Looking for American Expats in Frankfurt?

Every year, we publish one of the biggest global surveys for expats — Expat Insider — where we ask people living around the world about every aspect of expat life. We’ve rounded up key facts about the typical American expat: what motivated them to move to a new country, what they enjoy about life abroad, as well as what they struggle with the most.

Thinking about moving to Frankfurt as an American? These pros and cons come from the InterNations Expat Insider 2026 survey, in which thousands of expats around the world share what they like and don't like about life abroad each year. The points below reflect what US American expats in Frankfurt wrote in their own words, backed up by survey percentages from all expats living there.

• It's a launchpad for Europe. 90% of expats in Frankfurt rate the opportunity to travel positively, with a central location and a major airport on the doorstep.

• It's safe, green, and well-run. 79% rate personal safety positively, 83% the natural environment, and 81% getting around on foot or by bike, with strong infrastructure.

• Healthcare and balance reassure. Americans praise job security, access to healthcare and social services, and a real work-life balance (67%, above the 62% global average).

• Quality of life is high. Clean surroundings, good public transport (78%), and a sustainability focus come up often.

• Housing and costs bite. Just 14% of expats in Frankfurt rate housing affordability positively and 26% the general cost of living.

• The language and paperwork are tough. Only 18% say German is easy to learn and 22% find bureaucracy easy, with Americans citing anti-digital, contract-heavy admin.

• Locals can feel cold. Only 23% say making local friends is easy and 48% feel welcome, and Americans describe reserved personalities.

• The weather and work culture take adjusting. Grey, wet weather and, for some, a demanding office culture round out the downsides.

For Americans, Frankfurt offers safety, healthcare, balance, and an unbeatable base for exploring Europe. The trade-offs are the housing costs, a hard language, heavy paperwork, and reserved locals. It rewards those who value stability and travel over an easy social welcome.

We asked tens of thousands of expats about their lives abroad in our Expat Insider surveys. In addition to our standard questions, we invite them to share what they like or dislike about their experiences in their own words. Here, we’ve selected some of the most interesting or representative quotes about expat life in Frankfurt from Americans, grouped into positive and negative opinions.

Let’s start with the positive ones.

On the downside, here's are some negative experiences from American expats in Frankfurt.

We’re not just active in Frankfurt. InterNations has lively communities in most of Germany’s major cities. If you’re traveling or moving to another city in Germany, check out our American communities in Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Düsseldorf, Essen, [Cologne] (https://www.internations.org/cologne-expats/americans), Bonn, Regensburg, Heidelberg, or Stuttgart. But that’s not all: If you’re in the mood for a nice night out while traveling further abroad, InterNations is your go-to platform. As an InterNations member, you’re always welcome to join events in any of our communities in over 420 cities worldwide. You can find the list here: Browse all InterNations Communities worldwide. InterNations provides an easy, casual way to get to know expats from the USA and further afield in your local community. Sound good? Then let us welcome you into our Frankfurt Community today!