Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Frankfurt and Aachen

For one person, living is cheaper in Aachen: $1,938 a month against $2,510 in Frankfurt, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

121

Cost of Living Index in Frankfurt
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Frankfurt Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in Aachen
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Aachen Living Index

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Frankfurt

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,510

/mo nomad

Aachen

🇩🇪 Germany

$1,938

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Frankfurt and in Aachen

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Frankfurt and in Aachen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,510 per month in Frankfurt vs $1,938 in Aachen, rent included.

Frankfurt $2,510
Aachen $1,938

A couple spends around $3,732 per month in Frankfurt vs $2,902 in Aachen, rent included.

Frankfurt $3,732
Aachen $2,902

A family of three spends $4,954 per month in Frankfurt vs $3,867 in Aachen, rent included.

Frankfurt $4,954
Aachen $3,867

Frankfurt costs about 30% more than Aachen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Frankfurt and Aachen sit above the global median – Frankfurt by 84%, Aachen by 42%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €15.12

$15.79 €14.19

6.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$88.1 €79.1

$61.7 €55.5

42.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.93

$11.16 €10.02

19.00%

Cappuccino

$4.54 €4.08

$3.73 €3.35

21.72%

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

$3.68 €3.30

$2.70 €2.43

36.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.61 €3.25

$2.99 €2.69

20.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.71 €5.13

$5.05 €4.54

13.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.74 €5.15

$5.47 €4.91

4.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.22 €1.10

7.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 €1.98

$1.92 €1.73

14.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.09 €2.78

$3.62 €3.25

-14.64%

Eggs

$3.65 €3.28

$3.57 €3.20

2.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.55 €12.17

$14.48 €13.01

-6.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.86 €10.65

$11.33 €10.18

4.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.79 €19.57

$20.98 €18.85

3.86%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 €2.79

$3.42 €3.07

-9.36%

Banana (1kg)

$2.09 €1.88

$2.27 €2.04

-7.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 €1.74

$2.05 €1.84

-5.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.83 €3.44

$3.48 €3.12

10.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 €1.60

$1.47 €1.32

21.09%

Onion (1kg)

$1.86 €1.67

$1.48 €1.33

25.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.41

$1.48 €1.33

6.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 €0.94

$1.24 €1.11

-15.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.49 €8.52

$10.00 €8.98

-5.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.04

$6.76 €6.07

-17.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 €1.01

$1.15 €1.03

-2.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.31

$1.56 €1.40

-7.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.29 €3.86

$4.03 €3.62

6.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$69.3 €62.3

$71.5 €64.2

-3.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.42 €3.97

$5.53 €4.96

-20.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.27 €2.04

$2.59 €2.32

-12.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.89 €21.46

$37.36 €33.56

-36.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 €1.99

$2.32 €2.08

-4.31%

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

$33.7K €30.2K

$33.0K €29.7K

1.90%

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

$39.2K €35.2K

$38.9K €35.0K

0.54%

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

$385 €346

$378 €339

1.94%

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

$19.76 €17.75

$16.71 €15.01

18.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.58 €41.85

$47.56 €42.73

-2.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.4 €56.9

$35.89 €32.24

76.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.55 €26.54

$27.56 €24.76

7.22%

Cinema Ticket

$16.84 €15.12

$15.41 €13.84

9.28%

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

$1,097 €985

$743 €667

47.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.6K €20.3K

$19.2K €17.3K

17.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 €77.5

$91.4 €82.1

-5.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.24 €29.86

$42.26 €37.96

-21.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.5 €74.1

$85.1 €76.4

-3.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 €96.8

$134 €120

-19.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,418 €1,274

$818 €735

73.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,092 €981

$571 €513

91.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,713 €2,437

$1,504 €1,351

80.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,920 €1,725

$1,058 €951

81.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,738 €6,951

$4,493 €4,036

72.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,482 €4,026

$3,378 €3,035

32.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,024 €3,615

$3,534 €3,175

13.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.64

3.96

-8.08%

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

Last update for Frankfurt: October 26, 2026

Last update for Aachen: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Frankfurt

$1.1K 43.5%

Aachen

$571 29.5% 47.7% $521

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Frankfurt

$451 18%

Aachen

$442 22.8% 2.1% $9.4

Groceries & Markets

Frankfurt

$330 13.2%

Aachen

$330 17% 0.1% $0.2

Eating Out

Frankfurt

$298 11.9%

Aachen

$264 13.6% 11.6% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Frankfurt

$139 5.6%

Aachen

$159 8.2% 13.9% $19

Getting Around

Frankfurt

$102 4.1%

Aachen

$106 5.5% 3.7% $3.8

Sport & Entertainment

Frankfurt

$97 3.9%

Aachen

$67 3.4% 31.3% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,418 in Frankfurt versus $818 in Aachen. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 14% higher in Frankfurt, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $88 in Frankfurt versus $62 in Aachen. Groceries tell a different story – $330 in Frankfurt vs $330 in Aachen – so Frankfurt wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇩🇪 Frankfurt

🇩🇪 Aachen

🕒 Local time

23:13 11:13 PM

Same time as Frankfurt

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

701,350

241,683

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Frankfurt Aachen 200 km

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City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Frankfurt vs Aachen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,510 in Frankfurt, $1,938 in Aachen – Aachen comes out roughly 23% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,765 per month in Frankfurt and $2,907 in Aachen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Aachen, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $818 there versus $1,418 in Frankfurt.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $88 in Frankfurt and $62 in Aachen. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Public transport costs about 3% less in Frankfurt. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$3,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $2,510 in Frankfurt and $1,938 in Aachen, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Aachen – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

If budget matters most, go with Aachen. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Frankfurt makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.