Living in Dessau
Regional median gross salary figures for Dessau showed €3,500 per month at the end of 2024. Dessau had an unemployment rate of 6.97% in May 2022.
Higher unemployment than 84% of German cities that publish it, less recorded crime than 69% of German cities that publish it and dirtier air than 91% of German cities that publish it.
Which Germany-wide rules apply when you move to Dessau?
National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.
Housing and cost
How much does it cost to rent in Dessau?
Average net cold rent is 7 EUR/m² per month (2024), 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): 7 EUR/m²/month · INKAR — Indikatoren und Karten zur Raum- und Stadtentwicklung, district (Kreis) indicator table7
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited | 48.95 EUR/month | 30 Sept 2026 | MagentaZuhause L 100 Mbps8Official · national market |
| Mobile plan, 10 GB | 49.95 EUR/month | 30 Sept 2026 | Telekom MagentaMobil M11Official · national market |
| Average net rent (nettokalt) | 7 EUR/m²/month | 2024 | BBSR INKAR — advertised asking rent for re-let flats (indicator 2113)7Official source, approximated value · Supplemental context · parent municipality |
Is Dessau 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.
Worked out from these numbers
What does a 60 m² flat cost?
About 420 EUR a month in cold rent at the published average of 7 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.
Work and income
What is the unemployment rate in Dessau?
The unemployment rate is about 7 % (May 2022).
- Unemployment rate: 6.97 % · Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities12
Dessau 7.0%
Unemployment rate (%)
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median gross salary (regional) | 3,500 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2024 | Bundesagentur für Arbeit (BA)2Official · parent municipality |
| Unemployment rate | 6.97 % | 15 May 2022 | Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities12Official · parent municipality |
What does a salary buy in Dessau?
Take-home pay after tax, minus rent and the everyday bills this city publishes. Each line names its source.
RentInternetMobileLeft 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. | €2,330 |
| Rent, 60 m²€7.00/m² · market price · INKAR · 2024 | − €420 |
| Internet€49 · official · MagentaZuhause L 100 Mbps · 2026-09-30 | − €49 |
| Mobile plan€50 · official · Telekom MagentaMobil M · 2026-09-30 | − €50 |
| Other everyday billsnot published for this city: public transport pass, utilities | — |
| Left overbefore the bills this city does not publish | €1,811 |
Public employment service
No exact public employment office is currently linked to Dessau. The verified national service may still offer online registration, job search or an official office finder.
Bundesagentur für Arbeit — Public employment service
Country-level service information is not treated as proof of a physical office in Dessau. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.
Healthcare
Dessau maintained 1,074.6 beds per 100,000 residents at the end of 2024.
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hospital beds per 100,000 residents | 1,075 beds per 100,000 | 31 Dec 2024 | Bundesministerium für Gesundheit (Bundesklinik-Atlas)4Official |
Yes — migrants receive medical care in Dessau 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 guideSafety
Dessau's crime rate stood at 8,219.2 incidents per 100,000 residents at the end of 2023.
How safe is Dessau?
Police recorded about 8,219 incidents per 100,000 (2023). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie (BKG)3
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents | 8,219 incidents per 100,000country median 9,397 | 31 Dec 2023 | Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie (BKG)3Official |
Mobility and administration
Dessau's nearest airport was LEJ, 46 km away and offered 28 direct destinations.
Language courses and integration
No exact city-level course record is currently published for Dessau. These verified national programmes may still apply; use the official programme page to check local availability.
BAMF Integrationskurse — Integration course
Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF)
For eligible migrants.
BAMF job-related German courses — Job-related language course
Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF)
For migrants needing job-related German.
Climate and air quality
Annual PM2.5 levels for Dessau stood at 10 µg/m³ at the end of 2024.
Is the air quality good in Dessau?
The annual PM2.5 mean is 10 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: European Environment Agency (EEA)6
Annual mean at the measuring site(s) serving the city; current-day readings differ.
Within WHO 2021 guidelineAbove WHO, within EU limitAbove EU legal limitCity annual mean · µg/m³
City values from the published air-quality observations. WHO 2021 guidelines and EU limit values are published constants.
Dessau 10.0
Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 — annual mean | 10 µg/m³ | 31 Dec 2024 | European Environment Agency (EEA)6Official · nearest-station reading |
Population and city profile
How many people live in Dessau?
The published population was 70,084 people in 2017. Source: Bericht zur demografischen Entwicklung — 20181
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 70,084 people | 31 Dec 2017 | Bericht zur demografischen Entwicklung — 20181Official |
Alternatives for people set on Dessau
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.
Bayreuth as a Dessau alternative in the same country
A move, not a commute, at 215 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: €7.11/m² (2022) Bayreuth vs €7.00/m² (2024) Dessauno percentage
- Median gross pay, region: €3,850 Bayreuth vs €3,500 Dessauno percentage
- Recorded crime, per 100k: 6,825 Bayreuth vs 8,219 Dessau−17%
- Hospital beds, per 100k: 1,436.8 Bayreuth vs 1,074.6 Dessau+34%
Cities near Dessau
Published cities within 25 km, nearest first. Distances are straight-line.
- Rent
- 4.84 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15
- Rent
- 5.21 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15
- Rent
- 4.53 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15
- Rent
- 4.62 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15
- Rent
- 4.68 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15
- Rent
- 4.79 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15
- Rent
- 4.64 EUR/m²/monthAverage net rent (nettokalt) · 2022-05-15
Alternative cities in Germany
Other cities in Germany to compare with Dessau, nearest in population first.
How does Dessau compare?
Pick a city. The answer appears here and the address bar keeps it, so the comparison can be shared; the page stays Dessau's.
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; Dessau's school authority applies it locally.
Sources: eurydice.eacea.ec.europa.eu · 2025–2026.
Common questions
Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.
How many people live in Dessau?
The published population was 70,084 people in 2017. Source: Bericht zur demografischen Entwicklung — 2018.
How much does it cost to rent in Dessau?
Average net cold rent is 7 EUR/m² per month (2024), excluding heating and operating charges. For a 70 m² flat that is about 490 EUR a month before utilities. Source: BBSR INKAR — advertised asking rent for re-let flats (indicator 2113).
Is the air quality good in Dessau?
The annual PM2.5 mean is 10 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: European Environment Agency (EEA).
How safe is Dessau?
Police recorded about 8,219 incidents per 100,000 (2023). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie (BKG).
What is the unemployment rate in Dessau?
The unemployment rate is about 7 % (May 2022). Source: Zensus 2022 regional tables — Germany municipalities.
What is the typical salary around Dessau?
The median gross salary is 3,500 EUR/month. Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit (BA).
Is Dessau a good place to live?
Dessau 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 Dessau?
Oranienbaum-Wörlitz, Raguhn-Jeßnitz, Aken (Elbe), Coswig (Anhalt), Gräfenhainichen are near Dessau. Typed relationship labels are shown where published; other rows use straight-line distance from admitted coordinates.
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). Dessau, Germany: population, rent, salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 445086a0ce4a6f826c2d87a02c3f7e20]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/de/dessau/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_dessau-germany-population-rent-salary-cost-of-living_cdd961faeb90,
author = {ImmigrationDB},
title = {Dessau, Germany: population, rent, salary, cost of living},
publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-10-16},
version = {445086a0ce4a6f826c2d87a02c3f7e20},
url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/de/dessau/},
note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}Markdown citation
[Dessau, Germany: population, rent, salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/de/dessau/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 445086a0ce4a6f826c2d87a02c3f7e20; 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
- Bericht zur demografischen Entwicklung — 2018 Bericht zur demografischen Entwicklung · verwaltung.dessau-rosslau.de · checked 2026-09-24
- Bundesagentur für Arbeit (BA) statistik.arbeitsagentur.de · checked 2026-08-06
- Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie (BKG) tigis.bkg.bund.de · checked 2026-08-05
- Bundesministerium für Gesundheit (Bundesklinik-Atlas) bundes-klinik-atlas.de · checked 2026-08-03
- Destatis Zensus 2022 — Regionaltabelle Gebäude und Wohnungen Destatis Zensus 2022 · destatis.de · checked 2026-08-30
- European Environment Agency (EEA) air.discomap.eea.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-06
- INKAR — Indikatoren und Karten zur Raum- und Stadtentwicklung, district (Kreis) indicator table INKAR · inkar.de · checked 2026-07-16
- MagentaZuhause L 100 Mbps telekom.de · checked 2026-09-15
- OpenFlights raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-08-03
- OurAirports davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-08-03
Show 11 more sources
- Telekom MagentaMobil M telekom.de · checked 2026-09-15
- 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
- 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
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