For anyone relocating to Stuttgart from overseas, here is the data that matters before you commit: income, jobs, housing, connectivity, taxes and who lives here, straight from German Regionalstatistik, the Zensus 2022 and the Breitbandatlas.
As one of Baden-Württemberg’s cities, Stuttgart concentrates people, work and cost into a small area. What jumps out is the rent: the most expensive of Baden-Württemberg’s 44 districts.
How Stuttgart compares
Where Stuttgart ranks against all 400 of Germany’s districts (Kreise); building-land prices are recorded for 394 of them. Each bar fills to the percentile shown; hover for the underlying figure.
Stuttgart compared with Germany’s other major cities
The bars above set Stuttgart against all 400 German districts, most of them rural. If you are weighing up job offers, the more useful question is how it sits against the cities it actually competes with.
| # | City | Net cold rent | Income / resident | Median wage | Jobs / 1,000 | Unemployment | Fibre (FTTB/H) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Berlin | €7.67/m² | €26,209 | €4,150 | 457 | 10.3% | 53% |
| 2 | Hamburg | €9.16/m² | €29,620 | €4,350 | 582 | 8.3% | 80% |
| 3 | Munich | €12.89/m² | €38,190 | €5,100 | 649 | 5.4% | 77% |
| 4 | Cologne | €9.39/m² | €28,764 | €4,450 | 617 | 9.1% | 66% |
| 5 | Frankfurt | €10.58/m² | €29,442 | €4,850 | 861 | 6.9% | 39% |
| 6 | Düsseldorf | €9.24/m² | €32,446 | €4,700 | 744 | 8.0% | 38% |
| 7 | Stuttgart | €10.39/m² | €31,390 | €4,950 | 723 | 6.6% | 41% |
Rent is the average net cold rent (Nettokaltmiete) from the 2022 census, income is disposable income per resident (2023), median wage is full-time gross per month (2024), jobs and unemployment are 2025, fibre coverage end of 2025.
Scale the average rent to a 70 m² flat for a year and set it against disposable income per resident, and Stuttgart comes out at 27.8%, 5th of these seven cities. Düsseldorf leads the group at 23.9%; Frankfurt trails at 30.2%.
Read that ratio as a comparison device rather than a household budget: disposable income is spread across every resident, children and pensioners included, and the rent is the 2022 census level for tenants already in place. What it does show reliably is the direction of travel.
Where Stuttgart lags is fibre. 41% of households can get fibre to the building, against Hamburg 80%, Munich 77%, Cologne 66%. Gigabit over upgraded cable is widely available, so most addresses still get a fast line, but if you specifically need FTTB/H, check the address before you sign.
Why people move to Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the centre of the German car industry and does not pretend otherwise. Mercedes-Benz has built cars in Untertürkheim since before the First World War, Porsche has been in Zuffenhausen since 1938, and Bosch, the world’s largest automotive supplier, is headquartered just outside the city. Around them sits an enormous cluster of engineering firms, machine builders and suppliers — the reason the median wage on this page is among the highest in Germany.
It is also the reason for the main risk. The industry is in the middle of a transition to electric drivetrains that needs fewer parts and fewer people, and the supplier base around Stuttgart is more exposed to that than anywhere else in the country. It is worth understanding which side of that shift a prospective employer sits on.
Geographically the city is unusual: it sits in a steep basin, the Kessel, with vineyards running down the slopes into the centre. That makes it green and striking and also cramped — there is very little flat land left to build on, which is a large part of why housing is expensive. The airport is about half an hour out on the S-Bahn, and the long-running Stuttgart 21 rebuilding of the main station is finally nearing completion.
Neighbourhoods: Stuttgart-West and Süd are the dense, popular inner districts. Degerloch and Sillenbuch sit up on the plateau, quieter and family-shaped. Bad Cannstatt is cheaper and more mixed, with the mineral baths and the stadium. Vaihingen is the university and tech end. The honest caveat: Stuttgart is expensive, hemmed in, and famously reserved. The Swabian stereotype about hard work and thrift is not entirely a stereotype.
Jobs and the economy
5% above DE avg
More people work in Stuttgart than its size suggests. It holds 443,058 jobs at local workplaces in 2025, 723 for every 1,000 residents, the kind of ratio you only get where commuters pour in each morning rather than out. Those jobs are spread across 32,158 registered businesses (2024), a rough measure of how varied the local employers are. Unemployment came in at 6.6% in 2025 (German average 6.3%), roughly one in 15 of the local workforce.
The median full-time worker here earns €4,950 a month gross (25% above the German median of €3,950), before tax and social contributions. It is not the same as the disposable income above: that is per resident after tax and transfers, this is gross pay for those in work. Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit, 2024.
Cost of living and housing
43% above DE avg
10% above DE avg
Housing is the line item that bites in Stuttgart. The average net cold rent (Nettokaltmiete) is €10.39 per m², about 43% above the German average of €7.28. It reflects existing tenancies from the 2022 census; expect to pay above it on a new contract. Residents are left with €31,390 a year to spend (48th highest of 400 German districts, 8th in Baden-Württemberg). That puts it about 10% above Germany’s €28,453 average. On its own that number tells half the story; the local cost of living does the rest. Building plots go for around €1,010 per m², the 7th highest of 394 districts with a recorded price, the bare ground before a brick is laid and the floor under every local rent. For scale, the median district nationally sits near €132 per m². Put through a 70 m² flat, €10.39/m² comes to roughly €727 a month cold (the 2022 sitting-tenant level; a fresh contract costs more). Relative to what people here earn, it is the 43rd most affordable of Baden-Württemberg’s 44 districts. Rents are steep, but the jobs are genuinely here rather than a commute away.
The local housing market
What you are renting into, on the 2022 census: 68.8% of homes are rented rather than owner-occupied; the vacancy rate is 3.5% (roughly in balance); the average home measures 80 m². The stock is 317,422 homes in 75,971 buildings, about 4.2 per building, so this is dominated by apartment blocks. In the latest year 157 new dwellings were completed against 87 permits, which hints at how much new housing is actually coming through.
Who lives in Stuttgart
Age profile and household make-up from the 2022 census.
Age distribution
This is a comparatively youthful district. 31.9% of residents are aged 25 to 45, the bracket most relocations fall into, with 13.1% under 15 and 18.4% at 65 or older. The 2022 census fills in the rest: 35.6% of residents have a migration history (25.7% are foreign nationals); 47.9% of households are single-person; 49.7% of adults hold an Abitur / university-entrance qualification. As a newcomer from abroad you would blend straight in; this is a properly international place. Local schools serve 59,330 pupils. Daycare places get easier to find as children get older: about 4.8% of under-1s, 49.3% of 1 to 2 year olds and 75.5% of 2 to 3 year olds have a place, so a place for a baby is the hard part, much less so for a toddler.
Internet & connectivity
Share of households that can get each speed (Breitbandatlas, end of 2025). Gigabit may run over fibre or upgraded cable; true fibre (FTTB/H) is shown separately.
98% of households are within reach of at least 100 Mbit/s on a fixed line, and 88% can reach gigabit (1,000 Mbit/s) speeds (Breitbandatlas, end of 2025). True fibre to the building (FTTB/H) reaches 41% of households; the remaining gigabit coverage is delivered over upgraded cable. On mobile, 5G reaches 100% of households. For remote work, including for an overseas employer, most addresses here are well covered.
Where Stuttgart is in Germany
Recorded crime
The local rate of recorded offences, per 100,000 residents.
Police recorded 8,797 offences per 100,000 residents in 2025 (the Häufigkeitszahl), 73% above the German district median of about 5,096. This counts offences registered by the police, not convictions, and is inflated wherever offenders and victims are not residents: city centres, major stations, motorways and airports all push it up. It reflects recorded activity in the area, not how dangerous the place is for the people who live there. Source: Polizeiliche Kriminalstatistik, BKA 2025.
Local taxes
For most people moving here, local tax is a non-event. Local trade tax (Gewerbesteuer) runs at a multiplier of 420%. It is levied on a base figure set by the tax office and applies to registered businesses, not to salaries or rent. Tenants meet the property tax (Grundsteuer B) indirectly, via the monthly Nebenkosten. We quote no figure: the 2025 reform reset every rate and the new ones are still settling.
Moving in and out
shrinking
The headcount in Stuttgart is edging down. In 2024, 43,220 moved in and 43,384 moved out, a net of -164. Departures outnumber arrivals, easing pressure on housing. In 2024 the district naturalised 2,492 residents, a naturalisation rate of 1.5%. Some 22,980 people here hold or are seeking protection status, about 37.5 per 1,000 residents, the combined asylum, refugee and humanitarian total, with Ukrainians counted here since 2022. Voter turnout last time around was 82.9%.
Just arrived in Stuttgart? Sort these first
In a city like Stuttgart, the practical stuff (internet, banking, a SIM) is easier arranged early than scrambled for on arrival.
FAQ: relocating to Stuttgart
How are job prospects in Stuttgart?
Stuttgart has 443,058 jobs (723 per 1,000 residents, including commuters) and 6.6% unemployment, roughly one in 15 of the local workforce, against 6.3% across Germany.
What does it cost to live in Stuttgart?
Net cold rent averages €10.39 per m², 43% above the German average of €7.28. That is the 2022 census level for sitting tenants; a new contract costs more. Residents have €31,390 of disposable income a year (48th highest of 400 German districts, 8th in Baden-Württemberg). That puts it about 10% above Germany’s €28,453 average. It is not adjusted for local prices, so treat it as a headline only.
Is Stuttgart urban or countryside?
With about 2,955 residents per km², Stuttgart is firmly on the urban side.
Will broadband in Stuttgart support remote work?
98% of households can get a fixed line of at least 100 Mbit/s, 88% gigabit of which 41% true fibre (FTTB/H); 5G mobile reaches 100% (Breitbandatlas, end of 2025), so remote work is fine at most addresses.
Where does Stuttgart stand versus the German average?
Compared with Germany overall: unemployment 6.6% versus 6.3% nationally; income €31,390 (10% above the €28,453 average); building land €1,010/m² against a €132 median.
Other places in Baden-Württemberg
Source: Regionaldatenbank Deutschland (regionalstatistik.de), Statistische Ämter des Bundes und der Länder; supplementary data via Destatis GENESIS-Online. Housing, household, education and migration figures from the Zensus 2022. Broadband coverage from the Breitbandatlas (© MIG, BMDV). Recorded crime from the Polizeiliche Kriminalstatistik (BKA, 2025). Median full-time gross wages from the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (2024). Years per field: population 2024, jobs and unemployment 2025, income 2023, businesses, building activity and land 2024, naturalisations 2024, childcare 2025; rent, vacancy, ownership, dwelling size, single-person households, education and migration 2022 (Zensus); broadband end of 2025 (Breitbandatlas). · How we built this ›