How do you say Rent in German?

Whether you’re renting an apartment, reading a lease, or complaining about rising prices, the word rent is central to life - especially in Germany, where a large part of the population rents long-term. That’s why learning how to say rent in German gives you the tools to navigate real-world housing conversations.

The word is die Miete. It’s feminine, and the plural is die Mieten. If you need a fast, visual explanation of how gender works in German, my gender video lesson has you covered.

Miete is one of the 1000 most frequently used nouns in German - not just in contracts, but in everyday complaints, budgeting, and planning.

Here’s how Miete appears in all four grammatical cases:

Nominative:Die Miete ist zu hoch.The rent is too high.

Accusative:Ich bezahle die Miete am Ersten.I pay the rent on the first.

Dative:In der Miete sind die Nebenkosten enthalten.The additional charges are included in the rent.

Genitive:Die Höhe der Miete wurde geändert.The amount of the rent was changed.

Miete is a common word in everyday German, especially in cities:

• Miete zahlen - to pay rent

• die monatliche Miete - monthly rent

• Kaltmiete - base rent without additional charges
  Warmmiete - base rent plus agreed ancillary costs (Nebenkosten), usually including heating; household electricity and internet are often separate

• Mietvertrag - rental contract

• Mieter / Vermieter - tenant / landlord
  mieten / vermieten - to rent / to rent out

Verbs: zahlen (to pay), erhöhen (to raise), senken (to lower), kündigen (to cancel), überweisen (to transfer)Adjectives: hoch (high), günstig (affordable), pünktlich (punctual), monatlich (monthly)