Germany vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Germany United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1442
$2213
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$3504
$5003
🏠 One person rent
$777
$1399
🏘️ Family rent
$1455
$2331
🍽️ Food expenses
$413
$568
🚐 Transport expenses
$122
$98
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2771
$4223
💸 GDP per capita
$51204
$70249
😃 Human freedom index
8.33
8.23
❤️ Life expectancy
80.9
77.3
👮 Corruption perceptions index
79
69
🌐 English speaking %
56.3%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
94
100
😀 Quality of life
93
86
🏙️ Population
83.1M
331M

The average cost of living in Germany ($1442) is 35% less expensive than in the United States ($2213). Germany ranked 30th vs 5th for the United States 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 1.9 months in the United States. Ranked 9th and 22nd best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Germany vs United States infographic

Share this infographic!

Prices in Germany vs the United States

We calculate prices for Germany and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 662 and 2202 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 United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$12.2
$16.6
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$53.5
$63.3
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$9.16
$9.07
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.98
$5.45
 Cappuccino
$3.3
$4.64
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.66
$2.26
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$740
$1483
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$553
$1154
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1470
$2565
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1116
$1971
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$151
$113
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$233
$173
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$35.8
$67.3
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
2.23%
5.25%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5686
$4618
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4165
$3344
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.05
$2.23
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$75
$65.5
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$21.7
$17.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$2.12
$1.01
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.09
$1.05
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.88
$3.04
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.08
$3.99
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.95
$3.91
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.8
$11.8
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.54
$11.7
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15.6
$15
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.6
$4.66
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.74
$1.72
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.26
$4.07
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.78
$4.27
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.6
$2.61
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.15
$2.55
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.39
$1.27
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$1.94
$2.26
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$5.96
$13.1
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$0.77
$2.7
🚬 Cigarette pack
$7.76
$9.13
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.89
$8.81
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.22
$5.27
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.62
$3.89
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.77
$1.95
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$35.7
$43.4
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$12
$12.6
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$61.3
$112
💇 Haircut, simple
$17.2
$18.9
👖 Brand Jeans
$82
$47.3
👟 Brand Sneakers
$89.2
$82.8
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$339
$1178
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$11557
$15443

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Germany vs the United States

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 the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$3723
8.8M
Los Angeles
$2975
3.9M
Chicago
$2372
2.75M
Houston
$2141
2.3M
Phoenix
$2552
1.61M
Philadelphia
$2463
1.6M
San Diego
$2965
1.39M
Dallas
$2489
1.3M
San Jose
$2972
1.01M
San Antonio
$1885
1.43M
San Francisco
$3507
874K
Austin
$2672
962K
Seattle
$2881
737K
Jacksonville
$2109
950K
Fort Worth
$2104
919K
Charlotte
$2680
875K
Indianapolis
$2086
888K
Washington
$2703
690K
Denver
$2527
716K
Columbus
$2103
906K
Boston
$3013
676K
Hempstead
$2889
793K
Nashville
$2707
668K
Memphis
$1698
633K
Portland
$2375
653K
Baltimore
$2012
586K
Albuquerque
$1833
565K
Milwaukee
$2092
577K
El Paso
$1413
679K
Long Beach
$2538
467K