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VIENNA

Ten essential apps foreigners need for life in Vienna

If you live in Austria's capital or a planning to move there, a few key smartphone apps will certainly make your life in Vienna and surrounding cities much easier.

Published: 15 June 2022 14:53 CEST
Updated: 13 March 2024 12:39 CET
Somebody using their phone.
Some apps can help make your life in Vienna much easier. Photo by Jonas Leupe on Unsplash.

Moving to a new city and living in a different country can be challenging, especially if you are still learning the local language. Luckily, there are many tech tools that foreigners can use to help them adjust to a new life abroad. 

Some free smartphone apps you can download and always have with you will make life easier in Vienna – even if you have been living in the Austrian capital for years.

From things to help you set up as a resident, to navigate better in the city you live and even find some food when all supermarkets are closed on Sundays, here are the apps you should download if you live in Vienna.

Stadt Wien

The Stadt Wien app is the official application of the City of Vienna. It brings essential news and pushes notifications on traffic disruption near you, weather alerts or civil emergencies.

There is also a detailed city map where you can search for drinking fountains, coronavirus test streets, fuel stations, parks, and more.

READ ALSO: Vienna vs Graz: Which city is better for foreign residents?

The app’s search function works much better than Vienna’s website, and you can use it to navigate and find pages on topics of interest – it will send you directly to the right official page online.

WienMobil

This is the official app of the Wiener Linien – Vienna’s public transport operator – making it an essential tool for anyone living in the capital city or the surrounding area.

The WienMobil app covers all forms of transport in the city, from trains to buses and ride-sharing vehicles, and shows the different forms of transportation available for a selected route.

READ ALSO: The smartphone apps that make living in Austria easier

Tickets can even be purchased and stored in the app, meaning users don’t have to carry a physical ticket when going about their daily lives.

WienMobil’s transport partners include Citybike Wien, Europcar, Taxi 31300 and Westbahn.

ÖBB

ÖBB is Austria’s national rail operator and the ÖBB app is helpful for anyone that regularly travels by train in Austria – or for anyone visiting the country.

Users can purchase tickets within the app and receive notifications about delays or changes to a service and view information about platforms at specific train stations.

READ ALSO: One day in Vienna: How to spend 24 hours in the Austrian capital

City, weekly and monthly tickets can also be purchased in the ÖBB app.

WienBot

The WienBot app is quite the find for Vienna residents and is literally what it says: a bot. The artificial intelligence bot is in English (if your phone settings are in English) and will answer any questions you have about life in the Austrian capital.

It also works with keywords. So, for example, if you type “coronavirus”, it will bring up a series of messages with short explanations about the disease, hotlines for you to call, a website where you can get more information on vaccinations and the official Stadt Wien page with all aggregated info on Covid-19. It then suggests other keywords (such as quarantine, contact persons, and free testing) you can click to read more on.

READ ALSO: 23 essential articles to help you navigate life in Austria

You can also type other things, for example, “theatre”, and the bot will bring up a series of theatre events happening in Vienna.

Sag’s Wien

Is the street light in your neighbourhood broken? Or maybe some rubbish hasn’t been cleaned out next to your home? You can let the City of Vienna know about these and other issues with the Sag’s Wien (something like “tell Vienna”) app.

READ ALSO: The downsides of Vienna you should be aware of before moving there

The app is pretty straightforward. You just click on “report new issue”, choose which category it belongs to (public lighting, traffic lights, green area, etc.), and a map with your location will open up. You can then pinpoint the exact place you need, post pictures, and leave a comment about the problem.

It’s also possible to follow up on the issues and see a map with what has been reported and what’s the status of the complaints.

Vienna has several official apps for residents. (Screenshot/The Local)

Handy-Signatur

Before the pandemic, the Handy-Signatur was a little-known app that most people didn’t understand, let alone use.

Then the Covid-19 Green Pass was rolled out, along with many other digital services, and the Handy-Signatur suddenly became an essential app.

FOR MEMBERS: EXPLAINED: What is Austria’s Handy-Signatur and how does it work?

But what is it exactly?

The Handy-Signatur is essentially a mobile phone (known as a Handy, in German) signature which turns your phone into a virtual ID card. It allows you to legally sign official documents without having to print them out and sign them by hand. It also allows you to easily log in to official sites, including those to retrieve vaccination certificates and the tax office site.

The Local Austria news app

You might be used to scouring The Local Austria every morning for your daily hit of Austrian language and culture or receiving our newsletter. But what about getting alerts straight to your phone when we produce new content? Sounds pretty good, right?

Luckily for you, The Local has a free smartphone app which you can access content from all nine countries we cover so that you can keep up to date on both Austria and wider Europe.

It’s available on Apple and Android phones and will be an indispensable guide to living the Austrian lifestyle.

Language apps

Of course, living in Vienna will be much easier if you speak the local language. There are many apps to help you learn German (Duolingo, Mondly, and Babbel are just some of the most popular ones) for free – some of them are even fun.

READ ALSO: The German language you need for summer in Austria

A translation app can also be useful. The most popular one, Google Translate, works decently (but not perfectly) with English – German translations. It has valuable tools, including a live translation one that can translate text in real-time with your phone’s camera.

Food apps

Lieferando and Mjam are two popular food delivery apps that will save your dinner cravings. They work with several restaurants and shops in Vienna and will deliver to addresses in the city and some of its surroundings.

READ ALSO: Caffeine, war and Freud: A history of Vienna’s iconic coffee houses

Recently, and especially with the coronavirus pandemic, services that deliver groceries have also become very popular in Austria.

A great app is Gurkerl, with large assortments of food and beverages (they also have a lot of vegan options). Alfies is also another popular app for groceries delivery. It has fewer options, but it delivers faster, until late at night (1 am on Fridays) and on Sundays as well.

Are there any apps we missed for living in Vienna? Please let us know in the comments section below or email us at [email protected]

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For members

RENTING

‘Betriebskosten’: What are the extra costs renters must pay in Austria?

Renting an apartment in Austria means you’ll have to budget not only for the rent, but other somewhat hidden monthly costs and expenses.

Published: 30 April 2024 11:29 CEST
'Betriebskosten': What are the extra costs renters must pay in Austria?

Understanding operating costs or the specific expenses landlords or property agencies charge renters, is crucial for staying on top of your monthly payments when renting a place in Austria. These extra costs, known in German as Betriebskosten, are strictly regulated by Austria’s Tenancy Act. 

Here are the operating expensses that are chargeable to tenants, according to the MieterHilfe Public Association:

  • Water/wastewater and costs of leak testing, plus excess consumption due to burst pipes, but does not include disproportionate additional consumption for commercial operations;
  • Rubbish removal (and also clearing out floors and cellars);
  • Clearing out abandoned property;
  • Pest control, with costs such as extermination and periodic inspection or removal of pigeon droppings. Installation of pigeon screens is not included;
  • Sweeping fees (chimney sweep);
  • Electricity for lighting and communal facilities, such as the stairwell, but also replacement of light bulbs, fuses or switches;
  • Insurance premiums for fire, liability and water damage;
  • Insurance premiums for glass breakage and storm damage provided that more than half of the tenants have agreed to this being passed on;
  • Management fee (there is a set administration fee per square metre of usable space and building construction year)
  • House cleaning, including wages and social payments if there is a caretaker, plus materials; 
  • Public charges, unless there is a prohibition on passing them on – offsetting of property taxes is permitted;
  • Ongoing operating costs for communal facilities (lift, heating, playground, green areas, common rooms, etc.).

However, costs such as maintenance and repair work can never be charged under operating expenses.

The same goes for any ‘disproportionate additional costs or consumption due to commercial operations ‘, which refers to costs that are significantly higher than what would be considered normal for residential use or costs that are incurred due to the operation of a business within the rented property. 

READ ALSO: Tenant or landlord – Who pays which costs in Austria?

Vienna’s association for tenants MieterHilfe has a calculator that uses average values to show whether the Betriebskosten you pay are comparatively low, medium or high. The association notes, however, that even low values could be considered unauthorised billing in some cases. In contrast, high values could be correct – the calculator only shows if you are paying too much compared to other properties in the city.

You can check the values HERE. You will need to know either the total usable area of the building or the usable area of the flat and the operating cost share—this information is usually shown in a payment statement you receive from property management. 

What if I believe I am being unfairly charged?

If you think you are paying too much, but the charges are legal – such as for water electricity etc, then you would need to raise this issue with property management. They could take measures to save on operating costs, such as replacing old light bulbs with more energy-efficient ones or setting lights to a timer instead of a traditional light switch, for example.

There are many possible reasons for high or low values, according to the City of Vienna. For example, you may pay comparatively low for water one year because of a small number of residents, while the following year, there are leaking sanitary facilities and a burst water pipe that raises costs.

Buildings with many communal areas and green spaces often tend to have higher operating costs, especially for water, electricity, and housekeeping. 

However, things are different if you think you are being unduly charged—that is, there are charges in the operating costs that do not belong there, such as unapproved construction repair.

READ ALSO: Renting in Austria – The key things foreign residents need to know

If you are unsure of the costs, there is a significant deviation from average prices for no particular reason, or you believe that you are being charged for something not legally admissible as an operating cost, you could have a free check carried out by MieterHilfe or a tenant protection organisation. 

If there is a suspicion of unauthorised billing that cannot be dispelled between tenants and the property management company, this will be clarified at the arbitration board. The arbitration board is an independent body that mediates disputes between tenants and landlords. It is a point of contact before the courts in case of difficulties or legal disputes, and its decision is legally binding.

Property management companies and landlords must settle the operating costs for the previous year by 30 June at the latest and disclose them to tenants. This deadline is set to ensure that tenants have sufficient time to review their cost statements and raise any concerns before the new rental year begins. All expenses must be itemised in the statement, providing transparency and allowing tenants to see exactly what they are being charged for.

They are obliged to provide tenants with a detailed summary of the statement and the invoice documents. If the operating costs per square metre exceed €2, a more detailed review is recommended, according to the City of Vienna.

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