What Kind of private Student Accommodation  in Germany is Available?

There is a wide variety of private accommodation in Germany in every city. You will find offers for empty rooms and fully furnished apartments. Therefore, you could look for a flat or room to let. If you prefer to live alone, you can rent your own flat. This is the most comfortable, but also the most expensive form of accommodation. Students pay on average 389 EUR per month for their own flat.

Rooms in shared flats are often available, as well. A shared flat (WG) is one in which several people live. Each flatmate has a room of his / her own and shares the kitchen, bathroom and sometimes the living room, as well. The cost of rent, telephone and internet is divided between all the flatmates. This form of accommodation is very popular among students. over 30 percent of students in Germany live in a flatshare. On average, students pay 363 EUR per month for a room in a shared flat.

In most cases, tenancy contracts must be signed in person on location. This means that you will have to wait until you arrive in Germany before you can finally secure private accommodation. But you can already prepare for your search by looking into possibilities via the internet right before you leave, and perhaps arrange an appointment to view a flat.

Where can I spend the first nights in Germany (the interim solution)?

You don’t have a place to stay when you arrive in Germany? Before you leave, you should decide where you plan to spend the first few nights. There are a number of possibilities which the International Office at your university can tell you more about.

In some cities, the Studentenwerk and university community offer new students affordable places to stay for the first days. Of course, you always have the option of staying at a private Pension (a small hotel), a youth hotel or a youth hostel. If you wish to take a room at a youth hostel, you must be a member of the International Youth Hostel Federation. You can apply for membership directly at the youth hostel for a small fee.

Other Less Popular Student Accommodation in Germany

A. Living for help – housing partnerships between young and old

As a student, your monthly budget for rent is probably limited. Therefore, you may also be able to find low-cost or free housing alternatives. For example, in the Wohnen für Hilfe (Living for Help) project, which was launched by the German Student Union, you live with older people free of charge and in return help them with everyday activities such as shopping, gardening or cooking.

B. Sharing a flat with older people

Even independently of projects like Living for Help, there are many older people who rent out rooms to students, as they feel more comfortable having someone close by to ask for help in an emergency. Since older people are often old-fashioned, you will often find such requests in newspapers or on notice boards in public places in the city. But you can also sometimes find rooms or self-contained flats that pensioners sublet to students on housing portals.

C. Living with a host family

Living with a host family can be particularly attractive for students from abroad, as it can help you to build up an initial social environment and find your way around in your new surroundings. In your guest family, you are immediately immersed in German everyday culture and can also improve your language skills every day.

List of websites to find Student Accommodation in Germany

If you are a student and want to find a flat in Germany, you have a good choice of the best-known flat portals. On Immobilienscout24, Immowelt or Immonet you can find furnished studios, one-room or multi-room flats. It’s always worth a browse. However, since most flats on these portals are offered without furnishings, you should use filters when looking for accommodation on these portals that only show you furnished flats. These portals often offer long-term rentals and are worthwhile if you plan to stay in Germany for at least a year. Alternatively, you can find furnished student accommodation on websites such as Uniplaces or Homelike.

Unfurnished long-term apartments:

Note: The offers on these websites are public and usually receive many requests within minutes after they go online. You need to be really quick and have all your documents for the apartment application ready.

• ImmoScout: https://www.immobilienscout24.de/
• Ebay Kleinanzeigen: https://www.ebay-kleinanzeigen.de/
• https://www.immowelt.de/ (only available in German)
• https://www.meinestadt.de/ (only available in German)
• Berlin, offers by major local housing associations: https://inberlinwohnen.de/ (only available in German)

Fully furnished rooms: 

• AirBnB (watch out: most providers on AirBnB do not provide “Anmeldung”): https://www.airbnb.com/
• Wunderflats: https://wunderflats.com/
• spotahome: https://www.spotahome.com/
• Homelike: https://www.thehomelike.com/

Shared flats

• WG gesucht: https://www.wg-gesucht.de/en/
• WG Suche: https://en.wg-suche.de/

+ Join city-specific groups on Facebook

Student housing: 

• Berlin: https://www.stw.berlin/en/housing.html 
• Munich: https://www.studentenwerk-muenchen.de/en/student-accommodation/ 
• Aachen: https://www.studierendenwerk-aachen.de/en/housing.html 

-> (Pro Tip: Google “Studentenwerk” + the city you will move to to find your local student union)