Cost of living comparison

compared to

Rotterdam vs. Berlin Cost of Living Summary

Rotterdam is 20.0% more expensive than Berlin.

Restaurants
pay 12.3% more in Rotterdam
Groceries
pay 5.4% less in Rotterdam
Transportation
pay 25.7% more in Rotterdam
Housing
pay 23.0% more in Rotterdam
Childcare
pay 3.9 times more in Rotterdam
Entertainment and Sports
pay 14.4% more in Rotterdam
Clothing
pay 3.7% less in Rotterdam

The cost of childcare, transportation, housing, entertainment and sports, and restaurants in Rotterdam are more expensive than in Berlin. Expenses including groceries and clothing are lower in Rotterdam. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Rotterdam.

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Rotterdam vs. Berlin Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Rotterdam instead of Berlin, you would:

pay 12.3% more for restaurants

 
Berlin
Rotterdam
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $16.80
€14.95
$20.72
€18.44
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
 $13.44
€11.96
$13.44
€11.96
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $3.44
€3.06
$3.86
€3.44
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pay 5.4% less for groceries

 
Berlin
Rotterdam
Bread
1 loaf
 $2.40
€2.14
$2.37
€2.11
Local cheese (8 oz) $8.59
€7.65
$6.02
€5.35
Milk (1 gallon) $4.72
€4.20
$5.52
€4.91
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pay 25.7% more for transportation

 
Berlin
Rotterdam
Gasoline (1 gallon) $8.66
€7.71
$9.75
€8.68
Monthly public transit pass $70.54
€62.79
$110.85
€98.66
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $32,914.63
€29,295.20
$41,419.02
€36,864.42
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pay 23.0% more for housing

 
Berlin
Rotterdam
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
 $48.20
€42.90
$54.94
€48.90
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,478.95
€1,316.32
$1,961.78
€1,746.05
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $1,114.14
€991.62
$1,523.86
€1,356.29
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pay 3.9 times more for childcare

 
Berlin
Rotterdam
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $144.45
€128.56
$2,681.14
€2,386.32
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $15,853.22
€14,109.93
$12,697.80
€11,301.50
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pay 14.4% more for entertainment and sports

 
Berlin
Rotterdam
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $5.43
€4.83
$7.05
€6.28
Cappuccino in mid-range area $4.34
€3.86
$4.38
€3.90
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
 $10.53
€9.37
$14.56
€12.96
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pay 3.7% less for clothing

 
Berlin
Rotterdam
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
 $95.44
€84.95
$93.71
€83.41
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
 $47.03
€41.86
$39.14
€34.83
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
 $104.60
€93.09
$109.92
€97.83
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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated October 2026). How we calculate this

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Compare further: Berlin vs. Rotterdam

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Berlin is about 2.8 times bigger than Rotterdam.
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