Cost of living comparison
compared to
Dortmund vs. Washington Cost of Living Summary
Dortmund is 10.1% cheaper than Washington.
- Restaurants
-
pay 6.7% less in Dortmund
- Groceries
-
pay 25.6% less in Dortmund
- Transportation
-
pay 35.6% more in Dortmund
- Housing
-
pay 7.8% less in Dortmund
- Childcare
-
pay 55.6% less in Dortmund
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 28.8% less in Dortmund
- Clothing
-
pay 18.4% more in Dortmund
The cost of transportation and clothing in Dortmund are more expensive than in Washington. Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, groceries, housing, and restaurants are lower in Dortmund.
Dortmund vs. Washington Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Dortmund instead of Washington, you would:
pay 6.7% less for restaurants
|
Washington
|
Dortmund
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$25.00
|
$17.52
€14.82
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.00
|
$12.85
€10.87
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.20
|
$2.92
€2.47
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.79
|
$2.92
€2.47
|
|
Washington vs. Dortmund - Cost of restaurants
pay 25.6% less for groceries
|
Washington
|
Dortmund
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$4.43
|
$2.40
€2.03
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.04
|
$7.50
€6.34
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.19
|
$4.59
€3.89
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.55
|
$3.95
€3.35
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$7.74
|
$6.56
€5.55
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.95
|
$1.50
€1.27
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.92
|
$0.88
€0.74
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.20
|
$1.11
€0.94
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$3.00
|
$2.29
€1.94
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.35
|
$0.84
€0.71
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.64
|
$0.88
€0.74
|
|
Washington vs. Dortmund - Cost of groceries
pay 35.6% more for transportation
|
Washington
|
Dortmund
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.53
|
$7.75
€6.56
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$77.50
|
$67.74
€57.32
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$35,699.74
|
$31,745.96
€26,862.38
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.73
|
$24.53
€20.75
|
|
Washington vs. Dortmund - Cost of transportation
pay 7.8% less for housing
|
Washington
|
Dortmund
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$69.41
|
$54.51
€46.12
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,568.48
|
$840.95
€711.59
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$2,088.16
|
$621.95
€526.28
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$146.54
|
$333.77
€282.43
|
|
Washington vs. Dortmund - Cost of housing
pay 55.6% less for childcare
|
Washington
|
Dortmund
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,650.00
|
$424.37
€359.09
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$40,166.67
|
$29,199.74
€24,707.86
|
|
Washington vs. Dortmund - Cost of childcare
pay 28.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
Washington
|
Dortmund
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$8.00
|
$5.84
€4.94
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$6.07
|
$3.69
€3.12
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$13.00
|
$9.58
€8.10
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$103.76
|
$45.32
€38.35
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$16.75
|
$17.52
€14.82
|
|
Washington vs. Dortmund - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 18.4% more for clothing
|
Washington
|
Dortmund
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$76.00
|
$94.61
€80.05
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$48.40
|
$54.02
€45.71
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.31
|
$107.46
€90.92
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$133.22
|
$179.09
€151.54
|
|
Washington vs. Dortmund - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: March 2026
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in United States vs. Germany.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within United States and Germany.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
Ask the Elsewhere Community
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Dortmund or Washington. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.