Germany
Working in Munich
The highest salaries in Germany and the highest rents, in the same city. Munich is where the country's engineering, insurance and technology money concentrates.
What the city runs on
Automotive and industrial engineering, insurance, and a large technology sector that includes the German offices of most major international software firms. BMW and Siemens are headquartered here, and an unusually dense research landscape surrounds two major universities.
Why the numbers work differently here
Munich salaries clear the EU Blue Card threshold comfortably in most professional roles, so the permit is rarely the obstacle. Housing is the obstacle. Rents are the highest in Germany by a wide margin, and the search itself is competitive in a way that catches new arrivals out — bring documents, and expect to view flats alongside twenty other applicants.
What to check before you sign
Whether relocation support includes temporary housing, and for how long. In Munich that clause is worth more than an equivalent amount of signing bonus, because the constraint you will hit is availability rather than money.
This page is information, not advice. We are not an employer, a recruitment agency, a visa centre or an immigration adviser, and we are not affiliated with any government body. Rules change — confirm against the official source before you act.