Cost of living in Berlin: how it really compares with London and the UK average

Berlin isn't the cheap-as-chips city of the 2000s, but if you're used to London rents, it still looks kind. The catch is finding a flat at all.

The short version

• Rents in existing Berlin leases average EUR 7.71 per m² before bills, but advertised flats asked a median of EUR 15.78 per m² in 2025, roughly double [4][5].
• A newly let 60 m² flat at that median comes to about EUR 950 a month before bills (about £790), against an average private rent of £2,338 in London and £1,406 across the UK [1][5].
• The Deutschlandticket covers all local and regional buses and trains in Germany for EUR 63 a month (about £52.50) [7].
• Health insurance is compulsory and comes out of your pay, typically at 14.6% plus a top-up, shared with your employer [3][10].
• The weekly shop is broadly on a par with the UK, and eating out is often cheaper than in London. German inflation was running at 2.8% in October 2026 [9].

Pound conversions use the Bank of England spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = EUR 1.2002).

Berlin vs London vs the UK at a glance

The ONS figures are averages for all private rents in September 2026, while the Berlin figures are per square metre, so treat the comparison as rough rather than like for like. The 60 m² line is our own arithmetic from the IBB median.

Rent: the big one

Rent is where Berlin both wins and bites. The city's official rent index (Mietspiegel) for 2026, published on 28 May 2026, puts the average net rent for existing leases at EUR 7.71 per m² [4]. That's what long-standing tenants pay, and it's used to check rent rises and the rent brake.

New tenants pay a lot more. The Investitionsbank Berlin's 2025 housing market report found advertised flats asked a median of EUR 15.78 per m², EUR 14.48 for older buildings and EUR 19.97 for new builds [5]. In the city centre the median was EUR 19.22 per m² (about £16.00), and outer districts generally ask less [5].

So on a 60 m² two-room flat:

1. At the Mietspiegel average, net rent would be about EUR 460 a month (about £385), which is what a lucky long-term tenant might pay.
2. At the 2025 asking median, it's about EUR 950 (about £790).
3. In a new build in Mitte or Prenzlauer Berg, expect more again.

Kaltmiete, Warmmiete and the deposit

Berlin listings quote the Kaltmiete (net cold rent). On top comes a monthly payment for service charges and usually heating (Nebenkosten), which together make the Warmmiete. Check which figure you're looking at: it's the commonest way Brits misjudge a budget. There's no council tax for tenants; property tax is passed on in the service charges.

Deposits (Kaution) can be up to three months' net rent, payable in instalments. Our guide to renting in Berlin covers contracts, the rent brake and the scams to avoid.

Getting around

Transport is where Berlin really beats London. The Deutschlandticket costs EUR 63 a month (about £52.50) since January 2026, up from EUR 58 [7]. It covers the U-Bahn, S-Bahn, trams and buses across Berlin and local and regional trains all over Germany, though not ICE or IC long-distance trains. It's a monthly subscription, usually bought through an app.

If you only travel occasionally, BVG's standard fares for Berlin zones A and B are [6]:

For most residents, the Deutschlandticket makes the standard monthly ticket pointless. Plenty of Berliners skip the car altogether; see driving and getting around Berlin.

Healthcare and other monthly bills

There's no NHS-style service paid from general taxes. Health insurance is compulsory for residents, and most employees join a public insurer (Krankenkasse) through work [3]. The public rate is 14.6% of salary plus each insurer's own extra contribution, roughly split between you and your employer [10]. Long-term care insurance and pension contributions come on top. It's a bigger payslip deduction than UK National Insurance, but it covers GP visits and hospital care. Our guide to healthcare in Berlin explains private cover and the S1.

Other bills to budget for:

• Broadcasting fee (Rundfunkbeitrag): EUR 18.36 a month per household, whether or not you own a telly [8]. Over a year that's about EUR 220 (about £184), close to the UK's £180 TV licence [2].
• Electricity and internet: contracts are often for 12 or 24 months; compare before you sign.
• Liability insurance (Haftpflichtversicherung): not compulsory, but almost every German has it, and some landlords ask.

The weekly shop and eating out

The weekly shop feels familiar. Aldi and Lidl are German, after all, and Berlin has plenty of both, plus Rewe, Edeka, Netto and Penny. Overall prices for a basic trolley are broadly on a par with a UK supermarket, with bread, beer and dairy often cheaper and some imported treats dearer. German consumer prices rose 2.8% in the year to October 2026, according to the first estimate from the federal statistics office [9].

Two habits to learn fast: shops close on Sundays, so Saturday is a scrum, and bottles and cans carry a deposit (Pfand) that you get back at the machine in the supermarket.

Eating out is where Berlin is kindest to anyone moving from London. A Döner, a Currywurst or a bowl of Vietnamese pho in Kreuzberg costs a fraction of a London lunch, and a beer in a corner Kneipe is usually cheaper than a pint in the capital. Fancy restaurants in Mitte charge London-ish prices, but tipping is lighter: rounding up or adding around 10% is normal.

If you're missing a proper cuppa or a Sunday roast, our guide to British food, shops and pubs in Berlin has the places that do them.

So is Berlin cheaper?

For most Brits moving from London, yes, mainly because of transport and the chance of a lower rent. Compared with the UK average outside London, it's closer: a newly let Berlin flat isn't cheap, social insurance takes a big bite of your pay, and there's no free-at-the-point NHS. Wages vary a lot by sector, so look at your net pay after tax and insurance, not the headline salary. See German taxes for Brits for how the tax side works.

For real-world numbers from people paying Berlin rents right now, our community group for Brits in Germany is the place to ask.

Sources

1. ONS: Private rent and house prices, UK, October 2026 (released 21 October 2026)
2. GOV.UK: TV Licence
3. GOV.UK (FCDO): Living in Germany (last updated 11 December 2025)
4. Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development: Berliner Mietspiegel 2026 veröffentlicht (28 May 2026)
5. Investitionsbank Berlin: IBB Housing Market Report 2025, summary (last revised March 2026)
6. BVG: All tickets
7. Hamburg.de: Das 63-Euro-Ticket
8. Rundfunkbeitrag: official site
9. Destatis: Consumer price index
10. Künstlersozialkasse: contribution rates 2026

Keep reading

• Renting in Berlin
• Moving to Berlin as a Brit: visa and residence routes
• Banking in Germany as a Brit
• Moving abroad checklist for Brits