April 2006
Streets of Gold
Is Munich really a pricey place to live?
Munich oozes money. From the well-heeled dames who swan along Maximilianstrasse, to the coiffured dandies browsing the fine wines at Dallmayr, it’s not difficult to see why the city is often equated with wealth. Not surprisingly, this has led many people to the assumption that Munich is a costly place to live. Indeed, mention the fact you live here and you’ll provoke sharp intakes of breath, shaking heads and exclamations of “Ooh, it’s a bit expensive, isn’t it?” The city is regarded, both throughout the country and the world, as Germany’s most expensive metropole, with travel guide after travel guide warning of high prices at every corner. But is this the case? Would we expats be far better off back home? Or is the city’s swish image deceptive? Indeed, if you look at official studies, these assumptions do appear to be largely unfounded. According to Mercer, which carries out an annual study into the cost of living in cities around the world, by looking at the prices of 200 products and services, Munich ranks at number 37, after both Düsseldorf and Frankfurt. Beyond the German borders, it is officially a cheaper place to live than most European metropoles, including London, Paris, Rome, Vienna, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Milan, Geneva, Zurich, Budapest and even Prague, which continues to thrive on its “cheap” image. Where Munich does fall down somewhat is in comparison to American and Australian cities. Although it is still a cheaper place to live than New York and Sydney, Munich is classed as being more expensive than Los Angeles, San Francisco, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Wellington.
Anyone who still refuses to believe that they’ve a good deal, should take a look at another ranking. In terms of the amount of gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, Munich is the fourth richest city in Europe, after Frankfurt, Karlsruhe and Paris. So even though we’re all making a small fortune, it seems prices haven’t risen accordingly. Compare this to London, which is the 3rd most expensive place to live in the world, and yet only the 23rd richest city in Europe. If you want to rub your countrymen’s noses in it yet further, take a peek at Mercer’s quality-of-life survey, which ranked Munich as the 8th best place in the world to live, compared to London’s 69th place. This survey takes into account aspects such as personal security and crime, housing, educational standards and transport systems. So not only are we earning more, and paying less, we’re also enjoying some of the best living standards. Still considering heading back home?
