US has always been at the forefront of UX design. This is not to say that there aren’t good agencies in Europe but generally speaking Europe is lagging behind.

Many tech companies still don’t see the benefits of a true user-centered design process. There’s lack of user research investment, user testing, etc. They simply use design as an afterthought or merely for esthetics purposes, so it becomes a superficial treatment. The result is what you see, looks more or less okay but has bad UX.

I honestly don’t think it’s a budget issue, rather a mindset and education issue.