Germany Grocery Costs 2026: Local vs. Asian Markets

Germany Grocery Costs 2026: Local vs. Asian Markets (How Much is a Can of Tuna?)

After a grueling 24-hour journey, we finally touched down at Frankfurt Am Main Airport at 6:30 AM!

This marks my third time passing through Frankfurt Airport. When my daughter was three, we embarked on a month-long campervan adventure through Western Europe, and when she turned four, we explored Eastern Europe for another month with my parents.

Counting my college backpacking days and our honeymoon trip around the world, this is actually my fifth time traveling in Europe.

Renting an RV with DRM in Frankfurt

For this trip, we planned an epic 45-day Scandinavian campervan journey. We chose to rent our RV in Frankfurt, Germany, because the rental rates here are significantly cheaper than in Norway or Sweden.

If you are planning a long trip like ours, this is highly recommended. However, if your trip is under a month... honestly, I would advise against it.

The drive from Frankfurt to southern Norway is about 930 miles. Doing that round-trip takes about 6 to 7 days of pure driving. Since campervans cannot travel as fast as regular cars, covering 300 miles a day is no easy feat.

Stocking Up: Grocery Shopping in Germany

Knowing how expensive Scandinavia can be, we decided to stock up on food and daily essentials in Germany first. Our very first mission after picking up our campervan was to hit a local German supermarket.

Even with the current exchange rates, shopping at local German grocery stores was surprisingly affordable and incredibly fun.

Shampoo and conditioner: about ~$1

Sunscreen: about ~$4 / After-sun lotion: about ~$2

I was shocked by how inexpensive the sun care products were. Finding quality sunscreen at these prices is a total steal!

Napa cabbage: about ~$1

It was also a pleasant surprise to find fresh Napa cabbage in a standard German supermarket.

Tomato spaghetti noodles and pasta sauce: about ~$1 each

With the pasta and sauce combined costing only ~$2, we could easily whip up two meals for our family of three (we just added some fresh onions and mushrooms to bulk it up).

Egg salad and chili seasoned shrimp: between ~$2 and ~$2

Pre-made egg salad and seasoned chili shrimp only cost around ~$2 each, making them perfect, hassle-free side dishes for our road trip.

Prices of various fresh vegetables

Basic produce like carrots, onions, and potatoes were incredibly cheap, allowing us to grab what we needed without worrying about the budget.

Since it was our first day and we were still planning our meals, we bought just enough for the start of our journey and planned to restock later.

Sourcing Rice and Asian Staples in Frankfurt

To pick up some comfort food and rice, we stopped by an Asian specialty market on the outskirts of Frankfurt. As expected, imported Asian items carry a premium.

Instant Yukgaejang (spicy beef soup) pouch: about ~$6

Kimchi is definitely on the pricier side here...

Canned tuna: about ~$3 / Instant meal pouches: about ~$2

We ended up buying two 4kg bags of rice and a 2kg bag of mixed grains, which easily fed our family of three for our entire 40-day trip.

Even though we packed plenty of supplies from home, seeing these familiar comfort foods on the shelves tempted us to add a few more treats to our cart!

4kg bag of rice: ~$19 / 2kg bag of sweet brown rice: ~$11

The Adventure Begins: Heading to Scandinavia

With our campervan fully stocked and organized on our first day in Frankfurt, we are ready to hit the road north!

We are incredibly excited to start our journey, embrace the slow-paced campervan lifestyle, and make unforgettable memories in Scandinavia.

I plan to document our daily European campervan life right here from my phone.

(Let us hope I can actually keep up with daily posting this time!)