I've had good experience in the outskirts of Berlin. It's a big city but it's so spread out that living in one of the outlying districts can be like living in

I've had good experience in the outskirts of Berlin. It's a big city but it's so spread out that living in one of the outlying districts can be like living in a small town near a big city (in many ways Berlin feels more like an agglomeration of many smaller cities than e.g. Vienna). It's also (still) a relatively affordable city, especially outside the central districts.