Mapping Expats Around the World

What’s an expat anyway? In addition to “typical” expatriates (executives on foreign assignments), people move abroad for various reasons. This chart shows the ten expat types that our survey identifies

Based on our respondents’ motivations for moving abroad, we segmented the survey population into several sub-groups. When analyzing the data for these groups even further, we noticed that the members of each actually have numerous traits in common or that, at least, certain trends and tendencies emerge.

Drawing on these results, we present the ten types of expats that roam the world: from the foreign assignee and the traveling spouse, over the internationally mobile student and the hopeless romantic, to the globetrotter and the people simply in search of greener pastures.

The graphic above provides a handy overview of their characteristic features, such as the predominant gender and average age, their typical countries of residence, their working life, language skills, and relationships. Maybe you’ll recognize some of your expat friends in our descriptions – or even yourself. So, which expat type are you?