Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Solingen

For one person, living is cheaper in Solingen: $2,001 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index
98

Cost of Living Index in Solingen
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Solingen Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Solingen

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,001

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Solingen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $2,001 in Solingen.

Melbourne $2,821
Solingen $2,001

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $3,003 in Solingen.

Melbourne $4,235
Solingen $3,003

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $4,006 in Solingen.

Melbourne $5,650
Solingen $4,006

Living in Melbourne is roughly 41% more expensive than in Solingen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Melbourne 109% above, Solingen 48% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$19.24 €17.11

-9.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$73.5 €65.4

15.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$13.48 €11.99

-7.57%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$3.88 €3.45

5.93%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$3.13 €2.78

-2.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$2.92 €2.59

-13.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$5.11 €4.55

91.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$4.50 €4.00

90.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.26 €1.12

17.46%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$2.08 €1.85

41.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$2.96 €2.63

-10.14%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$3.91 €3.48

41.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$16.36 €14.55

-35.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$12.79 €11.38

-24.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$22.56 €20.06

-32.54%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$3.12 €2.77

27.88%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$2.12 €1.88

42.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$2.13 €1.89

45.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$3.89 €3.46

23.91%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$1.20 €1.06

152.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$1.30 €1.16

87.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.58 €1.41

55.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$1.16 €1.04

40.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$9.94 €8.84

343.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$5.64 €5.01

125.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.05 €0.94

427.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.46 €1.30

258.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$3.43 €3.05

9.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$65.1 €57.9

111.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$5.01 €4.46

-9.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$3.04 €2.71

-55.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$38.45 €34.20

-20.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$2.20 €1.96

-33.18%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$33.4K €29.7K

-13.21%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$37.6K €33.5K

-29.64%

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

$234 A$336

$330 €294

-29.22%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$19.79 €17.61

41.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$41.22 €36.66

35.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$39.77 €35.37

24.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$23.78 €21.15

-9.67%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$15.29 €13.60

-1.31%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$470 €418

404.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$9,286 €8,260

225.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$94.6 €84.2

-15.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$41.74 €37.13

21.47%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$112 €99.2

8.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$166 €148

-21.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$842 €749

108.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$611 €543

127.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$1,372 €1,220

154.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$1,023 €910

143.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$4,992 €4,441

38.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$3,334 €2,966

93.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$5,206 €4,631

-15.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

3.95

49.37%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Solingen: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Solingen

$611 30.5% 56.1% $779

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Solingen

$344 17.2% 10.5% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Solingen

$391 19.6% 23.3% $74

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Solingen

$300 15% 4.7% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Solingen

$186 9.3% 8.5% $15

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Solingen

$99 5% 39.5% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Solingen

$70 3.5% 11.6% $9.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $842 in Solingen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Solingen pays 19% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $73.0 in Solingen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $344 per month, with Solingen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇩🇪 Solingen

🕒 Local time

04:15 4:15 AM

19:15 7:15 PM

9 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

164,205

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Melbourne Solingen 16,420 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Solingen

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

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

Melbourne vs Solingen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Solingen differ by about 41% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $2,001 including rent). Solingen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 19% lower in Solingen. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,759 in Melbourne versus $842 in Solingen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $470 in Solingen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 12% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,001 in Solingen versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Solingen but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Solingen 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, Melbourne and Solingen are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Solingen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 41% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.