512 euros - that's how much the average rent for a student room in a shared apartment in Germany costs at the beginning of the new summer semester. It is most expensive in Berlin, Hamburg and Bavaria. Prices are growing faster than general inflation.
The shortage of living space and high rents remain a huge problem for students in Germany. At the beginning of the summer semester, which starts on April 1, a room in a shared student apartment (so-called WG) already costs an average of 512 euros per month, as shown by the latest data from the Moses Mendelssohn Institute. Compared to last year, this is an increase of almost four percent.
The analysis includes all 89 university cities with over 5,000 students. At the beginning of the winter semester, the average rent for students exceeded 500 euros per month for the first time.
Housing costs are growing faster than prices
The rate of increase in the price of student housing has slowed down slightly, but overall rents remain at a very high level and are growing faster than general inflation, the institute's report states. "When housing costs are rising faster than the overall cost of living, people with smaller budgets are bearing an increasing burden", said project manager Stefan Brauckmann, quoted by public broadcaster ARD.
Annegret Mühlbayer from the website WG-Gesucht.de, which is a partner in the study, explains that the most sought-after are shared rooms, which are still relatively cheap. Many of the offers disappear literally in a day, she points out: "For students, the search for housing is increasingly becoming a competition, in which only those who react quickly and apply immediately are often successful."
The MLP 2025 student housing report, prepared in cooperation with the Institute for German Economics, came to similar conclusions in October last year. "The lack of living space is increasingly becoming a problem for the attractiveness of Germany as a university and economic center", it states.
The challenge is particularly great for foreign students, as they are unfamiliar with the country, the specifics of the market and the local classifieds networks, ARD points out.
Significant differences between eastern and western states
The current data from the Moses Mendelssohn Institute primarily show regional differences: while students pay the most in Berlin and Hamburg (650 euros each), as well as in Bavaria (605 euros), in the eastern states of Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt students pay significantly less for a room - 372 and 358 euros respectively.
Among the largest university cities, the Bavarian metropolis Munich remains the most expensive - an average of 800 euros per month for student accommodation. Berlin, Hamburg and Cologne follow – with 620 euros per month.
Against this background, the head of the study, Stefan Brauckmann, calls for an increase in the state aid BAföG, which is granted to pupils and students in Germany. It currently amounts to 380 euros, the public broadcaster ARD recalls.