We recently compiled a list of the 20 Best Places to Live in Germany and in this article we will discuss the best place.
Germany’s Economy: An Overview
Germany’s economy declined in 2023 with the country’s real GDP dropping by 0.2%. The German economy declined by 0.5% in the last quarter of 2023 alone. According to a report by Reuters, the country skirted a recession at the start of 2024, rising by 0.2% in Q1 of 2024 as compared to the previous three months (in adjusted terms). However, estimates by the European Commission show that economic activity in the country is anticipated to grow at a 0.2% rate quarter-over-quarter in 2024. While Germany’s purchasing power recovered significantly in 2023, private consumption in the country remained sluggish. In addition, the country’s exports are being negatively affected by intermediate goods and dwindling foreign demand for capital. Nevertheless, real GDP growth in the country is expected to rise by 0.1% in 2024. The growth is anticipated to continue till 2025, forecasting to bounce back to 1.0% in 2025.
Inflation in Germany has continuously decreased since October 2022, driven by a fall in wholesale energy prices. Specialized measures taken by the country to deal with the high energy prices are one of the primary reasons behind this recovery. Inflation in the country is expected to reduce to 2.4% in 2024 and 2.0% in 2025 from 6.0% in 2023. For more insight, you can look at 12 Most Innovative Economies in Europe.
Russian Gas and Germany’s Manufacturing Industry: What Does the Future Look Like?
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Germany ranks among the only G7 economies to decline in 2023, and thus is facing several economic challenges. The country powered its export industries by importing cheap gas from Russia in the past decades. However, the closure of this importing avenue in 2022 plunged the country’s economic sector into turmoil, increasing inflation and the cost of living.
Fortunately, the effects of this ordeal are proving to be temporary. Although wholesale gas prices soared in the country in 2022, they have returned to their 2018 levels in 2024. Other German sectors are also on the path to recovery, with the country’s terms-of-trade bouncing back to levels before the Russian gas shutdown. The trade surplus in the country touched 4.3% of GDP in 2023, which was higher than the average surplus of the last two decades. This number is expected to rise further in 2024.
The Climate in Germany’s Manufacturing Industry
Although Robert Habeck, Vice-Chancellor of Germany, called the country’s economic situation “dramatically bad” and brought the government’s forecast for 2024’s economic growth down from 1.3% to 0.2% in February, the country’s manufacturing industry continues to hold the top spot in the world. According to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization’s Competitive Industrial Performance (CIP) Index, Germany holds the top spot as the most competitive manufacturing sector in the world as of 2023, managing to retain this position since 2001.
Although increasing competition from China’s manufacturing industry and structural limitations to growth in the German sector are posing challenges for the country’s manufacturing industry, the situation is not all bleak. Germany still houses numerous multinational manufacturing companies, and ranks among the top countries in the manufacturing industry. This includes the Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (ETR:BMW), more commonly known as BMW, headquartered in Munich, Germany. BMW (ETR:BMW) is one of the largest luxury automotive manufacturing companies in the world, and plays a prominent role in driving Germany’s economy. Spread across four brands, including BMW, BMW Motorrad, Rolls-Royce, and MINI, BMW (ETR:BMW) holds more than 30 production sites across the globe.
In 2022, Germany became the largest export market in the world due to BMW (ETR:BMW) Manufacturing, which made up 15.5% of export volume. It was followed by China, South Korea, Canada, and Great Britain, standing at 13.5%, 12.8%, 7.5%, and 5.6% of export volume. The company’s global sales network spans over 140 countries, delivering a total of 2.5 million vehicles to customers around the world in 2023 at an all-time high. The demand increased by 6.4% between 2022 and 2023, showcasing a positive trend for the German company. According to a report by Bloomberg, the company announced plans to invest €650 million ($712 million) at the beginning of 2024 to revamp its Munich flagship factory and transform it into BMW (ETR:BMW)’s first electric vehicle manufacturing site that will focus on EVs only. The renovation, which involves the building of a new assembly line and four buildings, is expected to be completed by the end of 2027. However, it will start manufacturing the next-generation ‘Neue Klasse’ EVs from 2026, ushering in a new age for the company’s EV domain in Germany and driving the country’s economy.
Pixabay/Public Domain
Our Methodology
In order to compile a list of the 20 best places to live in Germany, we used a consensus approach and a visitor survey through Reddit. Firstly, we consulted ten online liveability resources to compile a list of the 30 best places to live in Germany. Next, we looked at ten Reddit threads that asked commenters to mention the best places to live in Germany. We only chose threads that had more than 50 comments and studied more than 500 comments to shortlist the places with the most recommendations by Reddit users. We then counted the number of upvotes on each comment and chose the top 20 places with the most number of upvotes. The 20 best places to live in Germany are arranged in ascending order of their number of upvotes on Reddit.
Note: This list is not exhaustive and does not reflect our opinion. The ranking is solely based on the opinions of mass consumers on Reddit.
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The Best Place to Live in Germany
1. Berlin
Number of Reddit Upvotes: 546
Berlin ranks first on our list of the 20 best places to live in Germany with 546 upvotes on Reddit. Berlin is the capital of Germany, and is the largest city in the country, both by area and population. Dating back to the 13th century, the city is lined with historical landmarks, with a majority of them pointing to the country’s turbulent 20th-century history. These include the gratified remains of the Berlin Wall and Holocaust Memorial. The city houses numerous reputable educational institutions, including the Humboldt University of Berlin, the Technical University of Berlin, and the Free University of Berlin. Berlin is highly suitable for expats due to its international nature, and is popular destination for both living and traveling.
Curious to learn about other places that ranked high on our rankings? Check out our report on the 20 Best Places to Live in Germany.
At Insider Monkey, we delve into a variety of topics, ranging from the best places to live in Germany to business aspects; however, our expertise lies in identifying the top-performing stocks. Currently, Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology stands out as one of the most promising fields. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than NVDA but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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