Germany vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Germany United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1755
$2516
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$4140
$5730
🏠 One person rent
$924
$1598
🏘️ Family rent
$1569
$2655
🍽️ Food expenses
$552
$651
🚐 Transport expenses
$129
$101
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$3290
$4539
💸 GDP per capita
$55800
$85810
😃 Human freedom index
8.67
8.64
❤️ Life expectancy
80.5
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
75
65
🌐 English speaking %
56.3%
95.3%
🎓 Higher education
94
100
😀 Quality of life
91
87
🏙️ Population
83.5M
340M

The average cost of living in Germany ($1755) is 30% less expensive than in the United States ($2516). Germany ranked 24th vs 9th 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 1.8 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
$16.3
$19.5
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$72.8
$76.5
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$12.1
$11.5
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$5.11
$6.31
 Cappuccino
$4.03
$5.34
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$3.32
$2.65
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$867
$1659
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$667
$1336
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1714
$3048
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1346
$2458
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$171
$125
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$263
$193
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$46.3
$67.5
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.89%
6.41%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5862
$4491
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4371
$3675
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.75
$2.35
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$63.7
$69.5
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$27.1
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.99
$0.92
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.3
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$2.19
$3.57
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.32
$4.43
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.85
$4.7
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.8
$13.4
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$12.6
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$20.8
$16.8
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.31
$5.12
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2
$1.85
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.33
$4.48
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$4.66
$4.77
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.64
$2.83
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.45
$2.9
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.71
$1.48
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.17
$2.74
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$6.71
$14.5
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.08
$2.41
🚬 Cigarette pack
$9.79
$10.7
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$10.4
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.05
$6.66
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.75
$4.53
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$1.88
$2.2
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$40.7
$52.3
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$14.6
$14.5
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$70.8
$124
💇 Haircut, simple
$18.4
$21.6
👖 Brand Jeans
$93.5
$53.2
👟 Brand Sneakers
$103
$92.4
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$482
$1428
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$15339
$20562

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
$2222
3.78M
Hamburg City
$2172
1.91M
Munich
$2463
1.51M
Frankfurt
$2182
776K
Cologne
$1968
1.09M
Dusseldorf
$1979
631K
Stuttgart
$2207
633K
Essen
$1516
587K
Dortmund
$1632
595K
Nuremberg
$1767
526K
Bremen City
$1785
577K
Leipzig
$1690
620K
Dresden
$1555
566K
Hanover
$1828
548K
Mannheim
$1825
317K
Bonn
$1957
336K
Duisburg
$1340
504K
Bielefeld
$1611
338K
Augsburg
$1954
303K
Wiesbaden
$1922
286K
Munster
$1887
323K
Wuppertal
$1488
359K
Braunschweig
$1534
252K
Bochum
$1560
366K
Karlsruhe
$1891
310K
Freiburg im Breisgau
$1738
237K
Aachen
$1668
253K
Monchengladbach
$1651
269K
Halle
$1388
242K
Mainz
$1736
223K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4203
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3361
3.9M
Chicago
$2799
2.75M
Houston
$2240
2.3M
San Diego
$3469
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2584
1.6M
Phoenix
$2340
1.61M
Dallas
$2447
1.3M
San Francisco
$4110
874K
San Jose
$3952
1.01M
San Antonio
$2023
1.43M
Seattle
$3162
737K
Austin
$2416
962K
Washington
$3328
690K
Boston
$3652
676K
Indianapolis
$2382
888K
Hempstead
$2655
793K
Fort Worth
$2217
919K
Jacksonville
$2222
950K
Charlotte
$2423
875K
Columbus
$2181
906K
Denver
$2775
716K
Portland
$2684
653K
Nashville
$2524
689K
Las Vegas
$2414
642K
Oklahoma City
$1872
681K
Atlanta
$2641
499K
Oakland
$3254
441K
Baltimore
$2323
586K
Sacramento
$2825
525K