Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Frankfurt and Osnabruck

For one person, living is cheaper in Osnabruck: $1,956 a month against $2,510 in Frankfurt, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 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 Osnabruck
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Osnabruck Living Index

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Frankfurt

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,510

/mo nomad

Osnabruck

🇩🇪 Germany

$1,956

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Frankfurt and in Osnabruck

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,510 in Frankfurt versus $1,956 in Osnabruck.

Frankfurt $2,510
Osnabruck $1,956

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,732 in Frankfurt versus $2,925 in Osnabruck.

Frankfurt $3,732
Osnabruck $2,925

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,954 in Frankfurt versus $3,893 in Osnabruck.

Frankfurt $4,954
Osnabruck $3,893

Living in Frankfurt is roughly 28% more expensive than in Osnabruck, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Frankfurt 84% above, Osnabruck 44% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.83 €15.08

$13.51 €12.10

24.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$88.1 €78.9

$77.5 €69.5

13.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.90

$10.78 €9.66

23.19%

Cappuccino

$4.54 €4.07

$3.92 €3.51

15.82%

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

$3.68 €3.29

$2.91 €2.61

26.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.61 €3.24

$2.89 €2.59

24.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.71 €5.12

$4.90 €4.39

16.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.74 €5.14

$4.00 €3.58

43.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.25 €1.12

4.80%

White Bread (500g)

$2.20 €1.97

$2.37 €2.13

-7.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.09 €2.77

$3.66 €3.28

-15.57%

Eggs

$3.65 €3.27

$3.49 €3.13

4.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.55 €12.14

$14.47 €12.96

-6.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.86 €10.63

$10.64 €9.53

11.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.79 €19.53

$18.59 €16.66

17.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 €2.78

$3.25 €2.92

-4.62%

Banana (1kg)

$2.09 €1.88

$1.89 €1.69

10.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.94 €1.74

$2.17 €1.94

-10.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.83 €3.43

$4.20 €3.76

-8.81%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 €1.59

$1.42 €1.27

25.35%

Onion (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.18 €1.06

57.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.40

$1.62 €1.45

-3.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 €0.94

$0.86 €0.77

22.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.49 €8.50

$9.95 €8.91

-4.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.61 €5.03

$6.85 €6.14

-18.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.12 €1.00

$0.99 €0.89

13.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.30

$1.49 €1.33

-2.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.29 €3.85

$3.89 €3.49

10.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$69.3 €62.1

$70.9 €63.5

-2.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.42 €3.96

$5.25 €4.71

-15.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.27 €2.04

$2.76 €2.47

-17.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.89 €21.41

$36.91 €33.07

-35.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 €1.99

$2.09 €1.87

6.22%

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

$33.7K €30.2K

$30.2K €27.0K

11.54%

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

$39.2K €35.1K

$39.1K €35.1K

0.07%

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

$385 €345

$283 €254

36.00%

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

$19.76 €17.70

$30.62 €27.44

-35.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.58 €41.74

$40.12 €35.95

16.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$63.4 €56.8

$50.3 €45.08

25.94%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.55 €26.48

Cinema Ticket

$16.84 €15.09

$13.22 €11.85

27.38%

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

$1,097 €983

$409 €367

167.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.6K €20.3K

$27.5K €24.6K

-17.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.3 €77.4

$89.5 €80.2

-3.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.24 €29.79

$39.13 €35.06

-15.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.5 €73.9

$86.9 €77.9

-5.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 €96.5

$108 €96.7

-0.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,418 €1,271

$626 €561

126.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,092 €978

$712 €638

53.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,713 €2,431

$1,675 €1,501

61.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,920 €1,720

$1,190 €1,067

61.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,738 €6,934

$3,897 €3,492

98.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,482 €4,017

$3,302 €2,959

35.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,024 €3,606

$1,678 €1,504

139.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.64

3.95

-7.85%

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

Last update for Frankfurt: October 26, 2026

Last update for Osnabruck: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Frankfurt

$1.1K 43.5%

Osnabruck

$712 36.4% 34.8% $379

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Frankfurt

$451 18%

Osnabruck

$354 18.1% 21.6% $97

Groceries & Markets

Frankfurt

$330 13.2%

Osnabruck

$319 16.3% 3.2% $10

Eating Out

Frankfurt

$298 11.9%

Osnabruck

$243 12.4% 18.4% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Frankfurt

$139 5.6%

Osnabruck

$146 7.4% 4.4% $6.1

Getting Around

Frankfurt

$102 4.1%

Osnabruck

$105 5.4% 3.1% $3.2

Sport & Entertainment

Frankfurt

$97 3.9%

Osnabruck

$77 3.9% 20.9% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,418 in Frankfurt and $626 in Osnabruck. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Frankfurt pays about 2.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $88 in Frankfurt vs $78 in Osnabruck for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $330 vs $319 per month, with Osnabruck cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇩🇪 Frankfurt

🇩🇪 Osnabruck

🕒 Local time

11:43 11:43 AM

Same time as Frankfurt

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

701,350

169,108

💱 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 Osnabruck: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Osnabruck is about 22% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, leisure, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Frankfurt is about 2.4 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 $626 in Osnabruck. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,097 in Frankfurt versus $409 in Osnabruck. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Osnabruck – a meal for two runs $78 versus $88 in Frankfurt. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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 Osnabruck are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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