Cost of Living in the Germany

The living cost of students can be managed easily because if you are studying in a public university in Germany, you don’t have a tuition fee. The charges are minimum which you have to pay at the time of admission, and most of the finances will depend on your average monthly expenses in Germany. The rents are usually high in German cities owing to reduced expenses because of robust public-funded amenities. Germans have more money to spend, and hence the rents are generally high, which ultimately gets reflected in the average expenditure in Germany. One of the pertinent reasons for the expensive cost of living in Germany is the limited land size of the country and high immigration. If seen from the current currency conversions, you will have to pay around INR 60,000 per month in rent, and the food bill may cost you anywhere between INR 10,000-25,000 depending on your food habits. Personal expense is an area where you can manage your living cost in Germany per month. If you are ready to make some compromise on your extravagant expenses, the monthly living expenses in Germany will not be an unmanageable affair for you.

Here we are providing you with a list of cities with affordable living without taking a toll on Germany’s average cost. Leipzig is one of the best places for your higher studies since they have a world-class institution like New Leipzig School. Furthermore, the rent in Leipzig is around 264 euros per month, making it an affordable place for international students. In addition, the city has an excellent nightlife. Other expenses in Leipzig include:

• Water costs less than 1 euro
• Bread around 2 euros
• Vegetables/ Fruits around 2-4 euros
• Milk less than 1 euro
• Eggs around 3 euros

One of the best places and famous among students is Bielefeld. It has four world-class universities, and rent is also affordable, which is a significant addition to Germany’s living expenses. However, you don’t have to worry about rent since you can easily get a one-room apartment at 200-250 euros per month on sharing basis. Therefore, the living cost in Germany per month can be reduced considerably in Bielefeld. The utility bill is around 170 euros per month for international students. Krefeld is another affordable place in Germany with a world-class education at a reasonable cost of living in Germany for Indian students. The rent for a 3BHK apartment is 760 euros. In addition, the utility bill is around 170 euros that are well within a stipulated average expenditure in Germany. Frankfurt is another city where rents are reasonable when we conflate this with the world-class education you will get there. The average cost of living in Germany is usually high in top cities, but Frankfurt is an exception to it. The rent for a 3BHK apartment is generally 400-1400 euros, depending on the location. In the heart of the city, the rent for a 3BHK is around 1200 euros. The minimum bill of utilities is about 250 euros.

The cost of living in Germany has seen an upward trend in the last couple of years owing to a rise in real estate prices, increased average monthly expenses in Germany, etc. The cost of living in Germany for Indian students has increased with an increase in rents which now averages around 323 euros per month. The rents are much higher in tier-1 cities like Munich(387 euros per month), Hamburg(373 euros), Frankfurt (375 euros). The monthly living expenses in Germany vary, but the variation is sharp only in few cities like Berlin, Munich, Hamburg, etc. So the cost of living in Germany is high only in these few regions. The price of food items is not so high in any of the cities owing to the fact that Germany has a rich agricultural base. So the average expense in Germany isn’t affected much by grocery bills, but the cost of internet and phone bill is a bit high when compared with Indian rates. The cost of the internet is around 35-50 euros per month depending on the service provider and the internet plan. The average monthly cost of living in Germany in a top city will always have around 35% expenses on rent and utilities. However, private cabs’ price is higher in top cities than in relatively cheaper cities. So the living cost in Germany per month will also depend on your mode of transport. The public transport system is robust in almost all the German cities, but it has a great pre-owned car market too. So students also buy pre-owned cars when they choose to live in off-city accommodations in the towns with the high cost of living. There are several ways to keep the average expenditure in Germany in cities with the high cost of living within your financial limit and continue your studies.

Germany is one of the best places for higher education because of the high standard of education. The icing on the cake is the exemption of tuition fees after a 2014 bill that waived off the tuition fee in public universities. The cost of living in Germany for Indian students is restricted to the monthly living expenses in Germany. If you secure admission in a public university, apart from a negligible amount of INR 20,000- 25000 is charged as administrative charges. The government primarily funds the cost of education in German colleges, and the world-class universities’ pool comes under government funding. In the case of Private Universities, the fee is high, and it can be anywhere between INR 20,00,000 to 40,00,000. The fee also varies depending on the course for undergraduate and post-graduate courses. However, there is an important point you should note that doctoral studies aren’t free in public universities either. So if you are planning to study in Germany in a Ph.D. program, you have to pay a considerable fee. On the other hand, the tuition fee’s waving off helps International students have a decent living standard without shelling out thousands of euros in tuition fee. Students studying in Germany can easily finance their studies by taking part-time jobs. There are abundant jobs for students, and they are even paid well. Therefore, students can easily take care of their living expenses in Germany. The part-time job salary in Germany is around 10-15 euros per hour, so if you are ready to devote three hours, you can easily get paid 45 euros per day or 1350 euros per month. If you are ready to take up a part-time job, you can augment your average expenditure in Germany and save a little.

There is no uniform cost of living in Germany, and it varies from one city to another. The cost of living in cities like Munich can be way higher than living in a city like Leipzig. However, on an average Indian student spends around 850 euros per month in average expenditure in Germany. German cities and not very costly, and apart from rent, most of the chargers are well within the limit. The utility bills will be around 170 euros per month, which helps manage the cost of living in Germany for Indian students. However, there is always an upside for living in a tier-1 city, but the cities like Berlin and Hamburg have exorbitantly high rents(around 1450 euros per month) when compared with the rest of Germany. So you should preferably choose a more convenient location if you have financial constraints with respect to monthly living expenses in Germany.

The cost of accommodation varies in Germany like any other country, and the prices also vary within a city. For instance, rent in central Munich is around 1450 euros per month for a 3BHK apartment, while the same apartment will have a rent of 1200 euros. Therefore, the average monthly cost of living in Germany is overly influenced by the type of accommodation you are choosing. Sharing arrangements are always the best way out to keep the living cost in Germany per month in a limited range. There are certain things a student can do to lower the impact of rent on the cost of living in Germany. One of the most effective things is to rent a place in an affordable neighborhood since the transport system in all the German cities is robust. In addition, the place of residence a little away from the city center can help bring down the average cost of living in Germany.

The cost of food items will never let your average expenditure in Germany breach the threshold of your finances. The only thing you need to do is to learn how to cook, and voila, all your worries will go away. There is a lot of upside to it. First, you will get home-cooked food. Secondly, it will help you save a ton of money, and third that you will always get the taste of Indian food. If you compare the cost of cooking at home with eating out, the wish to learn cooking will automatically stir. On average, lunch at a mid-range restaurant will cost you around 40-50 euros, while the monthly grocery bill will hardly cross 250 euros. So there is more than 1200% saving on cooking at home, and it will be reflected in your monthly living expenses in Germany.

When it comes to transport-related expenses, Germany is heaven for students. Students get unlimited access to public transport for free. The waiver of transportation cost is a big-time money saver for students. The cost of transportation through private mode is paid, and it is high. Taxi fares usually vary from one city to another, and in tier-1 cities, the cost of cabs is quite high. However, a free and robust transport system helps students save a lot on their living expenses in Germany. For accessing the free transport system, you have to have an ID from a German university. This has helped millions of students in Germany who come from different countries for their higher studies. In addition, the cost of living in Germany comes down substantially because of this policy of the German government.

The cost of other expenses will always depend on you. If you are ready to make certain amends in your finances, you will end up saving a lot. But if you will breach your financial limits, then your average expenditure in Germany will shot up for sure. Of course, there are certain expenses like study material and internet bills which can’t be compromised. But the cost of outing and partying can be curtailed for sure. Another way to take care of your expenses is to take up a part-time job that will help you manage the living cost in Germany per month and help you in doing some savings. Several students take up part-time jobs, which helps them take care of the miscellaneous expenses and are paid well. On average, a student can comfortably earn 700-800 euros per month by working 3 hours five days a week. The other expenses can also be maintained by choosing a relatively cheaper accommodation and cheaper internet plans. Or it can also be done by going to a low-range restaurant for lunches. These are few ways to keep your living expenses in Germany within a reasonable limit.

You donate have to pay taxes if the amount is less than 450 euros. If the amount exceeds it, then you will have to pay a certain amount of tax. However, the salary is taxable only if you are regularly earning more than 450 euros.

On average, an Indian student has to spend anywhere between INR 15,000-40,000 in monthly rent. The cost of living in Germany for Indian students also includes grocery and utility bills, usually in the range of INR 15,000-22,000.

No. Not all the institutions, only the public universities, are free by a new law passed by the government in 2014. Private institutions continue to charge the amount they wish to do, and at present, the fees in private institutions are between 15,00,000-40,00,000 per annum.

The average monthly expenses in Germany are relatively less than the rest of Europe. However, countries like France, Italy, Belgium have much higher levels of food prices when compared with Germany. Therefore, you will have to spend around 200 euros on monthly food bills, and it may increase or decrease depending on your lifestyle.