Living in Mannheim

Yes – living is becoming more expensive and Mannheim is affected by increasing rents, too. However, in Mannheim, the cost of housing is not nearly as high as in Munich, Heidelberg, Cologne, Berlin or Hamburg. Therefore, it is comparatively easy to find a shared apartment or a place of your own. When it comes to monthly rental costs for a place of your own and a shared apartment, Mannheim is in the lower third among 30 university locations analyzed (Source: Report on students’ living situation (Studentenwohnreport) of the German Economic Institute). If you need help with the first steps or an overview of the different neighborhoods, please refer to the information on this page.

Student housing, shared apartment or a place of your own – what do you prefer?

If you want to live with many students from different areas of the university and countries of the world under one roof and meet new people this way, living in a shared apartment in a residence hall might be the right fit for you. The Studierendenwerk Mannheim manages around 3,000 rooms in 17 residence halls across the entire city.

If you prefer to live in a smaller shared apartment and share a kitchen and bathroom with your roommates, check out www.wg-gesucht.de. Here you can search existing ads but also submit your own.

Accommodation in Mannheim is also quite affordable, if you want to live on your own. You can find more information on the relevant online platforms.

If you want to search for accommodation in Mannheim on site, you have the option to stay temporarily at the youth hostel.

Credit: Anna Logue

Which neighborhood do you want to live in?

Mannheim consists of 17 districts in total, but is still a city of short distances. Even if you live in the surrounding neighborhoods, the center and the university are easy to reach by bus, train or bike. The various neighborhoods are as colorful and diverse as their residents, and each neighborhood expresses its very own charm. You want to find out more about the neighborhoods and get first-hand insights?

Traveling by bus and train

Regardless of the neighborhood you choose, Mannheim has a well-developed tram and bus network. The main station and the Paradeplatz are the central points, and if you are interested in discovering other cities besides Mannheim, you can easily get to the Palatinate or Heidelberg by using public transportation. During the day, trams run every ten minutes, in the evening, every twenty minutes. You also have the opportunity to buy a VRN-JugendticketBW, Deutschlandticket or a semester ticket. If you move to Mannheim and register your new place of residence here, you will even receive the semester ticket for free.

Traveling the squares by bike

Three female students on their bicycles in the autumn afternoon sun.

The easiest and fastest way to get around Mannheim is by bike. The increasing number of roads for cyclists only make it easy to get around by bike. The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar provides rental bikes as part of VRNnextbike, which can be found at various locations all over the city. You can rent the bikes in each neighborhood at least at one, if not more stations. Three times a year, there is a second-hand market for bikes at Alter Messplatz, where you can purchase second-hand bikes at affordable prices.

More on living in Mannheim

Citizen's service offices in Mannheim (in German)
Mannheim’s rent index (in German)
More information on the flat rate for housing costs for BAföG recipients (in German)
More information on the neighborhoods (in German)