Living in Cottbus

In Cottbus, rents across existing tenancies average €5.58 per m² a month (2022) and unemployment is 7.9% (2022).

Monthly precipitation was 41.5 mm in January and 74.8 mm in July. Its population was 100,236 at the end of 2025. The city covered 165.6 km² in 2024.

Last checked 2026-09-1937 sources

Population100,236people31 Dec 2025Official source · Cottbus municipal statistics

Median gross salary (region)3,700EUR/month31 Dec 2024Official source · Bundesagentur für Arbeit (BA)

Average net rent5.58EUR/m²/monthcountry median €5.81 — 4% belowOfficial source · Destatis — Zensus 2022 Regionaltabelle Wohnungen (QMMIETE: durchschnittliche Nettokaltmiete je m²)

Unemployment rate7.86%country median 5.1% — 54% aboveOfficial source · Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities

Recorded crime10,096incidents per 100,000country median 9,397 — 7% aboveOfficial source · PKS 2024 T01 Grundtabelle - Fälle mit Häufigkeitszahl (HZ) - Städte

PM2.5, annual mean9.86µg/m³country median 8.0 — 23% aboveOfficial source · Official UBA station observation retained; station lies outside the exact target municipality and is not promoted.

Higher unemployment than 91% of German cities that publish it and dirtier air than 90% of German cities that publish it.

Which Germany-wide rules apply when you move to Cottbus?

National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.

Visa and entry rulesPassport-specific entry and national residence context.BenefitsCountry-wide eligibility and official application routes.Taxes in GermanyNational rates and thresholds that apply in Cottbus.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

A city-level estimate placed average net cold rent at €8.44 per m² per month in May 2026.

How much does it cost to rent in Cottbus?

Average net cold rent is 5.58 EUR/m² per month (May 2022), excluding heating and operating charges.

Published average over existing tenancies; a specific flat can sit either side of it. Asking-rent series, where present, are separate rows in the table.

Average net rent (nettokalt): 5.58 EUR/m²/month · Destatis — Zensus 2022 Regionaltabelle Wohnungen (QMMIETE: durchschnittliche Nettokaltmiete je m²)⁷

What recurs every month6 published recurring costs, € per month

€ / month

Utilities, 85 m² flat€274

Private kindergarten€76

Mobile plan, 10 GB€50

Transport pass€41

Internet, 60 Mbps€36

Fitness club€35

Supplemental estimate lane, not official statistics: Utilities, 85 m² flat, Private kindergarten, Transport pass, Fitness club, Internet, 60 Mbps. The others are published prices.

Net rent across major citiesCottbus highlighted among comparable cities

net rent, € / m² / month

Munich€15.38

Hamburg€9.94

Stuttgart€9.72

Augsburg€9.10

Dortmund€6.00

Cottbus€5.58

Show the other 6 cities

Mannheim€9.09

Berlin€7.71

Dresden€7.20

Bielefeld€6.72

Duisburg€6.66

Leipzig€6.27

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Fitness club membership, monthly	34.78 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2³⁶Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited	36.49 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2³⁶Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Private kindergarten, monthly	75.63 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2³⁶Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Meal at an inexpensive restaurant	8.46 EUR	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2³⁶Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Mobile plan, 10 GB	49.95 EUR/month	30 Sept 2026	Telekom MagentaMobil M²⁶Official · national market
Monthly transport pass	40.66 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2³⁶Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Basic utilities, 85 m² home	273.7 EUR/month	31 Dec 2022	Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2³⁶Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Average net rent (nettokalt)	5.58 EUR/m²/monthcountry median €5.81	15 May 2022	Destatis — Zensus 2022 Regionaltabelle Wohnungen (QMMIETE: durchschnittliche Nettokaltmiete je m²)⁷Official
Average net rent (nettokalt)Alternative estimate	8.44 EUR/m²/month	1 May 2026	wohnungsboerse Mietspiegel Cottbus³⁷Commercial estimate · Supplemental context

Is Cottbus a good place to live?

There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.

Try your profile

Remote worker50%strong on work, weak on safety · range 42–58%

Skilled employee53%strong on work, weak on education · range 45–61%

Student54%strong on cost, weak on education · range 45–63%

Family41%strong on family, weak on education · range 33–49%

Retirement50%strong on air quality, weak on admin · range 41–59%

Worked out from these numbers

What does a 60 m² flat cost?

About 335 EUR a month in cold rent at the published average of 5.58 EUR/m² per month, before heating and operating charges.

Heating, water and operating charges come on top, and a specific flat can sit either side of an average.

Source period: May 2022

Work and income

The unemployment rate was 7.86% in May 2022.

What is the unemployment rate in Cottbus?

The unemployment rate is about 7.9 % (May 2022).

Unemployment rate: 7.86 % · Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities²⁹

Unemployment across cities in GermanyUnemployment in Cottbus is 7.9%. Of 3,080 cities with data, 1,332 have unemployment of 4 to under 6%.

819

1,332

658

239

2–44–66–88–1010–1212–1414–16

Cottbus 7.9%

Unemployment rate (%)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Fibre-to-the-building availability	40.87 %	31 Dec 2025	data.bundesnetzagentur.de⁵Official
Gigabit broadband availability	92.03 %	31 Dec 2025	Bundesnetzagentur / BMDV — Breitbandatlas³Official
Median gross salary (regional)	3,700 EUR/month	31 Dec 2024	Bundesagentur für Arbeit (BA)¹Official · regional context
Unemployment rate	7.86 %country median 5.1%	15 May 2022	Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities²⁹Official

Unemployment rate over time12 published observations, 2011–2025

4.1%

6.6%

9.0%

11.5%

8.3%20112013201520192025

Unemployment rate fell 24.3% between 2011 and 2025, from 11.0% to 8.3%.

What does a salary buy in Cottbus?

Take-home pay after tax, minus rent and the everyday bills this city publishes. Each line names its source.

Left over each month€1,533of €2,440 take-home

Rent
Utilities
Transport
Internet
Mobile
Left over

Line-by-line breakdown and sources

Each month	€
Take-home payOECD Taxing Wages 2025, single, no children. Includes central and local income tax and employee social contributions.	€2,440
Rent, 60 m²€8.44/m² advertised for new lettings (market price · wohnungsboerse Mietspiegel Cottbus · 2026-05-01). Official average for existing leases: €5.58/m² (official · Destatis · 2022-05-15).	− €506
Public transport pass€41 · market price · Global Cost of Living · 2022-12-31	− €41
Utilities, 85 m²€274 · market price · Global Cost of Living · 2022-12-31	− €274
Internet€36 · market price · Global Cost of Living · 2022-12-31	− €36
Mobile plan€50 · official · Telekom MagentaMobil M · 2026-09-30	− €50
Left over	€1,533

Take-home pay for other salaries and households Compare with another city Check a job offer in Cottbus Salary needed to live in Cottbus

Public employment service

No exact public employment office is currently linked to Cottbus. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.

Country-level information

Bundesagentur für Arbeit — Public employment service

Bundesagentur für Arbeit

Job Search

Search jobs

Open the Germany service overview

Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Cottbus. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.

Healthcare

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Hospital beds per 100,000 residents	1,076 beds per 100,000	31 Dec 2024	Bundesministerium für Gesundheit (Bundesklinik-Atlas)²Official
Hospitals	2 count	31 Dec 2024	Krankenhausverzeichnis 2024¹⁸Official

Yes — migrants receive medical care in Cottbus through valid health insurance.

Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.

Open the official coverage guide

Hospital beds per 100,000 residents1,076 beds per 100,000Verified 2026-08-03

Country rule verified 2026-08-03.

Safety

How safe is Cottbus?

Police recorded 10,096 incidents per 100,000 (2024). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: PKS 2024 T01 Grundtabelle - Fälle mit Häufigkeitszahl (HZ) - Städte²³

Recorded crime across major citiesCottbus highlighted among comparable cities

recorded incidents per 100k residents

Bremen15,424

Frankfurt14,600

Berlin13,900

Cologne12,343

Dortmund12,283

Dusseldorf12,172

Leipzig11,129

Cottbus10,096

Essen9,619

Dresden8,853

Stuttgart8,552

Munich6,214

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents	10,096 incidents per 100,000country median 9,397	31 Dec 2024	PKS 2024 T01 Grundtabelle - Fälle mit Häufigkeitszahl (HZ) - Städte²³Official
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residentsAlternative estimate	9,184 incidents per 100,000	2022	INKAR — Indikatoren und Karten zur Raum- und Stadtentwicklung, district (Kreis) indicator table¹⁶Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · district-level figure

Mobility and administration

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Destinations from nearest airport	18 count	13 Jun 2026	OpenFlights — routes.dat²¹Official
Nearest airport	DRS	13 Jun 2026	OurAirports — airports.csv²²Official
Distance to nearest airport	79.9 km	13 Jun 2026	OurAirports — airports.csv²²Official

Language courses and integration

No exact city-level course record is currently published for Cottbus. These verified national programmes may still apply; use the official programme page to check local availability.

Country-level information

BAMF Integrationskurse — Integration course

Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF)

For eligible migrants.

GermanIn Person

Open official information

BAMF job-related German courses — Job-related language course

Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF)

For migrants needing job-related German.

GermanIn Person

Open official information

Open the full Germany section

National programme information is not treated as proof of a course location in Cottbus.

Find courses near Cottbus

Climate and air quality

Monthly mean temperatures were 0.8°C in January and 19.8°C in July. Annual PM2.5 was 9.86 µg/m³ in 2024.

Is the air quality good in Cottbus?

The annual PM2.5 mean is about 9.9 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³.

Annual mean at the measuring site(s) serving the city; current-day readings differ.

PM2.5 — annual mean: 9.86 µg/m³ · Official UBA station observation retained; station lies outside the exact target municipality and is not promoted.²⁰

Temperature through the yearAverage daytime high and night-time low, °C

0°

4°-2°

5°-2°

9°0°

16°4°

20°8°

24°12°

26°14°

25°13°

20°9°

14°6°

8°2°

4°-1°

JFMAMJJASOND

Night-time low to daytime high

Rainfall through the yearAverage monthly precipitation, mm

JFMAMJJASOND

Sunshine through the yearAverage monthly sunshine, hours

127

192

227

228

237

227

169

118

JFMAMJJASOND

hours

Air quality vs health guidelinesAnnual means against WHO 2021 guidelines and EU legal limits

Within WHO 2021 guidelineAbove WHO, within EU limitAbove EU legal limitCity annual mean · µg/m³

PM2.59.9WHO 5 · EU 25

PM1016.7WHO 15 · EU 40

NO₂12.5WHO 10 · EU 40

City values from the published air-quality observations. WHO 2021 guidelines and EU limit values are published constants.

PM2.5 across cities in GermanyAnnual PM2.5 in Cottbus is 9.9 µg/m³. Of 477 cities with data, 164 have annual PM2.5 of 8 to under 9 µg/m³.

110

164

101

3–44–55–66–77–88–99–1010–1111–1212–1313–14

Cottbus 9.9

Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
NO₂ — annual mean	12.52 µg/m³country median 13.7	2024	Official UBA station observation retained; station lies outside the exact target municipality and is not promoted.²⁰Official
NO₂ — latest reading	8.67 µg/m³	15 Jul 2026	Official UBA station observation retained; station lies outside the exact target municipality and is not promoted.²⁰Official
PM10 — annual mean	16.71 µg/m³country median 13.5	2024	Official UBA station observation retained; station lies outside the exact target municipality and is not promoted.²⁰Official
PM2.5 — annual mean	9.86 µg/m³country median 8.0	2024	Official UBA station observation retained; station lies outside the exact target municipality and is not promoted.²⁰Official
Average daytime high by month	Jan 3.5 · Feb 5.3 · Mar 9.4 · Apr 15.7 · May 20.3 · Jun 23.6 · Jul 25.6 · Aug 25.4 · Sep 20.3 · Oct 14.4 · Nov 8.2 · Dec 4.4 °C	1991–2020	DWD CLIMAT global multi-annual daily maximum/minimum normals 1991-2020⁹Official
Average night-time low by month	Jan -2.1 · Feb -1.7 · Mar 0.4 · Apr 3.9 · May 8.2 · Jun 11.8 · Jul 13.8 · Aug 13.4 · Sep 9.4 · Oct 5.5 · Nov 1.9 · Dec -0.7 °C	1991–2020	DWD CLIMAT global multi-annual daily maximum/minimum normals 1991-2020¹⁰Official
Average temperature by month	Jan 0.8 · Feb 1.8 · Mar 4.8 · Apr 9.9 · May 14.5 · Jun 17.9 · Jul 19.8 · Aug 19.3 · Sep 14.6 · Oct 9.8 · Nov 5.1 · Dec 1.9 °C	31 Dec 1991	DWD multi-annual station means 1991-2020 (temperature)¹³Official
Average precipitation by month	Jan 41.5 · Feb 34.1 · Mar 40.9 · Apr 30.6 · May 56.6 · Jun 53.1 · Jul 74.8 · Aug 63 · Sep 46.3 · Oct 40.5 · Nov 42.9 · Dec 42 mm	31 Dec 2020	DWD CLIMAT monthly total precipitation — Cottbus, 1991-2020¹¹Official
Average sunshine by month	Jan 53.5 · Feb 76.4 · Mar 126.5 · Apr 191.7 · May 226.6 · Jun 227.9 · Jul 237.3 · Aug 226.5 · Sep 168.8 · Oct 117.7 · Nov 62 · Dec 48.5 hours	31 Dec 1991	DWD multi-annual station means 1991-2020 (sunshine)¹²Official

Annual PM2.5 over time9 published observations, 2014–2024

8.4

11.5

14.5

17.6

9.920142017201920222024

Annual PM2.5 fell 42.0% between 2014 and 2024, from 17.0 to 9.9.

Similar climate. In Germany: Hoyerswerda ±0.2 °C. Elsewhere: Gorzów Wielkopolski (Poland) ±0.7 °C, Zürich (Switzerland) ±0.9 °C, Brno (Czechia) ±0.9 °C, Metz (France) ±0.9 °C, Winterthur (Switzerland) ±0.9 °C. Twenty closest, compared month by month

Monthly highs and lows against the 1991–2020 station normals of the nearest station; ± is the average monthly difference.

Population and city profile

How many people live in Cottbus?

The published population was 100,236 people in 2025. Source: Cottbus municipal statistics⁴

Foreign residents and their share come from different publications that count different groups (for example citizens of another country, or people born abroad, or of foreign origin), so 8,740 is not 11.6% of the population. Each row names its source.

Who lives hereResidents by nationality, % of population

By nationality

National passport91.3%

Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Cars per 1,000 residents	483 cars/1000 residents	1 Jan 2026	Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt — FZ 3 vehicle stock by municipality¹⁷Official
City area	165.6 km²	31 Dec 2024	Destatis Gemeindeverzeichnis⁸Official
Foreign-resident share	11.6 %	31 Dec 2024	Eurostat¹⁴Official
Foreign residents	8,740 people	15 May 2022	Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities²⁸Official
Population density	574.4 people/km²	31 Dec 2024	Official municipality population divided by official municipality area from the same Destatis row.¹⁹Official
Population	100,236 people	31 Dec 2025	Cottbus municipal statistics⁴Official

Population over time14 published observations, 2012–2025

94,277

96,697

99,117

101,537

100,236201220182025

Population was 99,974 in 2012 and 100,236 in 2025.

Foreign residents over time10 published observations, 2016–2025

4,488

7,184

9,881

12,577

12,01920162018202020222025

Foreign residents rose 138.2% between 2016 and 2025, from 5,046 to 12,019.

People and communities

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Catholic residents	2,963 people	31 Dec 2022	Destatis⁶Official
Catholic share	3.2 %	31 Dec 2022	Destatis⁶Official
No religion or other	82,604 people	31 Dec 2022	Destatis⁶Official
No religion or other, share	87.9 %	31 Dec 2022	Destatis⁶Official
Protestant residents	8,358 people	31 Dec 2022	Destatis⁶Official
Protestant share	8.9 %	31 Dec 2022	Destatis⁶Official

International community in Cottbus

Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.

Country of birth

Persons · 2022-05-15

Published group	People	Share
Total	93,926	100.0%
Germany	82,738	88.1%
Poland	2,058	2.2%
Syrian Arab Republic	1,812	1.9%
Ukraine	1,094	1.2%
Russian Federation	720	0.8%
Afghanistan	435	0.5%
India	330	0.4%
Czech Republic	288	0.3%
Iran, Islamic Republic of	267	0.3%
Kazakhstan	236	0.3%

Show 115 more groups

Published group	People	Share
Viet Nam	203	0.2%
Turkey	192	0.2%
China	191	0.2%
Nigeria	150	0.2%
Not stated	147	0.2%
Romania	140	0.1%
Bangladesh	131	0.1%
Bulgaria	127	0.1%
Hungary	119	0.1%
Pakistan	115	0.1%
Slovakia	98	0.1%
Egypt	95	0.1%
Spain	86	0.1%
Iraq	80	0.1%
Morocco	79	0.1%
Lebanon	79	0.1%
United States	77	0.1%
Italy	74	0.1%
Belarus	68	0.1%
Greece	67	0.1%
Kosovo	59	0.1%
Austria	59	0.1%
Colombia	53	0.1%
Eritrea	49	0.1%
Cameroon	49	0.1%
Tunisia	46	0.0%
Azerbaijan	46	0.0%
Serbia	45	0.0%
France	44	0.0%
Uzbekistan	43	0.0%
Yemen	40	0.0%
Moldova, Republic of	39	0.0%
Jordan	38	0.0%
Tajikistan	38	0.0%
Brazil	34	0.0%
Chile	34	0.0%
Algeria	33	0.0%
Ghana	33	0.0%
Latvia	32	0.0%
Thailand	31	0.0%
Nepal	30	0.0%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	29	0.0%
Lithuania	29	0.0%
Korea, Republic of	29	0.0%
Georgia	23	0.0%
Taiwan, Province of China	23	0.0%
Saudi Arabia	23	0.0%
Albania	22	0.0%
Switzerland	22	0.0%
United Kingdom	22	0.0%
Indonesia	22	0.0%
Somalia	21	0.0%
Croatia	20	0.0%
Macedonia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of	18	0.0%
Mexico	18	0.0%
Netherlands	17	0.0%
Libya	17	0.0%
Cuba	17	0.0%
Armenia	17	0.0%
Philippines	17	0.0%
Kenya	16	0.0%
Portugal	15	0.0%
Australia	15	0.0%
Kuwait	13	0.0%
Peru	12	0.0%
Belgium	11	0.0%
Mozambique	11	0.0%
South Africa	11	0.0%
Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of	11	0.0%
Japan	11	0.0%
Mongolia	11	0.0%
Estonia	10	0.0%
Ecuador	10	0.0%
Congo, the Democratic Republic of the	9	0.0%
Dominican Republic	9	0.0%
Luxembourg	8	0.0%
Sudan	8	0.0%
Kyrgyzstan	8	0.0%
Slovenia	7	0.0%
Ireland	6	0.0%
Tanzania, United Republic of	6	0.0%
Togo	6	0.0%
United Arab Emirates	6	0.0%
Finland	5	0.0%
Sweden	5	0.0%
Ethiopia	5	0.0%
Benin	5	0.0%
Argentina	5	0.0%
Myanmar	5	0.0%
Denmark	4	0.0%
Côte D'Ivoire	4	0.0%
Zimbabwe	4	0.0%
Uganda	4	0.0%
El Salvador	4	0.0%
Haiti	4	0.0%
Canada	4	0.0%
Bahrain	4	0.0%
Israel	4	0.0%
Turkmenistan	4	0.0%
Malta	3	0.0%
Cyprus	3	0.0%
Gambia	3	0.0%
Mauritius	3	0.0%
Burkina Faso	3	0.0%
Guinea-Bissau	3	0.0%
Guinea	3	0.0%
Rwanda	3	0.0%
Senegal	3	0.0%
Bolivia, Plurinational State of	3	0.0%
Guatemala	3	0.0%
Honduras	3	0.0%
Bhutan	3	0.0%
Lao People'S Democratic Republic	3	0.0%
Palestinian territories	3	0.0%
Malaysia	3	0.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source²⁵

Citizenship

Persons · 2022-05-15

Published group	People	Share
Total	93,926	100.0%
Germany	85,182	90.7%
Syrian Arab Republic	2,043	2.2%
Ukraine	997	1.1%
Poland	624	0.7%
Afghanistan	561	0.6%
Russian Federation	457	0.5%
India	306	0.3%
Iran, Islamic Republic of	223	0.2%
Turkey	190	0.2%
Viet Nam	185	0.2%

Show 109 more groups

Published group	People	Share
China	180	0.2%
Nigeria	166	0.2%
Bangladesh	128	0.1%
Romania	118	0.1%
Pakistan	115	0.1%
Uncertain	115	0.1%
Slovakia	108	0.1%
Bulgaria	95	0.1%
Spain	94	0.1%
Egypt	91	0.1%
Italy	84	0.1%
Hungary	79	0.1%
Morocco	75	0.1%
Greece	63	0.1%
Kosovo	61	0.1%
Iraq	61	0.1%
Belarus	60	0.1%
Eritrea	60	0.1%
Cameroon	60	0.1%
Czech Republic	59	0.1%
Stateless	59	0.1%
United States	51	0.1%
Serbia	49	0.1%
Azerbaijan	49	0.1%
Tunisia	42	0.0%
Colombia	42	0.0%
Austria	39	0.0%
Lebanon	37	0.0%
Ghana	36	0.0%
France	35	0.0%
Korea, Republic of	33	0.0%
Yemen	32	0.0%
Jordan	32	0.0%
Uzbekistan	31	0.0%
Nepal	30	0.0%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	28	0.0%
Algeria	28	0.0%
Thailand	27	0.0%
Latvia	26	0.0%
Kazakhstan	25	0.0%
Moldova, Republic of	24	0.0%
Brazil	24	0.0%
Somalia	23	0.0%
Chad	20	0.0%
Chile	20	0.0%
Croatia	19	0.0%
Macedonia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of	19	0.0%
Netherlands	19	0.0%
Indonesia	19	0.0%
Portugal	17	0.0%
Albania	16	0.0%
Lithuania	16	0.0%
Mexico	16	0.0%
Armenia	16	0.0%
Georgia	14	0.0%
Kenya	13	0.0%
Philippines	13	0.0%
Tajikistan	13	0.0%
Libya	12	0.0%
United Kingdom	11	0.0%
Taiwan, Province of China	11	0.0%
Japan	10	0.0%
Mongolia	10	0.0%
Ecuador	9	0.0%
Peru	9	0.0%
Cuba	8	0.0%
Belgium	7	0.0%
Estonia	7	0.0%
Luxembourg	7	0.0%
Switzerland	7	0.0%
Congo, the Democratic Republic of the	7	0.0%
Mozambique	7	0.0%
Sudan	7	0.0%
Australia	7	0.0%
Sweden	6	0.0%
Canada	6	0.0%
Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of	6	0.0%
Finland	5	0.0%
Burkina Faso	5	0.0%
Tanzania, United Republic of	5	0.0%
Myanmar	5	0.0%
Slovenia	4	0.0%
Zimbabwe	4	0.0%
El Salvador	4	0.0%
Bahrain	4	0.0%
Ireland	3	0.0%
Montenegro	3	0.0%
Malta	3	0.0%
Norway	3	0.0%
Cyprus	3	0.0%
United Kingdom/British Overseas Territories	3	0.0%
Ethiopia	3	0.0%
Benin	3	0.0%
Côte D'Ivoire	3	0.0%
Mauritius	3	0.0%
Guinea	3	0.0%
South Africa	3	0.0%
Rwanda	3	0.0%
Senegal	3	0.0%
Togo	3	0.0%
Uganda	3	0.0%
Bolivia, Plurinational State of	3	0.0%
Dominican Republic	3	0.0%
Guatemala	3	0.0%
Haiti	3	0.0%
Honduras	3	0.0%
Bhutan	3	0.0%
Israel	3	0.0%
Malaysia	3	0.0%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source²⁴

Additional context

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Local business-tax multiplier	400 %	31 Dec 2022	www.statistikportal.de²⁷Official
Local property-tax multiplier	500 %	31 Dec 2022	www.statistikportal.de²⁷Official

Alternatives for people set on Cottbus

Three places for the three reasons people leave a city on the shortlist: stay in the region, stay in the country, or keep the budget and change the country. A percentage appears only where both cities publish that metric from the same source, period and grain. Distances are straight lines — travel times are not collected yet.

Vetschau/Spreewald / Wětošow/Błota as a Cottbus alternative in the same region

18 km away, better on 2 of 2 metrics measured the same way, worse on 0. Median gross pay, region and recorded crime, per 100k cannot be compared like for like.

Rent: €4.77/m² Vetschau/Spreewald / Wětošow/Błota vs €5.58/m² Cottbus−15%
Median gross pay, region: €3,350 Vetschau/Spreewald / Wětošow/Błota vs €3,700 Cottbusno percentage
Recorded crime, per 100k: 5,226 (2025) Vetschau/Spreewald / Wětošow/Błota vs 10,096 (2024) Cottbusno percentage
Nearest airport: 75.0 km Vetschau/Spreewald / Wětošow/Błota vs 79.9 km Cottbus−6%

Full comparison More about Vetschau/Spreewald / Wětošow/Błota

Siegen as a Cottbus alternative in the same country

A move, not a commute, at 450 km, better on 6 of 7 metrics measured the same way, worse on 1.

Rent: €6.62/m² Siegen vs €5.58/m² Cottbus+19%
Foreign residents: 17.0% Siegen vs 11.6% Cottbus+47%
Recorded crime, per 100k: 8,031 Siegen vs 10,096 Cottbus−20%
Hospital beds, per 100k: 1,390.3 Siegen vs 1,076.1 Cottbus+29%
Median gross pay, region: €4,000 Siegen vs €3,700 Cottbus+8%
Nearest airport: 61.3 km Siegen vs 79.9 km Cottbus−23%
Unemployment: 7.4% Siegen vs 7.9% Cottbus−6%

Full comparison More about Siegen

Valencia as a Cottbus alternative in another country

A move, not a commute, at 1775 km, better on 2 of 2 metrics measured the same way, worse on 0. Rent and median gross pay, region cannot be compared like for like.

Rent: €8.20/m² (2024) Valencia vs €5.58/m² (2022) Cottbusno percentage
Nearest airport: 9.2 km Valencia vs 79.9 km Cottbus−88%
Median gross pay, region: €1,888 Valencia vs €3,700 Cottbusno percentage
Foreign residents: 15.7% Valencia vs 11.6% Cottbus+35%

Full comparison More about Valencia

Cities near Cottbus

Published cities within 25 km, nearest first. Distances are straight-line.

Peitz/Picnjo Commuting Zone · 13.1 km away

Rent: 4.97 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15

Drebkau/Drjowk Commuting Zone · 14.0 km away

Rent: 4.87 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15

Vetschau/Spreewald / Wětošow/Błota Commuting Zone · 18.4 km away

Rent: 4.77 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15

Forst (Lausitz)/Baršć (Łužyca) Commuting Zone · 21.8 km away

Rent: 4.82 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15

Lieberose 24.8 km away

Rent: 4.36 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15

Alternative cities in Germany

Other cities in Germany to compare with Cottbus, nearest in population first.

All Germany cities

Schwerin99,721 residents Witten97,599 residents Kaiserslautern103,612 residents Flensburg96,326 residents Esslingen am Neckar96,182 residents Gütersloh104,921 residents

How does Cottbus compare?

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Open the full comparison

School for children who move here. School is compulsory from age 6 to 15, and public school is free. Newly arrived pupils get support in the school language: Länder Sprachförderung (e.g. Sprachlernklassen BW/Berlin; vorklassen); Starting Opportunities Programme. How to enrol a child (kmk.org).

A country-wide rule for Germany; Cottbus's school authority applies it locally.

Sources: eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu · 2025–2026.

Put Cottbus's key facts on your site — a card with this page's figures and a link back, free under CC BY 4.0.

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

How many people live in Cottbus?

The published population was 100,236 people in 2025. Source: Cottbus municipal statistics.

How much does it cost to rent in Cottbus?

Average net cold rent is 5.58 EUR/m² per month (May 2022), excluding heating and operating charges. For a 70 m² flat that is about 391 EUR a month before utilities. Source: Destatis — Zensus 2022 Regionaltabelle Wohnungen (QMMIETE: durchschnittliche Nettokaltmiete je m²).

Is the air quality good in Cottbus?

The annual PM2.5 mean is about 9.9 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: Official UBA station observation retained; station lies outside the exact target municipality and is not promoted..

How safe is Cottbus?

What is the unemployment rate in Cottbus?

The unemployment rate is about 7.9 % (May 2022). Source: Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities.

What is the typical salary around Cottbus?

The median gross salary is 3,700 EUR/month. Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit (BA).

Is Cottbus a good place to live?

Cottbus may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.

Which cities are near Cottbus?

Peitz/Picnjo, Drebkau/Drjowk, Vetschau/Spreewald / Wětošow/Błota, Forst (Lausitz)/Baršć (Łužyca), Lieberose are near Cottbus. Typed relationship labels are shown where published; other rows use straight-line distance from admitted coordinates.

How many people born in Germany live in Cottbus?

The official country of birth distribution records 82,738 people (88.1%) in the source-defined population for 2022-05-15. This is a country of birth measure, not a general estimate of ethnicity or migration status.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation

ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Cottbus, Germany: population, rent, salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 90887463d79aa6208f8d0e94578e8da9]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/de/cottbus/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

BibTeX citation

@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_cottbus-germany-population-rent-salary-cost-of-living_fbb93ccf42b3,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Cottbus, Germany: population, rent, salary, cost of living},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-10-16},
  version = {90887463d79aa6208f8d0e94578e8da9},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/de/cottbus/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}

Markdown citation

[Cottbus, Germany: population, rent, salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/de/cottbus/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 90887463d79aa6208f8d0e94578e8da9; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

JSON Markdown

Bundesagentur für Arbeit (BA) statistik.arbeitsagentur.de · checked 2026-08-06
Bundesministerium für Gesundheit (Bundesklinik-Atlas) bundes-klinik-atlas.de · checked 2026-08-03
Bundesnetzagentur / BMDV — Breitbandatlas Bundesnetzagentur / BMDV · gigabitgrundbuch.bund.de · checked 2026-07-14
Cottbus municipal statistics cottbus.de · checked 2026-07-14
data.bundesnetzagentur.de data.bundesnetzagentur.de · checked 2026-08-08
Destatis destatis.de · checked 2026-08-08
Destatis — Zensus 2022 Regionaltabelle Wohnungen (QMMIETE: durchschnittliche Nettokaltmiete je m²) Destatis · destatis.de · checked 2026-09-18
Destatis Gemeindeverzeichnis destatis.de · checked 2026-07-14
DWD CLIMAT global multi-annual daily maximum/minimum normals 1991-2020 opendata.dwd.de · checked 2026-07-26
DWD CLIMAT global multi-annual daily maximum/minimum normals 1991-2020 opendata.dwd.de · checked 2026-07-26

Show 27 more sources

DWD CLIMAT monthly total precipitation — Cottbus, 1991-2020 DWD CLIMAT monthly total precipitation · opendata.dwd.de · checked 2026-07-27
DWD multi-annual station means 1991-2020 (sunshine) opendata.dwd.de · checked 2026-07-26
DWD multi-annual station means 1991-2020 (temperature) opendata.dwd.de · checked 2026-07-26
Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-02
GISCO Urban Audit 2021 — Functional Urban Areas (URAU_RG_100K_2021_4326_FUA) GISCO Urban Audit 2021 · gisco-services.ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-19
INKAR — Indikatoren und Karten zur Raum- und Stadtentwicklung, district (Kreis) indicator table INKAR · inkar.de · checked 2026-07-16
Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt — FZ 3 vehicle stock by municipality Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt · kba.de · checked 2026-07-14
Krankenhausverzeichnis 2024 statistikportal.de · checked 2026-09-19
Official municipality population divided by official municipality area from the same Destatis row. destatis.de · checked 2024-12-31
Official UBA station observation retained; station lies outside the exact target municipality and is not promoted. umweltbundesamt.de · checked 2026-07-15
OpenFlights — routes.dat OpenFlights · raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-07-14
OurAirports — airports.csv OurAirports · davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-07-14
PKS 2024 T01 Grundtabelle - Fälle mit Häufigkeitszahl (HZ) - Städte bka.de · checked 2026-07-16
Statistical Offices of the Federation and the Länder, Germany citizenship distribution ergebnisse.zensus2022.de · checked 2026-08-28
Statistical Offices of the Federation and the Länder, Germany country of birth distribution ergebnisse.zensus2022.de · checked 2026-08-28
Telekom MagentaMobil M telekom.de · checked 2026-09-15
www.statistikportal.de statistikportal.de · checked 2026-08-08
Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities Zensus 2022 regional tables · destatis.de · checked 2026-07-26
Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities Zensus 2022 regional tables · destatis.de · checked 2026-07-26
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Coordinate identity evidence wikidata.org · checked 2026-09-06
Global Cost of Living — Kaggle snapshot v2 Global Cost of Living · kaggle.com · checked 2026-07-27
wohnungsboerse Mietspiegel Cottbus wohnungsboerse.net · checked 2026-06-04

Spotted a number that looks wrong? Every value here carries its source and date — tell us what you found and we will re-check it against the source.