German metros among the most expensive in the world for single journeys

Transport in Germany’s major cities is expensive. This was recently confirmed by a price ranking for single journey tickets across 94 metro systems in the world, where several German cities were among the top ten most expensive tickets.

But while tickets for single trips might be exceptionally high in Munich, Hamburg and Berlin, transport costs for people who live in these cities tend to be comparatively low thanks to transport subscription passes like the Deutschlandticket.

As part of the same survey, the metro systems were also ranked by most expensive annual ticket, and in this category no German cities appeared in the upper reaches of the rankings.

Here’s the price of metro transport in Germany compared to the rest of the world, and a glance at how travellers can save.

One-way prices on the U-Bahn

Of 94 city metro systems around the world, Munich had the fourth most expensive single journey ticket at €4.20 (or $4.84 USD, as they survey write-up put it).

Hamburg’s U-Bahn had the next most expensive one-way ticket, at $4.73, followed by Berlin at $4.61.

Then came the metro in Stockholm, Sweden ($4.51) which was just barely ahead of Nuremberg where a one-way journey will cost you the equivalent of $4.50.

The above figures are provided as seen in a “global metro affordability index”, created by Remitly.

Notably the ranking compared figures as converted to US dollars, whereas in Germany all prices are in euros.

The survey authors also noted that they sourced the price of a single ticket, and calculated an average price in places where prices vary by zone or distance travelled.

READ ALSO: What Deutsche Bahn’s new 2027 timetable means for passengers

Graphic provided by Remitly.

Annual prices in Germany are more affordable

Interestingly, when it comes to annual ticket prices, Germany’s U-Bahn networks are actually pretty affordable.

The price of an annual metro pass is most expensive in London where it costs $2,817.

Stockholm has the tenth most expensive annual pass at $1,166.

In Germany, however, you can ride the U-Bahn – as well as the S-Bahn, local bus networks and regional trains – an unlimited number of times with the Deutschlandticket, which is set to cost €66.80 per month, starting from January next year.

At that monthly price, travellers can ride the metro networks in Munich, Berlin, Hamburg or any other German city for €801.60 annually (or just under $900 at today’s exchange rate).

When does the Deutschlandticket become the better deal?

Considering Munich’s average single-journey ticket cost of €4.20, passengers who take the U-Bahn for more than 16 journeys a month would save money by buying a Deutschlandticket instead.

Of course, this calculation gets a bit more complicated for passengers who might consider round- or multi-trip ticket options instead. But generally anyone who rides public transport in Germany pretty regularly could save money with the monthly pass.

Some regions in Germany also offer their own regional passes which may be cheaper still, and some employers offer a reduced-price Deutschlandticket as well.

READ ALSO: What’s the best option when buying public transport tickets in Berlin?

And while it’s far from certain yet, there is talk about the potential for a daily version of the Deutschlandticket which would make travel significantly more cost effective for passengers who don’t commute on public transport most days of the week.