Tel Aviv - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the relative size of the expatriate community? How would you describe overall morale among expatriates?
Very big. Americans are everywhere and pretty easy to pick out. They seem to really like it here. - Jan 2022
There are a TON of American expats here who have done Aliyah (plenty of American Jews move here for religious purposes, but there are a ton of secular expats as well). The Embassy community is also quite large, though a bit spread out. Morale is mostly good besides the aforementioned "fatigue" with dealing with local curtness. - Apr 2021
There are a lot of expats here, and even many Israelis seem to be originally from somewhere else. Morale is generally good - it's a terrific quality of life here. - Oct 2019
Large. Lots of Americans and Europeans, both official and private. The community is large enough that you can find your niche. - Nov 2018
It’s large. You can easily hide and no one will notice. Or there are lots of different groups to join. Morale seems to be pretty good here, depending if you like your job. For those who don’t, they will find a reason to complain (the commute, the Israeli attitude, the smells). Lots of people try to find a way to extend, though, because it’s a really easy way-of-life. How often do you live next to a white sand beach with perfect weather and great food, really? - Aug 2017
Quite large. With so many Jews from the diaspora having "made aliya," which means immigrating, you have a large amount of the entire population with strong roots abroad-- and that includes quite a few Americans.
Morale in general tends to be very good, but it can vary. While it is true you can come to Israel and do fine without Hebrew, I often think that making a bit more effort to understand Hebrew would improve the overall experience for those that struggle. I've noticed that single female non-Hebrew speaking employees often end up struggling here. I suspect that's because it can be easy to view this as a bit of a vacation spot, but if you're going to be here for a number of years I think a bit of an investment in learning more of the local language, culture, traditions will help you feel more a part of the community . - Oct 2016
It's hard to ascertain the size of the expat community because almost every Tel Avivan appears to have some tie to another country. Morale runs the gamut. - Apr 2016
That's a difficult question, as it depends much on what is included in the expat community. There are millions of foreign-born Israelis, hundreds of thousands of (mostly Asian) foreign workers employed in construction, agriculture and nursing, tens of thousands of African infiltrators/refugees (depends on who you ask), a constant influx of volunteers working in the Kibbutzs and so on. If expats include only Western diplomats and such, then it's probably small, I can't say much about the morale among them. - Mar 2016
Huge and generally good. This is the first posting where I haven't made a lot of local or other diplomatic friends but there is a Diplomatic Spouses Club that seems good. - Nov 2014
Large to huge. - Apr 2013
Large. - Aug 2010
Huge if you include those who make aliya. - Jul 2010
Between diplomats and expats who have immigrated to Israel, it's huge. Herzlia and Ra'anana have large anglo populations. - Feb 2009
Large but not cohesive in Tel Aviv. More Americans in Jerusalem. - Sep 2008
Large. - Jul 2008
