It’s not only customs that differ from one part of the world to the other; things people consider mundane often do, too. So it’s no secret that certain habits or items in the US might not be as common in Europe, for example; and vice versa.

That’s what netizens in the ‘No Stupid Questions’ subreddit recently discussed. User ‘meryse' addressed the American members asking what everyday things Europeans have they would consider a luxury in the States. Their answers covered everything, from Food, to Healthcare, hygiene habits, and even windows; so scroll down to find them on the list below and see how they compare to your own home.

#1

I'm just going to assume "Really good cheese" is a legitimate answer.

Image credits: November_Riot

#2

4-6 weeks of vacation at time of hire.

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#3

Decent quality chocolate available in almost any random corner shop.

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#4

Fresh baked bread for reasonable prices that you can get in walking distance of your home, and aren't full of preservatives.

Also, affordable health care.

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#5

Solid walls in their house.

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#6

Can't speak for all of Europe, but workers rights. Wtf is "getting fired on the day"? Or quitting, for that matter? You get 3 months here

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#7

Maternity leave and healthcare come to mind.

Affordable healthcare and maternity leave equally available to everyone. I know some people have healthcare and some companies offer paid maternity leave, but it's not the standard.

I know someone who works 50+ hours a week,, makes just enough to support his small family (child with special needs) and he can't afford to treat his hepatitis C because of the treatment (12 weeks of pills) costing more than he earns in 18 months. He can't afford to pay for health insurance.. (before a-holes start judging, he was born with it).

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#8

Peace of mind that we won't receive a medical bill that might bankrupt us.

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#9

Food that doesn’t have a ton of artificial additives and non-food ingredients that makes you sick. I never realized that was what was causing my stomach problems until I went on vacation in Europe and within a day had no problems at all. And it came back a day after I returned. They can make great food, even packaged junk food, with just real food ingredients. Why can’t we?

Image credits: LakeCoffee

#10

No high fructose corn syrup in everything!!!!

Like you don't even need to check the label for it.

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#11

Schools that are not used as target practice

#12

No gaps in bathroom stall doors. Not the bottom gap, that’s fine, they could be lower for sure, but I mean the ones between the door.

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#13

Good public transport outside of main cities. Germans in particular love to complain about Deutsche Bahn (and rightfully so) but compared to USA it's just so much more versatile.

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#14

Unlimited sick days. Or just sick days, because it's just not a concept. If your are sick, you are sick and stay at home with full pay until you aren't anymore. Can't get fired for it too.

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#15

Ability to not require a personal motorised vehicle for literally every single thing in ones life.

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#16

Not having to hand over your credit card to a server who then disappears with it. In Europe, the machine comes to you and you just tap it with your card/phone/watch.

#17

Time. Time to eat in a restaurant without being shoved out. Time to sip coffee at a cafe. Time to spend with new children. Time to go on vacation. Seems like an unattainable luxury to this American.

#18

Those towel warmer racks, and heated bathroom floors.

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#19

Can’t believe it’s not more prominent, but the right to privacy, and recently digital privacy.

GDPR was an excellent piece of legislation.

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#20

A sense of community that isn’t based on the color of some old loser’s tie.

#21

Work-Life balance. Paid time off. The ability to receive healthcare without going bankrupt. The ability to seek higher education if desired without going into life-altering debt. Public transportation. Maternal and paternal rights. Kindness.

#22

You might enjoy the documentary Where to Invade Next by Michael Moore. It's about how just as Europe has looked to America, America should look to Europe.

He covers these topics. Summarized with chat gpt.

Education system in Finland.
Workers' rights and work-life balance in Italy.
Healthcare system in France.
Drug policy in Portugal.
Prison reform in Norway.
Gender equality in Iceland.
School meals in Slovenia.

I would put environmental and consumer protection up there e.g. EU banned ingredients in food and consumer goods.

#23

The ability to travel to other countries without a lot of money. From Paris, France to Warsaw, Poland is the same distance from one side of Texas to the other side of Texas. I don't think Europeans understand that when they sneer and tell Americans they should travel. Americans can travel up to nearly 3000 miles and still be in the US (2906.2 miles.from San Fransisco to NYC) That's not cheap. Travel is expensive.



Museums and art everywhere.

Local food/wine

Healthcare paid for

Guaranteed vacations.

Image credits: SubstantialPressure3

#24

Universal healthcare (in most countries). A family member in Italy needed an MRI of the brain. if she waited a few weeks it would be free. She didn’t want to wait so she paid out of pocket: $120. That would be a few thousand dollars in the US.

Practically free higher education. They pay fees, not tuition. Minor costs.

Image credits: StuartGotz

#25

A wide range of parties you can vote for

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#26

Quieter cities because there are fewer cars. And along the same lines, smaller cars. And, continuing on those lines, obviously, better/more convenient public transportation - even non-major cities.

#27

Tomatoes that are actually red, flavorful and delicious.

#28

No tipping.

#29

Mandatory 4+ weeks vacation

#30

A safety net. It is incredibly stressful to work in America as an American. You bust your a*s for decades and could still lose everything you’ve worked to maintain at the drop of a hat. One slip, one positive test result, one broken bone, one genetic disorder, one sudden chronic pain… that’s it. No more job. No more paycheck. Savings gone in under a year. House (if you could afford one at all) gone. Suddenly you’re homeless.

It doesn’t even take a medical issue. Anything that could get you fired (because employers can fire you for any reason without any waiting period) can ruin your life forever. Maybe you missed some court date and you went to jail for two days. Maybe your kid is sick and you had to stay home. Your car broke down. You went to the hospital. Your loved one died.

Fired. Now you have no healthcare. You dip into your savings (if you have them). You keep dipping until there is nothing left. The only place hiring is a grocery store that offers $7.5 an hour. You can’t even rent a 1bd apartment in your city. You rent outside the city. Now your commute is 1.5 hours. You can’t pick up your kids from school anymore so you have to hire a babysitter. How do you get ahead? How can you get out of this hole?

F**k the American system. It’s s**t. Most people never get a chance at a good life and those that have one could lose it all through no fault of their own.

And we are all too terrified to fight back because our survival is directly tied to employment.

And to make matters worse, capitalism had completely decimated our built in support systems, like family and community, but that’s a bigger conversation.

#31

This might seem a little weird, but I really liked the windows when I was in Germany. Turn the handle up and it tilted back, turn it to the side and it opened like a door, turn it down and it was locked. I've never seen windows like that installed in the US. I've googled and they're available but just not in common use it seems. At least not in the parts of the US I've been to.

#32

Quality of work life.

#33

Historic architecture and cultural heritage: Europe's rich history and cultural heritage provide unique opportunities to experience historic architecture, museums, and traditions that may be less prevalent in the United States.

#34

A better environment for labor. More union protections and rights. I dream of having Norway's broad trade union system in the States.

*Vastly* better consumer protections. The EU has been really good for the world in that regard by forcing changes to products.

#35

Ability to purchase good, unadultrated food at reasonable prices. You can get the same stuff in the USA if you are willing to pay 100% more than "regular" prices for it, but in Europe you can get it for even cheaper than the US price for HCFS laden c**p.

#36

Real farmers markets.

#37

The right to cross the street.

The right to drink beer outside.

The right to drink alcohol before we're adults.

Free at delivery medical care.

Government mandated maternity leave.

Vacation time.

#38

Affordable high-speed Internet. Like 1gigabyte/s (up and down!) for under €20 per month. With negligible installation fees. And it includes over a hundred cable channels.

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#39

Chocolate that doesn't taste like splenda infused vomit.

Soft drinks that don't taste like windex with a drop of food colouring mixed in.

Legitimate castles that aren't mock ups built by people that missed having a history that goes back further than a middle aged greenland shark

#40

Easy walking routes and biking routes. I bet I'm going to see a lot of healthcare it may not be affordable but it's probably the quickest healthcare there is.

#41

Universal healthcare, eldercare and other social initiatives, election campaigns that don't last three years, gun control, an incredible variety of cheeses, sensible alternatives to automobile travel, religious secularism as the norm, schools that teach children how to learn and thirst for knowledge, rather than just how to pass a test and what to do in an active shooter situation.

I know that those things might not seem like luxuries to many folks, but just imagine how great life in the US could be, but isn't.

#42

Cheap internet. Cheap phone plans. Clean, delicious, healthier food, better diets in general. Worker protections. Healthcare instead of for profit insurance companies. Trains. Busses. Public transit in general. Language diversity.

#43

Drinkable tap water

#44

For the most part European countries value their history and preserve buildings that would be torn down and replaced by modern architecture in the US. I put Italy at the top of the ladder in this respect.

#45

Paid parental leave and healthcare access that doesn't require you to be enslaved to corporate America. And they tend to accommodate bikers.

#46

Democracy

#47

The ability to relax.

#48

Bum Guns. I want bidets to be widely accepted in the US

#49

Not 150% humidity.

Sincerely, Mississippi

#50

BMW and Mercedes taxis