Rent will most likely be the largest item in your budget. How much you will spend depends on both the type of housing and the city that you are staying in. Generally speaking, rent is higher in the larger university cities (Copenhagen and, though to a lesser extent, Aarhus) than in smaller cities (such as Odense and Aalborg). Below is a comparison of Copenhagen and Odense for reference.

Take-out is expensive in Denmark and Danes typically cook most meals at home. If you shop for groceries and cook your own meals, you can get by on approx. 250 USD/person/month, less if you are economical. You should expect to double that if you eat a lot of take-out.

Here are some examples to give you an idea of the price range in supermarkets.

1 liter (¼ gallon) of milk: $1.50 / 10 kr.
1 loaf of bread: $3 / 20 kr.
1 banana: $0.60 / 4 kr.
1 lb of dried pasta: $0.75 / 5 kr.
1 bottle of shampoo: $3 / 20 kr.

Below is an estimate of price levels if you’re looking to cosy up at a café with a cup of coffee or maybe eating a meal at a restaurant. Tips are appreciated but not expected, except at up-scale restaurants where a 10% tip will do. The estimates are for Copenhagen/Aarhus and you can expect to pay less in most other cities.

Main course at a mid-scale restaurant: $20-$30 / 150-200 kr. excluding drinks
Coffee at a café: $4-$7 / 25-45 kr.
Draft beer (0.5 liter) at a bar/café: $7-$9 / 45-60 kr

Most international schools and daycare institutions in Copenhagen cost $4600-$8300 in annual fees per child (though some institutions offer sibling discounts). Public daycare is cheaper, and you can sign up as soon as you and your child have received your Danish social security numbers.

Public transportation is convenient and widely used in all of Denmark. You can buy single tickets, but it is cheaper to get a travel card if traveling often. If you’re traveling by train between different parts of the country, you can get heavily discounted tickets if you buy them well in advance.

One-way metro or bus ticket (staying within city limits): $2.30 / 15 kr.
DSB one-way ticket Aarhus-Copenhagen (bought well in advance): $23 / 150 kr.

Jeans: $60 / 400 kr.
Winter coat: $120 / 800 kr.
Movie ticket: $15 / 100 kr.
Gym membership (monthly): $40 / 250 kr.
Dentist (cleaning/check-up): $90 / 600 kr.

If you are looking to study in the US, you have to consider the living expenses. Prices vary from city to city and the neighborhood you decide on plays a factor as well. Below you will find examples of housing costs in American cities.

Living expenses in New York City are high even by Danish standards. Housing is particularly expensive and renting something on your own may not be an option. To find something that falls within the typical student’s budget limitations you should expect a 30-minute commute to Downtown/Midtown Manhattan. For instance, expect to pay upwards of 3500 USD for a studio apartment if you want to live near NYU’s Washington Square Park campus in Greenwich Village. If you would like your rent money to go a little further, look towards Upper Manhattan (e.g. Harlem, Washington Heights) or cheaper neighborhoods in the other boroughs – e.g. Astoria, Queens where a 2-bedroom apartment might cost around 2500 USD. The Columbia Grad School of Arts and Sciences campus is conveniently located in Morningside Heights in Upper Manhattan which is a relatively affordable neighborhood with lots of students.

Chicago is similar to other major US cities with living expenses higher than the US average. Housing is expensive, but most students choose to live in Hyde Park where the Department of Physical Sciences is located. Hyde Park is an affordable though not cheap neighborhood in the southern part of Chicago with lots of life and culture. If you are looking to rent a place of your own in Hyde Park, expect to pay anywhere from 700-1500 USD for a studio to 1800-2500 USD for a two-bedroom. If you want to live closer to central Chicago, expect rents to rise accordingly.

Pittsburgh is an affordable city with lower living expenses compared to both Denmark and larger US cities. It is possible to find fairly-priced accommodations relatively close to the university campus in Oakland, e.g. a 2-bedroom shareable apartment in North Oakland might cost around 1500 USD.

The Bay Area is home to some of the leading universities in the nation, including UC Berkeley, Stanford, and UC San Francisco, but unfortunately, the area also comes with a hefty price tag. San Francisco is particularly expensive and is continuously ranked as one of the most expensive cities in the US (and in the world). A one-bedroom apartment is going to cost you at least 3000 USD, and you might have to spend 1500 USD on a private room in a shared apartment. Luckily commuting from the surrounding areas is easy and affordable. The neighboring cities of Berkeley and Oakland attract a young crowd and are popular with students because of the slightly lower rental rates and lively atmosphere and not least because of the easy access to the UC Berkeley campus and downtown San Francisco. With BART you can get from Oakland to the UCSF campus in 20 minutes or the UC Berkeley campus in 15 minutes. Expect to pay approx. 1000 USD for a private room in Berkeley, while Oakland is slightly cheaper. Other areas worth looking into are Richmond and El Cerrito which are just north of Berkeley.

Los Angeles and San Diego are right behind San Francisco when it comes to housing costs. In both cities, you should expect to pay at least 2000 USD for a studio or one-bedroom apartment and approx. 1000-1500 USD for a private room. The UCLA campus is located in the western part of LA in close proximity to iconic, but expensive neighborhoods and places such as Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, and Venice Beach. Other more affordable neighborhoods include Palms and Culver City. Public transportation in LA is generally cheaper than in Denmark, though it is not convenient for long distances. The UC San Diego campus is located in La Jolla north of San Diego and subletting a room close to campus is going to cost you approx. 1000 USD.

Davis, which is home to UC Davis, is a smaller city southwest of Sacramento. Davis is considerably cheaper than major Californian cities, and you should be able to find decent accommodation without stretching your budget too much, e.g., a private room for approx. 500 USD.

Prospective American Fulbrighters wondering how to budget for their stay in Denmark can have a look here, where we have put together a brief overview of living expenses.

It should be noted that it is expensive to study in the U.S.; it can cost between DKK 250,000-400,000 per year (everything included) for students pursuing a full degree.

SU and SU-loan – The State Educational Grant and Loan Scheme can be taken with you to the U.S. as long as courses of study meet the same conditions and criteria for recognition as Danish ones, and the qualifications acquired are usable in Denmark. But it is not possible to get SU the first year of an American Bachelor’s degree.

Udlandsstipendium – The State Educational Study Abroad Scholarship can be applied for by graduate students for up to two years if you qualify for SU.

Fulbright student grants (only for graduate students) – you might be eligible to apply for the Fulbright scholarships.

Danish grants and scholarships – There are many grants available for graduate level studies. Most Danish grants can be found using the following databases: Legatbogen and StuderendeOnline.

Work as a Teaching Assistant or Research assistant.

American scholarships – Some U.S. universities have scholarships available.

Personal savings or loan.

When you are deciding where in the US you want to go, it is important to take the area and the cost of living into account – especially how much you are willing and able to spend on rent. Rent levels in the US vary greatly depending on the area and can be very high in larger cities. If you are going to a major US city be prepared to commute, especially if you are going to a city such as NYC or San Francisco, where rents will skyrocket as you get closer to downtown. Consider your budget and weigh that against how far you are willing to commute. Take a look at Housing in the US to see some examples of how much you should expect to pay in rent.

Looking at the US as a whole, living expenses such as groceries, clothes etc., are lower on average than in Denmark, though not by much in larger university cities that tend to attract a more affluent crowd. A significant difference between Denmark and the US is that take-out is almost as cheap as cooking your own meals, something which Americans take advantage of several times a week.

Fulbright Denmark is committed to ensuring the well-being of our participants through robust stipends that keep pace with inflation and the ever-increasing costs of higher education in the United States.

The Institute of International Education (IIE), our partner organization in the United States, has examined the cost of living in the cities where the majority of Fulbrighters reside, gathering quantitative data on consumer price indices as well as qualitative data from current participants and host institutions.

You can see the required monthly maintenance rates (MMR) here, showing how much money you will need per month at the destination of your choice:

• MMR for students and Ph.D.’s by state
• MMR for students and Ph.D.’s by city
• MMR for scholars by state
• MMR for scholars by city

Please note that a dependent (i.e. a spouse or child), requires an additional 50% extra on top of your own MMR. Consequently, for a family of three, you would have to double the MMR amount. These amounts must be met prior to departure, so you can get your DS-2019 form and subsequently your visa.

It is recommended that all Danes buy insurance coverage for their time in the U.S. as it can be extremely expensive to go to the doctor or be hospitalized in the U.S. Therefore, you should secure insurance for the entire duration of your stay. Some universities will require that you buy their insurance; however, if possible we recommend that you obtain a Danish insurance as the coverage is usually better.

Within the Fulbright program, grantees are required to have adequate insurance coverage. A Fulbright grantee will automatically receive a so-called Accident and Sickness Program for Exchanges (ASPE) coverage. This coverage is minimal, therefore the grantee needs to secure Danish insurance that can cover, e.g. liability insurance and repatriation; it is also acceptable to take out American insurance if the coverage is equal to Danish insurance.

Grantees who begin their visa process in collaboration with Fulbright Denmark must provide financial documentation in order to be eligible for a Fulbright sponsored J-1 visa to the U.S.

You have to live up to certain amounts, also called the Monthly Maintenance Rates (MMR). These amounts are individually calculated – depending on your city of destination and host university (expensive vs. inexpensive). We have included some examples below.

• Master student, degree-seeking, 10 months, single, New York City: USD 99,000
• PhD student, non-degree seeking, 5 months, spouse + 1 child, Boston: USD 35,000
• Scholar, 10 months, spouse + 2 children, San Diego: USD 50,000

The documentation for the required amounts may include savings, in-kind contributions (i.e. secured sponsorships, fee waivers from the host institution or similar) and other scholarships or stipends that you have received at the time of the visa application. The amounts have to be a guaranteed income and officially documented.

• If you are a Ph.D. student or scholar travelling with full pay, your salary will also count towards the required amount.
• If you are a Master’s student, please notice that SU loans, and future SU income only count, if officially documented by the SU Styrelsen.

Most Fulbright grantees will have to source extra income through a variety of other scholarships in order to live up to the financial requirements.