Cost of Living Comparison Between Ames, IA and Karlsruhe Cost of Living Comparison Between Ames, IA and Karlsruhe

😐 Solo nomad: Ames, IA is 9.4% more expensive than Karlsruhe without rent, and 5.8% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Ames, IA is 5.9% cheaper than Karlsruhe without rent, and 3.6% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.07 $18.07

$17.66 €15.25

2.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.34 $44.34

$71.7 €61.9

-38.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.04 $9.04

$11.01 €9.51

-17.89%

Cappuccino

$5.27 $5.27

$4.02 €3.47

31.09%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 $1.95

$3.5 €3.02

-44.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 $1.74

$2.95 €2.55

-41.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.99 $2.99

$4.91 €4.24

-39.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.94 $6.94

$4.51 €3.89

53.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.01 $1.01

$1.25 €1.08

-19.20%

White Bread (500g)

$3.65 $3.65

$2.32 €2

57.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.11 $3.11

$3.21 €2.78

-3.12%

Eggs

$3.29 $3.29

$4.26 €3.68

-22.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.44 $9.44

$16.06 €13.87

-41.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.6 $11.6

$15.37 €13.27

-24.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.09 $14.09

$21.66 €18.71

-34.95%

Apples (1kg)

$5.09 $5.09

$3.1 €2.68

64.19%

Banana (1kg)

$1.15 $1.15

$1.85 €1.6

-37.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.79 $5.79

$2.32 €2

149.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.1 $5.1

$4.6 €3.98

10.87%

Potato (1kg)

$3.76 $3.76

$1.49 €1.28

152.35%

Onion (1kg)

$3.75 $3.75

$1.53 €1.32

145.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.99 $1.99

$1.91 €1.65

4.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.97 $1.97

$1.25 €1.08

57.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9 $9

$10 €8.63

-10.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.23 $16.23

$7.14 €6.16

127.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 $1.71

$1.05 €0.9

62.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 $4.38

$1.59 €1.38

175.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.49 $1.49

$3.78 €3.26

-60.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$47.13 $47.13

$56.3 €48.62

-16.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.9 $4.9

$5.78 €4.99

-15.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.39 $1.39

$3.63 €3.14

-61.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$49.16 $49.16

$30.93 €26.71

58.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.8 $0.8

$2.03 €1.76

-60.59%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$24.7K $24.7K

$31.5K €27.2K

-21.54%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$25.5K $25.5K

$38.1K €32.9K

-32.95%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$189 $189

$265 €229

-28.71%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$48.48 $48.48

$26.42 €22.81

83.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$74.3 $74.3

$52.6 €45.42

41.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.5 $68.5

$40.18 €34.69

70.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.74 $19.74

$41.8 €36.09

-52.78%

Cinema Ticket

$13.9 $13.9

$17.15 €14.8

-18.95%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,470 $1,470

$515 €445

185.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K $30.2K

$18K €15.6K

67.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$38.64 $38.64

$90.5 €78.1

-57.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.65 $42.65

$60.3 €52

-29.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$84.4 $84.4

$107 €92

-20.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$116 $116

$123 €106

-6.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$989 $989

$999 €863

-1.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$837 $837

$871 €752

-3.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,931 $1,931

$1,975 €1,706

-2.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,676 $1,676

$1,371 €1,184

22.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,346 $2,346

$5,930 €5,120

-60.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,182 $2,182

$4,862 €4,198

-55.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,732 $3,732

$3,076 €2,656

21.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.02

3.98

51.26%

Citycost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Ames, IA: October 28, 2025

Last update for Karlsruhe: October 29, 2025

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