Germany vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Germany United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1671
$2454
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4073
$5738
🏠 One person rent
$885
$1565
🏘️ Family rent
$1657
$2755
🍽️ Food expenses
$526
$624
🚐 Transport expenses
$118
$102
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$3122
$4635
💸 GDP per capita
$52746
$81695
😃 Human freedom index
8.37
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
80.7
77.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
78
69
🌐 English speaking %
56.3%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
94
100
😀 Quality of life
92
87
🏙️ Population
84.4M
332M

The average cost of living in Germany ($1671) is 32% less expensive than in the United States ($2454). Germany ranked 24th vs 10th 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 12th and 20th 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

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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
$14.4
$18.7
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$68.2
$75
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$10.8
$10.8
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$4.61
$6.19
 Cappuccino
$3.72
$5.13
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.95
$2.57
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$816
$1641
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$626
$1330
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1634
$2946
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1270
$2414
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$172
$123
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$265
$189
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$48.4
$66.1
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.97%
6.53%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5713
$4710
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4322
$3231
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.38
$2.37
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$55.9
$70
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$25.2
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.95
$0.98
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.22
$1.08
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.1
$3.5
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.17
$4.35
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.62
$3.81
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.9
$13
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.2
$11.6
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$19
$15.9
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.94
$5.03
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.65
$1.76
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.24
$4.51
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.66
$4.74
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.59
$2.81
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.62
$2.88
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.62
$1.42
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.09
$2.6
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$6.21
$14.4
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.02
$2.17
🚬 Cigarette pack
$9.02
$10.3
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$10.2
$9.41
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$2.89
$6.07
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.73
$4.4
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.82
$2.13
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$38.3
$51.1
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$13.4
$14.1
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$66.6
$122
💇 Haircut, simple
$17.5
$20.2
👖 Brand Jeans
$89.1
$52.8
👟 Brand Sneakers
$98
$89.4
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$456
$1400
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$12525
$20224

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
$2104
3.76M
Hamburg City
$2022
1.89M
Munich
$2332
1.51M
Cologne
$1851
1.08M
Frankfurt
$2102
773K
Dusseldorf
$1861
629K
Stuttgart
$2063
633K
Bremen City
$1799
569K
Dortmund
$1523
593K
Nuremberg
$1784
523K
Essen
$1525
585K
Dresden
$1462
563K
Leipzig
$1449
616K
Hanover
$1828
545K
Wuppertal
$1206
359K
Mannheim
$1679
316K
Bielefeld
$1481
338K
Bochum
$1618
366K
Duisburg
$1425
502K
Munster
$1809
321K
Bonn
$1765
336K
Wiesbaden
$1953
283K
Augsburg
$1714
301K
Braunschweig
$1456
252K
Karlsruhe
$1782
309K
Aachen
$1569
252K
Halle
$1320
242K
Chemnitz
$1228
249K
Freiburg im Breisgau
$1320
236K
Monchengladbach
$1563
268K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4051
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3187
3.9M
Chicago
$2667
2.75M
Houston
$2248
2.3M
San Diego
$3346
1.39M
Phoenix
$2369
1.61M
San Jose
$3674
1.01M
Dallas
$2550
1.3M
San Francisco
$3781
874K
Philadelphia
$2541
1.6M
San Antonio
$2194
1.43M
Austin
$2473
962K
Seattle
$2908
737K
Indianapolis
$2187
888K
Hempstead
$2702
793K
Charlotte
$2615
875K
Washington
$3139
690K
Boston
$3467
676K
Fort Worth
$2195
919K
Jacksonville
$2386
950K
Columbus
$2252
906K
Denver
$2699
716K
Nashville
$2649
689K
Portland
$2572
653K
Atlanta
$2540
499K
Las Vegas
$2246
642K
Detroit
$2006
639K
Oakland
$3146
441K
El Paso
$1775
679K
Baltimore
$2223
586K