German cities did particularly badly in several recent expat surveys, ranking low in categories like “expat essentials” covering things like housing, language, and bureaucracy. It didn’t do much better either when it comes to local friendliness and ease of settling in.
Frankfurt though, Germany’s bustling financial capital of nearly 800,000 people, fared particularly badly. Scoring 49 out of 50 in the Internations Expat Insider 2022, only Johannesburg did worse.
Is it really all that bad?
Just over half the respondents in our reader survey said yes. It is.
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In a close vote, 51.5 percent of respondents to our survey said Frankfurt deserved the low ranking, compared to 48.5 percent who said it didn’t.
Our readers had key gripes about cost of living in the city, the inefficiency of its bureaucracy, and its lack of cleanliness in certain parts – particularly around its central station.
However, there were also lots of good points listed about Frankfurt am Main, sometimes known as Mainhattan thanks to its skyline.
'Worst thing is weather'
Several respondents said they were frustrated about paperwork in the immigration process.
One reader told us they had been waiting over seven months for an appointment at the immigration office.
Others pointed out that although job prospects were good, finding both housing and childcare were challenging endeavours. This led to some sentiment that Frankfurt is “a city for bankers,” but little else.
Reader Eraldo Grabovaj said Frankfurt was a "Beautiful city" but "very expensive".
Many said Frankfurt locals were often rude or even racist or discriminatory in some cases, even if it was easy to find help in English.
"We could use a little less grumpy locals in town," said reader Liza Maria.
“I find people to be friendly but not overly so,” Viktoria M told us. “The worst thing though is the weather. It rains a lot.”
There were mixed responses on transport, with some saying buses and trains were excellent, while others said they could be a lot better.
"Public transportation is terrible, not only in Frankfurt but mostly in Hesse," said Renan Dias. "I lived in Hamburg for seven years and after that, just in three months of living in Frankfurt I was already fed up with the public transportation. I've been here for a year now, lived in three different areas and and it's still highly unreliable."
A few people said Frankfurt airport - Germany's largest - wasn't well organised.
"The airport is a disaster," said Jeffrey Josef Maltz. It's too big and too many people. It does not seem like a German city.
Frankfurt’s good points
But it’s not all bad. In fact readers listed loads of positive aspects about life in Frankfurt.
Some highlighted that the expat community is strong, and many people speak English locally, helping to ease things for newcomers.
“There’s more integration of international people compared to other cities in Germany,” one reader wrote. “The best thing is the connectivity and the fact that we have a lot of international communities.”
"Frankfurt has an incredibly diverse population," said respondent Barb Chap. "We now number among our friends - besides Germans, Americans, and Brits - folks with heritage from Turkey, Senegal, Iran, Nigeria and others. And you can walk from one side of the city to the other to experience the various neighbourhoods. - Events, museums, cinemas (with English), nature."
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Although readers also recommended that it's good to try speaking German.
Frankfurt resident Youri Zissos said: "The energy of the city is amazing, events are very frequently held in different Stadteile. This city is very international, while showing different sides of Hessisch culture. People are generally very warm to foreigners as long as you try to speak at least a few phrases in German."
The nearby Main and Rhine rivers also offer up plenty to see in terms of castles, wineries, or museums. Respondents to our survey also said other nature spots such as the Taunus mountain range were a huge positive to life there.
Many respondents praised how well-connected Frankfurt is.
"Love the public transport options, hoe easy it is to get to Frankfurt Airport, and how central the city is in the rest of Europe," said Tina Hattingh.
With reporting by Rachel Loxton
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