You also have to remember that European incomes are lower on average than US incomes, especially after your various taxes and social contributions get subtracted.

Rents i think are in general still lower in Germany than they are in the US, though relative to the incomes it's still not cheap and they are constantly increasing every year, however energy costs are way higher. Compared to just five years ago our heating bill now is a nightmare.

And there is also a huge wealth disparity and disparity in cost of living between different European countries, though the cost of living disparity is actually less than the wealth disparity which is a real problem for the poorer EU members.

For example, since joining the EU, due to the common market, costs of basic products in Romania have almost reached the level of products in wealthier western European countries like Germany, while incomes in Romania are nowhere close to western European incomes.

Even as defenders of the EU sing the EU's praises and claim that the EU makes the countries that join it richer, the reality is often much more complicated. Yes it made some people rich, and these people now get to go on expensive vacations all across Europe multiple times a year and buy imported luxury goods.

But for the majority of working people the improvement was not really felt. It just increased the rate of emigration and allowed more people to move to richer EU countries, especially the most highly skilled and educated people, which is a serious loss for these already poorer countries.

I don't know how i got to venting about the EU again from the topic of costs of living. Sorry. I tend to go on tangents sometimes.