Shame: Budapest has among the filthiest public toilets in Europe!

With World Toilet Day on the 19th November, Shower Enclosure Experts decided to embark on a deep dive of Google review data to determine the European city with the best and worst public toilets.

By comparing the number of negative public toilet reviews in each city and how many times words synonymous with ‘dirty’ were used, Shower Enclosure Experts created a ranking of the worst (and best) places on the continent to be caught short.

Key findings

Budapest is the European city with the 14th worst public toilets, with 3.13% of reviews containing words synonymous with ‘dirty’, and an overall cleanliness score of 2.82/5
Berlin, Germany is the European city with the worst public toilets, with a cleanliness score of just 0.16/5, and almost one in ten (9.58%) of its reviews including words synonymous with ‘dirty’
With a near-perfect cleanliness score of 4.85/5, Helsinki, Finland, is crowned the European city with the cleanest public toilets

The European cities with the worst public toilets

The worst public toilets in Europe. Source: Shower Enclosure Experts

Ranking	City (Country)	Reviews Containing Words Synonymous with “Dirty” (%)	Cleanliness Score (/5)
1	Berlin (Germany)	9.58%	0.16
2	London (UK)	8.25%	0.32
3	Athens (Greece)	10.91%	0.63
4	Tallinn (Estonia)	2.13%	0.78
5	Lisbon (Portugal)	7.30%	0.94
6	Prague (Czechia)	2.38%	1.25
7	Amsterdam (Netherlands)	8.73%	1.57
8	Paris (France)	7.17%	1.72
9	Warsaw (Poland)	6.52%	1.88
10	Bucharest (Romania)	3.13%	2.03
11	Madrid (Spain)	8.75%	2.19
12	Vilnius (Lithuania)	5.13%	2.35
13	Riga (Latvia)	6.11%	2.66
14	Budapest (Hungary)	3.13%	2.82

Budapest has the 14th worst public toilets in Europe

Budapest is the European city with the 14th worst public toilets, with 3.13% of reviews containing words synonymous with ‘dirty’, and an overall cleanliness score of 2.82/5. This is an improvement over its neighbour, Bucharest, which was crowned as the city with the tenth worst public toilets in Europe.

The European cities with the worst public toilets

Shower Enclosure Experts can reveal that Berlin, Germany, is the European city with the worst public toilets, with a cleanliness score of 0.16/5. With almost one in 10 (9.58%) of its public toilet reviews including words synonymous with ‘dirty’, Berlin’s cleanliness score is half that of London’s (0.32/5).

With a cleanliness score of 0.32/5 and one in 12 (8.25%) reviews containing words synonymous with ‘dirty’, London’s public toilets are the second worst in Europe, beaten only by Berlin (0.16/5). This score indicates that London’s toilets are twice as dirty as those of Athens, Greece (0.63/5) and almost nine times dirtier than Budapest’s public toilets (2.82/5).

With a cleanliness score of 0.63/5, Athens, Greece is found to have the third worst public toilets in Europe, as well as having the highest percentage of reviews with a tenth (10.91%) insinuating that their public toilets are ‘dirty’. In comparison, nearby Istanbul, Turkey, keeps a comparatively high score of 3.91/5, and just 4.62% of reviews reference grime.

In fourth place is Tallinn, Estonia, with a cleanliness rating of 0.78/5, and a contrasting 2.13% of relevant reviews. Following closely in fifth place is Lisbon, Portugal, which has a 5.17% increase on Tallinn, with 7.3% of ‘dirty’-associated reviews. And, with a cleanliness score of just 0.94/5, Lisbon still doesn’t quite hit the one-star mark.

Helsinki has the cleanest public toilets in Europe

Helsinki is the European city with the cleanest public toilets with a cleanliness score of 4.85/5, and just 2.15% of reviews mentioning words that are synonymous with the word ‘dirty’. In comparison, Helsinki’s Scandinavian neighbour Copenhagen fares less favourably, with a cleanliness score of 3.28/5.