Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Frankfurt and Krefeld

For one person, living is cheaper in Krefeld: $1,920 a month against $2,510 in Frankfurt, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 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
92

Cost of Living Index in Krefeld
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Krefeld Living Index

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Frankfurt

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,510

/mo nomad

Krefeld

🇩🇪 Germany

$1,920

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Frankfurt and in Krefeld

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 Krefeld actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,510 in Frankfurt versus $1,920 in Krefeld.

Frankfurt $2,510
Krefeld $1,920

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,732 in Frankfurt versus $2,931 in Krefeld.

Frankfurt $3,732
Krefeld $2,931

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,954 in Frankfurt versus $3,941 in Krefeld.

Frankfurt $4,954
Krefeld $3,941

Living in Frankfurt is roughly 31% more expensive than in Krefeld, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Frankfurt 84% above, Krefeld 41% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €15.02

$16.96 €15.13

-0.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$88.1 €78.6

$71.3 €63.6

23.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.85

$12.82 €11.44

3.59%

Cappuccino

$4.54 €4.05

$3.98 €3.55

14.07%

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

$3.68 €3.28

$3.66 €3.27

0.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.61 €3.22

$3.23 €2.88

11.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.71 €5.09

$5.76 €5.13

-0.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.74 €5.12

$5.61 €5.01

2.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.26 €1.13

3.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.06 €1.84

6.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.09 €2.76

$3.63 €3.23

-14.88%

Eggs

$3.65 €3.26

$3.64 €3.25

0.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.55 €12.09

$13.65 €12.18

-0.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.86 €10.58

$11.98 €10.69

-1.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.79 €19.44

$23.19 €20.69

-6.04%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 €2.77

$3.12 €2.78

-0.64%

Banana (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$2.01 €1.79

3.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 €1.73

$2.47 €2.20

-21.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.83 €3.41

$4.26 €3.80

-10.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 €1.58

$1.41 €1.26

26.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.21 €1.08

53.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.40

$1.69 €1.51

-7.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 €0.93

$1.05 €0.94

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.49 €8.47

$9.76 €8.71

-2.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.01

$6.65 €5.93

-15.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 €1.00

$1.07 €0.95

4.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.30

$1.53 €1.36

-5.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.29 €3.83

$3.43 €3.06

25.07%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$69.3 €61.8

$58.7 €52.4

18.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.42 €3.94

$4.98 €4.44

-11.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.27 €2.03

$2.23 €1.99

1.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.89 €21.32

$32.97 €29.41

-27.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 €1.98

$2.29 €2.04

-3.06%

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

$33.7K €30.0K

$32.9K €29.3K

2.42%

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

$39.2K €34.9K

$38.3K €34.1K

2.33%

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

$385 €343

$310 €276

24.28%

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

$19.76 €17.63

$26.00 €23.20

-24.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.58 €41.56

$40.20 €35.86

15.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.4 €56.5

$40.19 €35.86

57.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.55 €26.36

$27.55 €24.58

7.26%

Cinema Ticket

$16.84 €15.02

$13.54 €12.08

24.37%

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

$1,097 €978

$469 €418

133.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.6K €20.2K

$21.7K €19.4K

3.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 €77.0

$87.5 €78.0

-1.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.24 €29.66

$40.65 €36.27

-18.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.5 €73.6

$105 €93.9

-21.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 €96.1

$127 €114

-15.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,418 €1,265

$729 €650

94.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,092 €974

$598 €533

82.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,713 €2,420

$1,425 €1,272

90.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,920 €1,713

$1,096 €978

75.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,738 €6,904

$3,276 €2,922

136.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,482 €3,999

$4,505 €4,019

-0.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,024 €3,590

$1,953 €1,743

106.04%

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 Krefeld: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Frankfurt

$1.1K 43.5%

Krefeld

$598 31.1% 45.3% $494

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Frankfurt

$451 18%

Krefeld

$376 19.6% 16.7% $75

Groceries & Markets

Frankfurt

$330 13.2%

Krefeld

$339 17.7% 2.8% $9.4

Eating Out

Frankfurt

$298 11.9%

Krefeld

$289 15.1% 2.9% $8.7

Clothing & Footwear

Frankfurt

$139 5.6%

Krefeld

$162 8.5% 16.5% $23

Getting Around

Frankfurt

$102 4.1%

Krefeld

$89 4.6% 13.4% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Frankfurt

$97 3.9%

Krefeld

$67 3.5% 30.7% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,418 in Frankfurt and $729 in Krefeld. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Frankfurt pays about 2.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $88 in Frankfurt vs $71 in Krefeld. Groceries flip the comparison at $330 vs $339, with Frankfurt cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇩🇪 Frankfurt

🇩🇪 Krefeld

🕒 Local time

20:12 8:12 PM

Same time as Frankfurt

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

701,350

222,058

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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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 Krefeld: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Krefeld is about 23% cheaper overall, especially in leisure, transport, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Frankfurt is about 2.1 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,418 in Frankfurt versus $729 in Krefeld. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Krefeld – a meal for two runs $71 versus $88 in Frankfurt. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,510 per month in Frankfurt versus $1,920 in Krefeld – Krefeld is about 23% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,920 in Krefeld versus $2,510 in Frankfurt, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Krefeld but tight or insufficient in Frankfurt. The gap between the two cities makes Krefeld the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Frankfurt and Krefeld are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Krefeld wins on affordability, Frankfurt on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.