Is Germany really that bad?
My husband and I, both immigrants, lived in Germany from 2021 to 2023 before moving to Poland. One of the main reasons for the move was that Poland offers lower taxes for IT specialists, a faster pace of life, better customer service, and, overall, feels livelier and more vibrant.
However, it seems that the mood in Poland has recently shifted toward stronger anti-immigrant sentiment, greater support for deportations even for relatively minor offenses, and increased xenophobia. As Ukrainian nationals, we find this quite concerning.
As a result, we have started considering a move back to Germany. However, whenever I watch YouTube videos or Instagram content about Germany, I see a lot of negativity. Social media seems saturated with people criticizing the country, expressing dissatisfaction with life there, moving elsewhere, and complaining about bureaucracy, slow processes, high taxes, declining safety, and a general sense of stagnation.
So my question is: Is Germany really an unpleasant place to live because of bureaucracy, economic slowdowns, high taxes, a culture of strict rule-following, and a perceived lack of dynamism? Or is the current wave of criticism simply a social media trend that amplifies negative experiences?
P.S. for those who ask if we had witnessed any of these drawbacks when we lived there - yes, we did, but please bear in mind that we were there and the war started and we were generally really depressed and could not see any positive sides, plus we were in small Bavarian town at that time and now we are thinking of Berlin.
And a side question, if you could recommend staying in Poland or leaving for Germany - what would it be?