Germany, Cologne

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: 1.01 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.).

Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city (after Berlin, Hamburg and Munich), and is the largest city both in the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.

Cologne is known as an important media centre. Cologne is a major cultural centre of the Rhineland and has a vibrant arts scene.

The cost of living in Cologne 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 Cologne is only available using our online calculators.

The current overall cost of living rank (using all 13 baskets) for Cologne is 224 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 590 places that are more expensive, and 189 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 151 places that are more expensive, and 628 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 712 places that are more expensive, and 67 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 high compared to other places for items such as dining table and chairs, home entertainment, kitchen appliances, and sofa. There are 294 places that are more expensive, and 485 places that are less expensive for furniture and appliances.

Grocery costs are average compared to other places for items such as consumables, cleaning products, dairy, fresh fruit & vegetables, general food products, snacks, soft drinks. There are 330 places that are more expensive, and 449 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 74 places that are more expensive, and 705 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 362 places that are more expensive, and 417 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 213 places that are more expensive, and 566 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 37 places that are more expensive, and 742 places that are less expensive for personal care.

Recreation and Culture costs are high compared to other places for items such as books, cinema, sport and theatre tickets. There are 158 places that are more expensive, and 621 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 74 places that are more expensive, and 705 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 118 places that are more expensive, and 661 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).

Cologne 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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