After housing, living expenses are bound to take the second-biggest chunk out of your wallet. Here we will try to break some of these costs down for you.
What are some basic living expenses you can expect when living in Maastricht?
By ‘living’ expenses, we mean the basic daily or monthly costs that you can expect to have; for example, groceries, a gym membership, or a coffee at your favourite cafe.
Overall, we estimate that in a month, these kinds of expenses will cost you around €300-€400. Some people manage to spend even less; for example, if you eat home-cooked meals, or have roommates to share expenses with, these costs can be lowered significantly. However, if you are someone who likes take-out, plans on frequenting Maastricht’s many little cafés, needs a gym membership, and so on, you may be looking at expenses towards the higher end of this range.
How much will these expenses cost you?
- Groceries: a week’s worth of basic groceries should cost you around €60-€70; a month’s should be around €280-€300
- Gym membership: a one-year contract for a membership at a popular student gym will cost you around €20
- Coffee: an espresso will cost around €2; a cappuccino around €3
- Wine: a mid-range bottle of supermarket wine will cost you about €5-€6
- Beer: a six-pack of local beer will cost you about €6 (or even less if you return your bottles in exchange for Statiegeld!)
- Take-out: a regular student take-out meal will cost you about €10-€15
What are some cheap(er) grocery alternatives?
Investing a little bit of time to find out about cheaper (and often more sustainable!) grocery alternatives can make a significant difference in how much you end up spending. Here are some options to get you started:
- You can buy fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and fish at the market which is held every Wednesday and Friday in the Markt between 9:00 and 15:00
- Want to spend less and buy local? Boeren & Buren offers unique farm products from the region, at a lower cost to you and the environment. Find their locations here
- Foodcoop Maastricht aims to provide each individual with access to sustainable and healthy food options for a transparent and affordable price; they do this by building bridges between the people in Maastricht and local farmers and producers. Find out how it works and order your groceries!
- Gedeelde Weelde is a cooperative that aims to organise a chain that is based on food sovereignty: the human right to healthy and meaningful food, produced in an ecologically responsible and sustainable way and in an agricultural system that is co-created. Check out the Gedeelde Weelde store in Maastricht!
- Lastly, there is the (very cool!) Bananenboxer market, which can be found inside a beautiful church – the Augustijnenkerk. They offer a wide variety of products, including fruits and vegetables, chocolate, tea, honey, and more
