Relova Blog

Blog/April 7, 2026

How to Build a Social Life After Relocating Abroad (Expat Community Guide)

By Anna Moore

Practical guide to making friends and building community after moving abroad. Where to meet expats and locals, which apps work, and how to avoid isolation in a new country.

Loneliness is not a personal failure after a move — it is a measured pattern. Barclays International Banking reports that 44% of expats in France name loneliness as their main obstacle abroad. InterNations Expat Insider 2026 finds that 40% of expats globally say making local friends is hard; in bottom-ranked social environments such as Norway, that figure reaches 72%. Globally only 54% are satisfied with their social life; in Norway the share drops to 25%.

What the surveys actually show

Across destinations, 37% of expats describe their circle as mostly other expats. Where locals are rated especially friendly and 73% say making local friends is easy, about 34% of expats report a mostly local circle — roughly double the 17% global average for that description. Soft landing and local openness are not vibes; they show up as measurable network composition.

WeRoad’s 2026 study (5,000+ respondents across Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and the UK) adds a sharper edge: 66% say making new acquaintances feels harder than before (up from 58% a year earlier). Yet 83% say they are more open to meeting people while travelling or in a new setting than in old routines. Novelty helps — if you use it before the new city becomes another closed loop of work-from-home and grocery runs.

What actually works (according to expat communities)

Skip the fantasy of a single “networking night.” Mechanisms that recur in successful stories:

  • Regular shared activity — sports clubs, language exchanges, coworking memberships — beats one-off mixers because repetition creates natural follow-ups
  • Community platforms built for this problem — InterNations alone grew past 6+ million members around expat connection
  • Language effort — in more than half of survey contexts, expats themselves name the language barrier as the #1 obstacle to local friendship; even basic local language unlocks invitations that English-only life never sees

Expat-only circles are a valid bridge. They become a trap only when they permanently replace any local contact surface.

Why the first months matter disproportionately

Loneliness does not decline on a smooth curve. People who fail to form local ties in the first 6–12 months are less likely to build them later — early patterns calcify. That is the uncomfortable finding behind the cheerful advice: calendar social infrastructure while you are still booking wifi and residence appointments.

Treat the first season as a social installation window: one recurring weekly activity, one language habit, one community platform, and a bias toward showing up twice. The data will not make friends for you — but it does explain why waiting until “life settles” often means the settling never includes people.

Practical week-one installs: join one recurring activity before you finish unpacking, message two community-platform members with a specific invite (coffee after the language exchange), and schedule language practice three short sessions per week rather than a vague “I’ll study later.” Track social contacts like you track visa tasks for the first quarter — not forever, just until habits exist.

Also separate professional networking from friendship. Coworking acquaintances can become friends, but only if you add non-work context. Likewise, expat parents’ school-gate chat is a powerful channel for families — show up early and often during the first term when seating charts and playdates are still forming.

Measure progress with crude metrics for ninety days: conversations started, second meetings booked, local-language hours practiced. If all three stay near zero by month three, change the channel — different club, different neighbourhood cafe, different platform — rather than waiting for the city to become friendlier on its own.

Document decisions as you go: which visa category you chose and why, which temporary address you booked, which school waitlists you joined. Future-you will need that trail when a consulate, landlord, or insurer asks for a timeline. Relocation amnesia is real after the adrenaline fades — write the rationale while it is fresh, in the same folder as your scans.

Protect energy without isolating: one deep recurring commitment outperforms five shallow events you cancel. Pair social goals with existing errands — language cafe after grocery run, club training on the commute home — so friendship-building is not a separate unpaid second job on an already heavy relocation calendar. Small consistent contact beats rare spectacular nights out.

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