Germany vs Japan - Cost of Living Comparison

Germany Japan
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1442
$1200
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$3504
$3051
🏠 One person rent
$777
$546
🏘️ Family rent
$1455
$1049
🍽️ Food expenses
$413
$407
🚐 Transport expenses
$122
$144
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2771
$2447
💸 GDP per capita
$51204
$39313
😃 Human freedom index
8.33
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
80.9
84.6
👮 Corruption perceptions index
79
73
🌐 English speaking %
56.3%
15%
🎓 Higher education
94
99
😀 Quality of life
93
93
🏙️ Population
83.1M
125M

The average cost of living in Germany ($1442) is 20% more expensive than in Japan ($1200). Germany ranked 30th vs 44th for Japan in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.9 months in Germany compared to 2 months in Japan. Ranked 9th and 11th best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Germany vs Japan infographic

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Prices in Germany vs Japan

We calculate prices for Germany and Japan as a population-weighted mean of 662 and 907 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Germany Japan
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$12.2
$6.71
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$53.5
$34.8
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$9.16
$5.4
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.98
$3.41
 Cappuccino
$3.3
$3.09
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.66
$1.11
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$740
$532
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$553
$376
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1470
$1146
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1116
$782
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$151
$104
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$233
$159
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$35.8
$35
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
2.23%
1.46%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5686
$4231
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4165
$2886
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.05
$1.9
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$75
$65.9
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$21.7
$26.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$2.12
$1.21
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.09
$1.43
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.88
$1.54
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.08
$3.36
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.95
$1.89
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.8
$12.6
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.54
$7.01
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15.6
$18.7
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.6
$4.94
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.74
$2.59
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.26
$4.27
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.78
$4.38
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.6
$2.92
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.15
$2.34
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.39
$0.61
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.94
$1.61
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$5.96
$9.22
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.77
$2.05
🚬 Cigarette pack
$7.76
$4.14
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.89
$11.7
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.22
$3.77
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.62
$1.55
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.77
$1.87
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$35.7
$55.4
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$12
$12.8
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$61.3
$35.2
💇 Haircut, simple
$17.2
$16.8
👖 Brand Jeans
$82
$46.4
👟 Brand Sneakers
$89.2
$61.2
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$339
$347
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$11557
$12476

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Germany vs Japan

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Germany

City Cost of living Population
Berlin
$2146
3.68M
Hamburg City
$1925
1.85M
Munich
$2067
1.49M
Frankfurt
$1843
764K
Cologne
$1643
1.07M
Stuttgart
$1618
630K
Dusseldorf
$1632
646K
Essen
$1212
582K
Dortmund
$1221
588K
Nuremberg
$1321
516K
Dresden
$1207
559K
Hanover
$1318
543K
Leipzig
$1191
609K
Bremen City
$1393
567K
Duisburg
$1114
496K
Mannheim
$1389
310K
Karlsruhe
$1519
308K
Bielefeld
$1600
334K
Wiesbaden
$1630
279K
Wuppertal
$1194
355K
Braunschweig
$1296
249K
Bonn
$1517
331K
Aachen
$1291
249K
Gelsenkirchen
$1330
259K
Freiburg im Breisgau
$1604
231K
Monchengladbach
$1342
260K
Mainz
$1590
217K
Augsburg
$1411
296K
Bochum
$1254
364K
Kiel
$1325
247K

In Japan

City Cost of living Population
Tokyo
$1778
14M
Yokohama
$1555
3.76M
Osaka
$1296
2.75M
Nagoya
$1379
2.33M
Kawasaki
$1105
1.54M
Kobe
$1322
1.52M
Sapporo
$1143
1.96M
Hiroshima
$1212
1.2M
Sendai
$1128
1.06M
Kyoto
$1226
1.46M
Fukuoka
$1316
1.6M
Saitama
$1133
1.33M
Kitakyushu
$1125
935K
Sakai
$1201
824K
Chiba
$1389
975K
Yokosuka
$1154
390K
Kumamoto
$1064
738K
Sagamihara
$1178
726K
Kagoshima
$1178
594K
Funabashi
$1238
641K
Kawaguchi
$1084
593K
Kashiwa
$1090
428K
Okayama
$1113
720K
Hachioji
$1245
576K
Amagasaki
$1217
451K
Utsunomiya
$1153
518K
Niigata
$1070
791K
Shizuoka
$1121
686K
Hamamatsu
$1203
788K
Himeji
$1213
528K