overall = (0.30 × Cost) + (0.20 × Visa) + (0.20 × Work) + (0.30 × PR)
Inside the Visa score
25% processing speed, 25% visa cost, 30% policy stability and 20% dependant friendliness. Stability carries the most weight because an unstable rule-set is the biggest planning risk a student faces right now.
Inside the Work score
60% permitted work hours a year and 40% best-case post-study stay.
How 0–10 is set
Cost, visa fee and processing time are scored as a ratio to the best in the field — 10 × (best ÷ this country). Twice the cheapest is 5.0. Nothing scores zero just for coming last.
Measured vs judged AEOC assessment
5 of 8 factors come from our verified figures. 3— policy stability, dependant friendliness and the settlement outlook — are AEOC’s own assessment. Each is tagged and carries a written rationale wherever it appears.

What changed in v2.4

The policy-stability, dependant and settlement scores were regrounded on verified 2026-27 immigration facts — a materially harder Canada, a stronger Germany — each with a dated rationale and an official source. And the post-study-work factor now reads a structured taught-master's window instead of the longest duration in the prose, so a PhD-only or nationality-specific ceiling is never surfaced as a general figure.

Coming soon — we publish a factor only once we can source it

These are the factors we’re asked for most and deliberately do not score yet. An empty or invented number would be worse than an honest gap:

  • Graduate starting salary
  • Graduate employment rate
  • Return on investment / payback period
  • Visa refusal risk
  • Safety index
  • Healthcare quality
  • Climate
  • University rankings
  • Scholarship availability
  • Size of the Indian community
  • Income tax burden
The Detail

Side-by-Side Decision Table

Every figure verified for 2025-26. Amber chips mark the winner of each dimension across your current selection. Pick a topic below — or show every row at once.

Choose what to compare
Australia Flag

Australia

485 post-study work: 3 yrs for a Master's, 4 for a PhD (AI-ECTA)

6.1

/10 · #1

Best PR PathwayBest Value

Costs

Bachelor's tuition

AU$20,000–45,000/yr

≈ ₹13.2 L – ₹29.7 L/yr

Master's tuition

AU$22,000–50,000/yr

≈ ₹14.5 L – ₹33 L/yr

Living costs

AU$1,700–2,800/month

Regional & smaller cities → Sydney & Melbourne · ≈ ₹13.5 L – ₹22.2 L/yr

Student visa fee
AU$2,500
Funds you must show
AU$29,710 for 12 months' living costs plus first-year tuition and travel (Home Affairs benchmark, 2025-26)
Read the full Study in Australia guide
Canada Flag

Canada

PGWP up to 3 years, quality education & work rights

5.6

/10 · #2

Lowest CostBest Work Rights

Costs

Bachelor's tuition

CA$20,000–60,000/yr

≈ ₹13.6 L – ₹40.8 L/yr

Master's tuition

CA$17,000–50,000/yr

≈ ₹11.6 L – ₹34 L/yr

Lowest Cost
Living costs

CA$1,500–2,600/month

Other Canadian cities → Toronto & Vancouver · ≈ ₹12.2 L – ₹21.2 L/yr

Lowest Cost
Student visa fee
CA$150 + CA$85 biometrics
Funds you must show
CA$22,895 first-year living funds (outside Quebec, from Sept 2025) plus first-year tuition
Read the full Study in Canada guide
UK Flag

United Kingdom

1-year Master's, Graduate Route work visa

4.4

/10 · #3

Fastest Visa

Costs

Bachelor's tuition

£10,000–38,000/yr

≈ ₹12.9 L – ₹49 L/yr

Master's tuition

£11,000–42,000/yr

≈ ₹14.2 L – ₹54.2 L/yr

Living costs

£1,000–1,700/month

Outside London → London · ≈ ₹15.5 L – ₹26.3 L/yr

Student visa fee
£558
Funds you must show
£1,529/month (London) or £1,171/month (elsewhere) for up to 9 months, plus first-year tuition — held 28 days (as of 2026)
Read the full Study in UK guide

Approximate figures for planning; exchange rates as of July 2026. Scores are a transparent, weighted read of the verified figures below — not immigration advice. Tuition and living ranges reflect published 2025-26 data and vary by university, program, city and lifestyle. Visa fees, financial requirements and work rights are set by each government and change — always confirm on the official immigration site before you apply.

Next Steps

You’ve Picked a Country. Now What?

Four steps between a shortlist and an application. Each one is a free tool or a free conversation.

  1. Estimate your budget

    Put a real rupee number on tuition, living, visa and insurance — minus what you can earn part-time.

    Open the calculator
  2. You are here

    Compare destinations

    Score your shortlist on cost, visa, work rights and settlement. That's this page.

  3. Find your course

    Match your marks, budget and English scores to real programmes at real universities.

  4. Talk it through

    A senior counsellor pressure-tests your pick against your marks, budget and family plans. Free.

Prefer to browse first? Destination guides · Contact an AEOC office

Right Fit

Who Should Choose Each Country?

The highest score isn't automatically your best move. Here's the kind of student each of your shortlisted destinations suits best.

Australia Flag

Australia

Overall 6.1/10

Choose Australia if you want to earn while you study. High minimum wages and 48 hours a fortnight mean part-time work genuinely offsets living costs, and Indian graduates get an extended 485 post-study visa.

Canada Flag

Canada

Overall 5.6/10

Choose Canada if you still want a work-permit-to-PR route and go in clear-eyed. The PGWP into Express Entry remains a genuine pathway, but far higher CRS cut-offs and lower PR targets have made it materially tougher — its off-campus work rights and up-to-3-year permit are the surer wins now.

UK Flag

United Kingdom

Overall 4.4/10

Choose the UK if you want to be working within a year. A single-year Master's plus the Graduate Route gets you a degree and UK work experience faster than almost anywhere — ideal when time-to-career matters more than the lowest sticker price.

From Our Students

How Students Made Their Call

The comparison narrows it down; a counsellor helps you commit. Here's how two AEOC students used both.

“I was set on the UK until AEOC lined it up against Canada on this exact page. Seeing the PR pathway and work rights side by side made the decision obvious for my family's plans.”

R

Riya Patel

MSc Data Science → Canada

“The score cards cut through weeks of confusion. Germany's low cost jumped out, and my counsellor helped me weigh that against learning the language. I applied with zero second-guessing.”

K

Karan Shah

MS Mechanical Engineering → Germany

Choosing Well

How to Read This Comparison

The cheapest destination is rarely the best one for you — and the most famous one is rarely worth the premium by default. Three lenses keep the decision honest.

Total cost, not tuition

Germany's near-zero tuition still means real money once living costs and insurance land. A 1-year UK Master's can beat a cheaper 2-year program simply by finishing sooner.

Earning while studying

Australia's 48 hrs/fortnight on high minimum wages offsets far more than the same hours elsewhere. Canada (24 hrs) and New Zealand (25 hrs) follow close behind.

What happens after

If staying on matters, weigh post-study visas and PR odds as heavily as fees. Germany's job-seeker permit into an EU Blue Card is now the fastest settlement ladder; Canada's PGWP and Express Entry still work but have got materially harder.

Dive deeper into any destination: UK · Canada · USA · Australia · Germany · Ireland · France · New Zealand — or put numbers on your shortlist with the cost calculator.

Good to Know

Frequently Asked Questions

Each destination is scored on four dimensions and combined with disclosed weights: total first-year cost (30%), visa ease (20%), work rights while studying and after (20%), and settlement / PR outlook (30%). Visa ease is itself split into four published sub-factors — processing speed, visa cost, policy stability and dependant friendliness — and work rights into permitted hours and post-study stay. Cost, visa fee and processing time are scored as a ratio to the best in the field (10 × best ÷ this country), so nothing scores zero simply for coming last. Every card shows its own arithmetic, so you can add the numbers up yourself. Scores are absolute: adding or removing a country from your shortlist never changes anyone's number. That is a property of the scoring, not a claim that we never revise it — the methodology is dated and versioned (v2.4, last updated 21 July 2026).

Still Torn Between Two Countries?

AEOC counsellors have guided 5,000+ students from Gujarat through exactly this decision — budget, career goals, family plans and all. The session is free.

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