Germany, Stuttgart

Country Full Name: Federal Republic of Germany.

Country Location: Germany is in Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark.

Country Climate: Temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm mountain wind.

Country Terrain: Lowlands in north, uplands in centre, Bavarian Alps in south.

Country Major Languages: German.

Country Major Religions: Christianity.

Location Population: 0.607 Mil (2012 est.).

Country Economy: The economy of Germany is the largest national economy in Europe, the fourth largest by nominal GDP in the world. The service sector contributes around 70% of the total GDP, industry 29.1%, and agriculture 0.9%. Most of the country's products are in engineering, especially in automobiles, machinery, metals, and chemical goods. Germany is the leading producer of wind turbines and solar power technology in the world.

Country Currency: Euro (EUR).

Country Inflation: 2% (2012 est.).

Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany.

Stuttgart is known for its high-tech industry with strong ties to the automotive, electronics, engineering and high-tech industry. The region currently has Germany's highest density of scientific, academic and research organisations.

The cost of living in Stuttgart is high compared to other places. This is based on a comparison of locally collected prices for defined quantities of the same goods and services, converted to USD. Sources include local service providers in each location, international service providers, official governmental statistics and global agency data. The data is quality assured and manually checked by Xpatulator Analysts. The prices of similar related items have been grouped together into 13 basket groups and the cost of living index calculated for each basket in each location. The 13 basket groups are the result of extensive research of actual spending habits ensuring the cost of living indexes reflect a reality-based international expenditure pattern. The cost of living index for each basket for Stuttgart is only available using our online calculators.

The current overall cost of living rank (using all 13 baskets) for Stuttgart is 189 out of 780 international locations covering every country in the world (rank 1 is most expensive: rank 780 is least expensive). The current cost of living rank for each basket is as follows:

Alcohol & Tobacco costs are low compared to other places for items such as beer, spirits, wine and cigarettes. There are 576 places that are more expensive, and 203 places that are less expensive for alcohol and or tobacco.

Clothing costs are very high compared to other places for items such as business, casual and children's clothing and footwear. There are 130 places that are more expensive, and 649 places that are less expensive for clothing.

Communication costs are very low compared to other places for various communication costs such as home telephone rental, internet subscription, mobile tariff and data costs. There are 687 places that are more expensive, and 92 places that are less expensive for communication.

Education costs are low compared to other places for items such as creche / pre-school fees, primary school fees, high school fees and tertiary study fees. There are 538 places that are more expensive, and 241 places that are less expensive for education.

Furniture & Appliance costs are average compared to other places for items such as dining table and chairs, home entertainment, kitchen appliances, and sofa. There are 314 places that are more expensive, and 465 places that are less expensive for furniture and appliances.

Grocery costs are high compared to other places for items such as consumables, cleaning products, dairy, fresh fruit & vegetables, general food products, snacks, soft drinks. There are 180 places that are more expensive, and 599 places that are less expensive for groceries.

Healthcare costs are very high compared to other places for doctor visit, hospital stay, non-prescription medicine, and medical insurance. There are 68 places that are more expensive, and 711 places that are less expensive for healthcare.

Household Accommodation costs are average compared to other places for items such as apartment purchase, mortgage rate, rental, and utilities. There are 376 places that are more expensive, and 403 places that are less expensive for household accommodation.

Miscellaneous costs are high compared to other places for items such as dry cleaning, linen, magazines, newspapers, office supplies, and postage stamps. There are 216 places that are more expensive, and 563 places that are less expensive for miscellaneous items.

Personal Care costs are very high compared to other places for items such as cosmetics, hair care, and toiletries. There are 35 places that are more expensive, and 744 places that are less expensive for personal care.

Recreation and Culture costs are very high compared to other places for items such as books, cinema, sport and theatre tickets. There are 95 places that are more expensive, and 684 places that are less expensive for recreation and culture.

Restaurants, Meals Out and Hotel costs are very high compared to other places for items such as hotel daily room rates, meals and beverages in restaurants, and take away food and beverages. There are 109 places that are more expensive, and 670 places that are less expensive for restaurants, meals out and hotels.

Transport costs are very high compared to other places for items such as fuel (petrol/gasoline), public transport, vehicle purchase and maintenance. There are 122 places that are more expensive, and 657 places that are less expensive for transport.

Hardship
Hardship in the context of an expatriate and their family refers to the degree of hardship they are likely to experience and the relative impact on their lifestyle in a host location. The degree of hardship correlates to the degree of difference between the home and host location. Hardship pay is compensation for the hardship likely to be endured during an international assignment in order to encourage people to move, in particular to less desirable locations.

Hardship factors include-:
Economic Factors: Such as poverty levels and level of service provision
Political Factors: Such as freedom/tolerance towards different points of view / lifestyle
Religious Factors: Such as freedom/tolerance towards different religions
Public Service Factors: Such as provision of water, electricity, sanitation, work permits etc
Environment/Climate Factors: Such as extreme weather
Personal Safety Factors: Such as personal safety / level of crime
Health Factors: Such as prevalence of disease and health standards
Education Factors: Such as education standards, prevalence of international schools
Transportation Factors: Such as prevalence of public transport, fuel and road safety.

The ratings for hardship are classified into four main groups and can be described as follows:
1) Minimal Hardship (10% Hardship Premium)
2) Some Hardship (20% Hardship Premium)
3) High degree of Hardship (30% Hardship Premium)
4) Extreme Hardship (40% Hardship Premium).

Stuttgart is ranked as minimal hardship with a typical hardship premium of 10%.

Reference
The above information is updated quarterly using data collected over the previous 12 months. The international cost of living & hardship indexes are only available using our online expatriate calculators to enable users to create personalized cost of living comparison reports:

Salary Purchasing Power Parity Calculator
Cost of Living Index Calculator
Cost of Living Allowance Calculator

Published by Xpatulator.com on 1 April 2013.

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