Cities for International Students: Where the Sperrkonto Is Enough

For a visa in 2026, a student from a non-EU country needs a Sperrkonto (blocked account) of €11,904 — it pays out €992/month. Whether that payout is enough is decided by the city: in Chemnitz costs are ~€708/month, leaving a €284 buffer; in Munich costs are ~€1,208 — a €216 shortfall before any leisure. Side work is capped at 140 full days a year, and BAföG is unavailable in most cases.

The €992 payout versus city costs

Costs = WG room (shared-flat room, Warmmiete) + Semesterticket €37.80 + student health insurance ~€130 + groceries ~€250.

City	WG room	Costs/month	Balance from €992
Chemnitz	€290	€708	+€284
Dresden	€350	€768	+€224
Aachen	€390	€808	+€184
Leipzig	€400	€818	+€174
Berlin	€650	€1,068	−€76
Munich	€790	€1,208	−€216

In four of the six cities the Sperrkonto payout covers basic costs with room to spare. In Berlin and Munich it doesn't: the gap is closed by a side job, a scholarship or family support, and it's worth planning for before you apply for the visa.

Rules that add to the budget

For a student from a non-EU/EEA country, three constraints are added to the usual student arithmetic.

Rule	What it means (2026)
Sperrkonto	€11,904/year, payout €992/month; for Studienbewerber (applicants before admission) — €13,092/year, €1,091/month
Work cap	140 full or 280 half days a year without permission; beyond that, only with the consent of the Ausländerbehörde (immigration office)
BAföG	With a study residence permit (§16b AufenthG), generally unavailable — permanent residents and certain categories are eligible

The 20-hours-a-week-during-the-semester rule is separate: it's about student status in insurance and applies to all students. Regular Werkstudent (working-student) work fits within the 140-day cap, but uses up most of it — leaving almost no room for one-off jobs on top.

English, university and the Werkstudent market

A cheap city saves budget, but the side-job market and the English-speaking environment are distributed differently.

City	Environment for an international student
Berlin	The most English-language programmes and side jobs; housing is expensive and competitive
Munich	TUM/LMU, many English master's programmes, a strong IT market; the most expensive room
Aachen	RWTH, an international technical university; a cheap room with a western job market
Dresden	TU Dresden and the chip cluster: English on campus and in industry, daily life in German
Leipzig	A cheap and growing city; Werkstudent vacancies more often require German
Chemnitz	TU Chemnitz technical master's programmes in English; in daily life German is needed right away

The combination "cheap room + international environment + side job in English" is rare. Aachen comes closest; Berlin and Munich give the environment but eat up the budget; the East gives a buffer but demands German sooner.

Which city suits whom

• Budget — Sperrkonto only, no side job — Chemnitz, Dresden, Aachen, Leipzig: the payout covers costs with a €174–284 buffer.
• Need a side job in English from the first semester — Aachen, Berlin, Munich: a broader English-language Werkstudent market.
• Plan to stay and work after graduation — Munich, Berlin, Dresden: more employers there hire graduates without relocating.
• First year without German — Berlin, Aachen: daily life and campus are more forgiving of English.

Example: Aachen versus Munich

A master's in English, budget — the Sperrkonto payout of €992 only.

Item	Aachen	Munich
Sperrkonto payout	€992	€992
− WG room	−€390	−€790
− Semesterticket	−€37.80	−€37.80
− Insurance and groceries	−€380	−€380
= Balance	+€184	−€216

In Aachen the budget balances without work, and RWTH offers an international environment. In Munich, without a Werkstudent contract (~€500/month and up), the budget doesn't balance — and the housing search there takes months and often requires temporary, more expensive options at the start.

FAQ

This is not legal or financial advice.

Is a Sperrkonto the only way to prove funding? No. The alternatives are a Verpflichtungserklärung (a sponsorship declaration by a German resident), a scholarship (for example, DAAD) or a combination. The Sperrkonto is the most common option.

Do Werkstudent hours count toward the 140-day cap? Yes. A day of work up to half a normal working day counts as a half day, longer counts as a full day. Beyond 140 full / 280 half days you need permission from the Ausländerbehörde.

Can you stay after graduation? Graduates of German universities can get a residence permit to look for work for up to 18 months (§20 AufenthG). During that time you can work without restrictions.

Why is BAföG unavailable? §8 BAföG ties eligibility for support to citizenship or residence status. A §16b study residence permit is generally not on the list.

Sources

1. Auswärtiges Amt — Sperrkonto: €992/month (€11,904/year) for students, €1,091/month (€13,092/year) for Studienbewerber, https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/de/service/visa-und-aufenthalt/nationale-visa/visa-schule-studium-sprachkurs/sperrkonto (2026)
2. § 16b AufenthG — study residence permit, cap of 140 full / 280 half days, https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/aufenthg_2004/__16b.html (2026)
3. § 20 AufenthG — job search after graduation, up to 18 months, https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/aufenthg_2004/__20.html (2026)
4. § 8 BAföG — the group of people eligible for support, https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/baf_g/__8.html (2026)
5. WG-Gesucht / Studis Online — WG room costs (Warmmiete), WS 2025/26, https://www.wg-gesucht.de/ (2025–2026)
6. Deutschlandsemesterticket — €37.80/month from WS 2026/27, https://www.studierendenwerke.de/ (2026)
7. GKV-Spitzenverband — studentische Krankenversicherung (student health insurance), contribution amount, https://www.gkv-spitzenverband.de/ (2026)

This is not legal or financial advice.

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