How Much Does It Cost to Live In Maastricht?
Maastricht is a city and a municipality in the southeast of the Netherlands, and at the same time, the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg.
When it comes to prices, Maastricht is generally cheaper than other major cities in the Netherlands.
The town is popular with tourists for shopping and recreation, and it has a large growing international student population due to the fact that it’s a university city.
The amount of money you spend in Maastricht depends solely on your preferences and lifestyle.
Netherlands : Cost of Living by City
Cost of Living in Netherlands
RESTAURANTS
Streets of Maastricht smell so good with its variety of food corners, bakery and sweet shops that you can’t resist but eat out. Luckily, you’re in one of the least expensive cities in the Netherlands, so you can go ahead and take a bite. Just be careful, because eating a meal outside could easily cost you as much as 20$ per person!
MARKETS
When it comes to groceries, the prices are the same as in most neighboring countries such as Belgium, France or Germany. There are many supermarkets where you can find everything you need at low price. A good piece of advice is that shopping in stores like Lidl or Aldi would save you a huge amount.
TRANSPORTATION
Transportation is rather simple in Maastricht because hardly anyone driver a car or uses public transportation – they usually use bikes or go on foot. Still, you can get a one-way ticket for public transport that costs around 4$ and a monthly pass for all forms of public transport that is rather expensive but useful, costing around 80$.
UTILITIES (MONTHLY)
Utilities are much less expensive in Maastricht than in, for instance, Amsterdam. Those living in a bit bigger apartments (like 85m2) will have to pay bills for all basic utilities like electricity, water, heating and cooling, that cost around 200$. Internet isn’t as expensive, amounting up to around 50$ a month – and that’s for a high speed internet, too.
SPORTS & LEISURE
Fitness and sports are not as expensive in Maastricht as in other Netherlands’ cities. If you want to go to a fitness club in Maastricht, you will have to pay around 35$ a month (which is actually less than the country’s average), or 24$ for an hour of renting a tennis court. If you want to watch a movie here, expect it to cost around 11$.
CLOTHING & SHOES
Shopping for clothes in Maastricht is as expensive as you would expect it to be in a country of such high standards – still, keep your mind focused and maybe you can find a piece of clothing for a smaller amount of money. Usually, jeans of good quality cost around 90$, quality sneakers around 100$, while lighter pieces of clothing are around 40$. Watch out for the discounts!
RENT PER MONTH
As mentioned many times, rent is the most expensive aspect of living in the Netherlands, and this applies to Maastricht, too. Though it’s still unbelievably high, rent in Maastricht is actually cheap compared to the rest of Netherlands. In this city, you cannot find an apartment to rent for less than 700$ if you’re looking for one located outside of the city center and 800$ for one in the city center.
Cost of Living Averages Table for Maastricht
*Note: All prices are indicated in USD.| Average Restaurant Prices | |
|---|---|
| Meal (Inexpensive Restaurant) | $14.91 |
| Domestic Beer (0.5 Liter) | $5.73 |
| Water (0.33 Liter) | $1.55 | Average Market Prices |
| Milk (1 Liter) | $0.96 |
| Loaf Bread (500g) | $1.31 |
| Eggs (12) | $2.98 | Average Transport Prices |
| One Way Ticket | $3.44 |
| Monthly Pass | $80.28 |
| Gasoline | $1.78 | Average Utilities Prices |
| Basic (Water, Electricity, Garbage, Heating, Cooling) | $195.20 |
| 1 min. of Prepaid Mobile Tariff Local | $0.17 |
| Internet (Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) | $46.83 | Average Leisure Prices |
| Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult | $35.75 |
| Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour) | $24.85 |
| Cinema, 1 Seat, International Release | $11.47 | Average Clothing Prices |
| 1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Comparable) | $92.71 |
| 1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, etc...) | $38.71 |
| 1 Pair of Adidas Walking Shoes (Mid-Range) | $105.52 | Average Rent Prices |
| Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Center | $785.00 |
| Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Center | $674.77 |
| Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Center | $1749.05 |
How Does the Average Person Spend Their Money in Maastricht?
Maastricht is actually one of the few cities where citizens don’t spend the biggest part of their salaries on rent.
In turn, they spend it in markets, shopping for food and necessities.
However, the rent is still extremely expensive in the Netherlands, and Maastricht is no exception so it’s the second thing people spend their money on.
Transportation and restaurants take up the next chunk of expenses on the list, since they are also pretty costly, given the fact that even the inexpensive restaurants don’t serve food for less than 15$ and you’ll need around 100$ to just be able to move around Maastricht using public transportation.
Average Costs Breakdown
Maastricht: Average Salary, Minimum Wage & Mortgages
Salaries in Maastricht are very high taking into consideration their expenses, but their general standard of living is high – a typical standard of the Netherlands as a whole.
With a minimum wage reaching above 1500$, a citizen of Maastricht can live in this country and cover all their expenses.
However, those that are renting have a harder time paying the bills and their monthly rent, but it is possible.
The average salary is well above 2500$ so an average citizen of Maastricht should have no problems living here, considering expenses in this city.
Cost of Living by City in Maastricht
| City | Cost of Living Index |
|---|---|
| Amsterdam | 82.14 |
| Eindhoven | 72.82 |
| Groningen | 72.29 |
| Leiden | 74.56 |
| Rotterdam | 74.08 |
| The Hague (Den Haag) | 76.75 |
| Utrecht | 76.3 |
