Cost of Living in Germany - Updated Prices & Insights

Name: Germany
Address: DE

Solo nomad: Estimated monthly costs are $1,031 (excluding rent), and $2,153 including rent.

Family of 3: Estimated monthly costs are $2,575 (excluding rent), and $4,478 including rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.46 €14.89

$9.80 €8.36

$29.10 €24.82

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.0 €64.0

$57.7 €49.21

$115 €98.4

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.41 €9.73

$10.28 €8.77

$13.70 €11.68

Cappuccino

$4.00 €3.41

$2.27 €1.94

$5.70 €4.86

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

$3.39 €2.89

$2.34 €1.99

$4.68 €3.99

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 €2.57

$2.34 €1.99

$4.68 €3.99

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.19 €4.43

$3.46 €2.95

$6.35 €5.42

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.59 €3.92

$3.44 €2.93

$6.32 €5.39

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.07

$1.13 €0.96

$1.64 €1.40

White Bread (500g)

$2.17 €1.85

$1.46 €1.25

$3.38 €2.88

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.40 €2.90

$2.01 €1.71

$5.32 €4.54

Eggs

$3.77 €3.21

$2.71 €2.31

$4.61 €3.93

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.55 €12.41

$10.22 €8.72

$24.87 €21.21

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.25 €12.16

$8.18 €6.98

$19.76 €16.85

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.11 €17.15

$12.87 €10.98

$34.98 €29.83

Apples (1kg)

$3.25 €2.77

$2.10 €1.79

$3.50 €2.99

Banana (1kg)

$1.86 €1.59

$1.51 €1.29

$2.69 €2.29

Oranges (1kg)

$2.35 €2.00

$1.97 €1.68

$4.17 €3.56

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 €4.11

$2.28 €1.94

$5.72 €4.88

Potato (1kg)

$1.59 €1.36

$0.88 €0.75

$2.34 €2.00

Onion (1kg)

$1.57 €1.34

$1.08 €0.92

$2.26 €1.93

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.87 €1.59

$1.15 €0.98

$2.28 €1.95

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.94

$0.35 €0.30

$1.41 €1.20

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.77 €8.34

$9.54 €8.14

$10.48 €8.94

Wine (Bottle)

$6.93 €5.91

$4.63 €3.95

$9.25 €7.89

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 €0.89

$0.73 €0.62

$1.23 €1.05

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 €1.40

$1.32 €1.12

$2.17 €1.85

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 €3.19

$2.98 €2.54

$4.68 €3.99

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.6 €57.6

$57.1 €48.68

$79.7 €68.0

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.74 €4.90

$4.02 €3.43

$8.97 €7.65

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.31 €1.97

$1.89 €1.61

$3.15 €2.68

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$38.02 €32.43

$27.65 €23.59

$46.08 €39.31

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 €1.69

$1.91 €1.63

$2.18 €1.86

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

$31.6K €26.9K

$34.0K €29.0K

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

$37.3K €31.8K

$34.5K €29.4K

$38.3K €32.7K

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

$351 €299

$233 €198

$571 €487

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

$27.63 €23.57

$11.62 €9.91

$46.43 €39.60

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.7 €44.95

$39.09 €33.34

$58.6 €49.99

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.01 €34.13

$22.75 €19.41

$68.2 €58.2

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.59 €20.97

$17.21 €14.68

$34.43 €29.36

Cinema Ticket

$14.05 €11.99

$11.71 €9.98

$18.74 €15.98

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

$476 €406

$197 €168

$1,057 €902

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.2K €13.0K

$8,490 €7,242

$25.9K €22.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.3 €79.6

$46.16 €39.37

$133 €113

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.71 €37.29

$22.95 €19.58

$68.8 €58.7

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 €87.3

$58.0 €49.43

$145 €124

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$135 €115

$70.3 €59.9

$211 €180

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,031 €879

$664 €566

$1,773 €1,513

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$778 €663

$522 €445

$1,328 €1,133

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,900 €1,621

$1,260 €1,074

$3,350 €2,857

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,475 €1,258

$938 €800

$2,574 €2,196

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,404 €5,463

$4,129 €3,522

$13.2K €11.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,217 €3,597

$2,531 €2,159

$8,810 €7,515

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,492 €2,978

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.98

3.45

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

Last update: January 18, 2026

By City in Germany

Lowest

Highest

Rank	City	Population	Living Index	Solo costs (no rent) / month	Solo costs (with rent) / month	Family of 3 costs (no rent) / month	Family of 3 costs (with rent) / month	Mobile download speed (Mbps)	Internet download speed (Mbps)
1	Aachen	241683	99	$1,002	$1,955	$2,548	$4,165	92.95	101.56
2	Aalen	66503	98	$877	$1,946	$2,621	$4,133	44.17	145.15
3	Abensberg	14000	84	$985	$1,635	$2,112	$3,569	70.39	116.27
4	Amberg	42000	79	$806	$1,565	$1,669	$3,947	35.86	78.24
5	Annaberg-Buchholz	22248	107	$1,070	$2,131	$2,832	$4,291	141.64	77.41
6	Ansbach	41159	92	$998	$1,855	$2,047	$3,565	14.21	123.65
7	Aschaffenburg	67844	100	$879	$1,958	$2,701	$3,820	119.04	159.55
8	Augsburg	286374	118	$1,093	$2,333	$2,819	$4,481	194.43	158.01
9	Bad Honnef	24845	104	$887	$2,063	$2,500	$4,116	231.44	107.25
10	Bad Kreuznach	52385	101	$999	$2,027	$2,705	$4,208	131.96	126.51
11	Bad Mergentheim	22505	94	$1,085	$1,849	$2,297	$3,987	118.9	136.74
12	Bad Salzuflen	54000	100	$899	$1,974	$2,679	$4,064	61.23	122.48
13	Bad Säckingen	16673	98	$1,100	$1,967	$2,086	$3,910	98.68	217.4
14	Baden Wurttemburg	-	101	$1,091	$2,004	$2,763	$4,284	-	-
15	Bamberg	72821	99	$919	$1,982	$2,014	$3,356	36.56	112.11
16	Bayreuth	72295	86	$985	$1,712	$2,316	$4,099	151.45	134.52
17	Bensheim	-	100	$850	$1,972	$2,838	$4,062	400.86	151.4
18	Bergisch Gladbach	109425	104	$878	$2,061	$2,379	$4,083	9.22	113.58
19	Berlin	3769962	123	$1,020	$2,434	$2,566	$4,825	21.12	167.82
20	Bielefeld	328012	98	$1,032	$1,947	$2,622	$4,041	59.38	136.93
21	Bitburg	15228	106	$1,029	$2,124	$2,538	$4,333	94.8	107.28
22	Bochum	371075	98	$1,114	$1,989	$2,953	$4,152	28.24	172.48
23	Bonn	335913	112	$1,047	$2,212	$2,662	$4,623	109.18	139.07
24	Bottrop	116055	93	$1,074	$1,830	$2,791	$3,691	188.23	148.83
25	Braunschweig	253167	89	$1,042	$1,762	$2,564	$3,824	10.03	157.62
26	Bremen	551767	100	$1,102	$2,030	$2,629	$4,211	58.43	150.83
27	Bremerhaven	117281	107	$979	$2,153	$2,076	$4,240	56.09	169.06
28	Bruchsal	42911	109	$1,127	$2,158	$2,820	$4,591	39.61	164.37
29	Böblingen	46714	113	$965	$2,262	$2,943	$4,267	78.86	160.98
30	Celle	68712	94	$726	$1,869	$2,328	$3,897	189.04	122.64
31	Chemnitz	243089	84	$974	$1,645	$2,407	$3,259	176.33	108.75
32	Coburg	41405	90	$1,004	$1,811	$2,102	$3,317	155.6	100.36
33	Cologne	1095520	120	$1,089	$2,434	$2,708	$4,650	244.56	137.39
34	Cottbus	101036	81	$1,062	$1,593	$2,688	$3,381	24.63	115.28
35	Crailsheim	32960	88	$902	$1,756	$2,539	$3,283	78.1	136.61
36	Darmstadt	169255	119	$1,141	$2,376	$2,816	$4,755	38.72	146.84
37	Dessau	68116	90	$1,253	$1,805	$2,552	$4,151	164.12	79.93
38	Dortmund	600933	107	$1,096	$2,172	$2,594	$4,399	244.56	136.25
39	Dresden	556780	98	$1,037	$1,969	$2,615	$4,014	136.82	116.58
40	Duisburg	486855	103	$1,032	$2,047	$2,591	$3,763	152.36	141.11
41	Dusseldorf	618128	123	$1,117	$2,502	$2,872	$4,987	46.7	170.61
42	Erding	38644	104	$839	$2,104	$2,657	$4,213	241.07	141.93
43	Erfurt	215000	103	$1,060	$2,063	$2,625	$4,359	103.91	111.44
44	Erlangen	117466	106	$1,039	$2,071	$2,480	$4,194	27.56	134.06
45	Eschenbach	3600	98	$1,032	$1,920	$2,362	$4,010	93.96	117.99
46	Essen	569884	104	$1,069	$2,090	$2,720	$4,160	105.61	156.12
47	Eutin	16948	102	$1,133	$2,019	$2,526	$4,056	144.39	95.07
48	Flensburg	93112	91	$972	$1,822	$2,499	$4,041	5.03	150.74
49	Frankfurt	701350	134	$1,122	$2,711	$2,891	$5,336	139.88	181.61
50	Freiberg	41031	82	$983	$1,651	$2,058	$3,696	91.5	105.47

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cost of Living in Germany - Frequently Asked Questions

Germany offers solid value for travelers and expats who plan ahead. Cost of Living in Germany tends to sit mid-to-high in Europe, with big-city variations that can surprise budgets. In Munich or Frankfurt, housing and dining can push costs upward, while cities like Leipzig or Hannover often feel more approachable. Public services, safety, and health care add value that can offset higher prices in some categories. Transportation is efficient and affordable with good rail and transit options, making a car optional for many. Plan housing as your largest line item, then budget groceries, utilities, and dining out. Tip: map a two-week transit and housing search before committing.

Daily life centers on efficient systems and accessible options. When you search housing, expect a mix of older buildings with character and modern flats, with leases that favour longer commitments; be prepared for deposits and utility setup. Food can be affordable if you shop at local markets and discount grocers, and you’ll find delicious options in casual eateries and weekly specials. Transport is robust: city-wide transit passes cover buses, trams, and trains, and cycling is popular. For co-working or errands, look for neighborhood hubs with reliable Wi-Fi and nearby services. Germany living cost varies by city, so compare Berlin's vibe and Leipzig's pace before committing. Tip: start with a two-week neighborhood trial to calibrate commute, noise level, and daily errands.

Quality of life in Germany is often high due to reliable services, safety, and cultural variety. Build a simple budgeting framework: cover essentials (housing, utilities, groceries), allocate flexible spending to experiences, and reserve a buffer for seasonal costs like heating in winter or travel in summer. Seasonality affects activities and prices, but you can balance by exploring local markets, outdoor spaces, and regional festivals. When choosing a neighborhood, prioritize proximity to transit, groceries, and coworking spaces, plus a sense of community. Consider long-term housing options like WG or shared apartments to ease transitions and meet locals. Tip: rotate your routine with seasonal kicks, and set a flexible monthly plan that adapts to changes in work and leisure.