No price freeze

Shopping, housing: Living in Austria is getting more expensive

No price freeze in sight: 2025 will be even more expensive in many areas of life.

(Bild: Denys Kurbatov - stock.adobe.com)

Living in Austria is now significantly more expensive than at the end of 2019. At the end of 2024, the average Austrian woman and man would need €458 a month more than at the end of 2019 if they wanted to maintain the same standard of living as back then. Further price increases in 2025 will make life even more expensive.

According to an analysis by the Momentum Institute, which is affiliated with trade unions and chambers of labor, life in Austria has become significantly more expensive over the past five years.

Of the 458 euros per month that the Momentum Institute describes as "additional costs", 66 euros were spent on food, 83 euros on housing and energy, 128 euros on catering and restaurant services, 14 euros on fuel and a further 167 euros on other expenses such as health, leisure, culture and education.

Compared to the average inflation rate in the eurozone, however, people in Austria would have to spend 96 euros less per month.

Austrians are "cautiously optimistic" for 2025
33% of respondents are skeptical and 27% are worried about the new year, while only 34% are confident. Nevertheless, the gloomy years are likely to be over for now. A slight improvement in sentiment was already evident in the survey for 2024, which has continued, albeit only slightly, in this year's New Year's survey.

The proportion of pessimists overall fell from 65% to 61%, while those who are optimistic about 2025 rose from 31% to 34%. However, in the survey on the mood of Austrians, which has been conducted annually since 1972, confidence is still below the average of 44%.

Rising prices at petrol pumps
In any case, living will remain more expensive, and car drivers must also expect rising costs. At the turn of the year, the national CO2 price will rise from 45 to 55 euros per tonne of CO2. At the pumps, this means an increase of around three cents, with diesel being hit harder. Overall, the CO2 costs in 2025, including VAT, will account for 15 cents of the pump price for petrol and 16.5 cents for diesel.