Living in Duisburg: districts rents, registration

Since 1975 Duisburg has consisted of 46 neighbourhoods in seven districts: Walsum, Hamborn, Meiderich/Beeck, Homberg/Ruhrort/Baerl, Mitte, Rheinhausen and Süd. Each district has its own district office. With just over 111,000 inhabitants, Mitte is the only district with a six-figure population; it includes the city centre, the Dellviertel, Neudorf, Duissern and Hochfeld, which, with around 15,000 inhabitants per km², is one of the most densely populated neighbourhoods.

Most of the city lies on the right bank of the Rhine; Rheinhausen and Homberg are on the left. Ruhrort is the centre of the port, with the Museum of German Inland Navigation. The largest district by area, Süd, includes Wedau, Bissingheim and Buchholz, as well as the Six Lakes (Sechs-Seen-Platte) and the city forest. Because of mining subsidence, a third of Duisburg's residents live below the water level of the Rhine, protected by dykes and pumping stations.

The port and logistics – Duisburg is regarded as one of the hubs of Central Europe – shape the economy, as does the iron and steel industry with its blast furnaces. The University of Duisburg-Essen was formed in 2003 from the universities of both cities and, with around 42,000 students, is one of the largest in North Rhine-Westphalia. Düsseldorf Airport lies just beyond the city boundary, seven minutes by train from the main station. Duissern is home to the operations centre of DB InfraGO, which monitors rail traffic throughout North Rhine-Westphalia.

In your free time, there is the Landschaftspark Duisburg-Nord on a former ironworks site in Meiderich, the Six Lakes with 150 hectares of water in the south, the zoo with its dolphinarium and the Inner Harbour with restaurants and the Museum Küppersmühle. The Lehmbruck Museum with its sculpture park stands in the Kantpark. The Filmforum on Dellplatz is one of the oldest municipal cinemas in Germany. We don't quote specific rents without a reliable source.

We charge long-distance moves from €4.20/km. Arrange a free survey – free of charge and with no obligation.

Pricing is based primarily on volume and distance (from €4.20/km). Other factors are the floor, whether there is a lift and setting up a parking restriction zone. If needed, furniture assembly or a shared load round off the service.

We plan moves from Stromstraße 21 in Berlin-Moabit, to Duisburg as well as back to Berlin. How the roughly 547 km via the A2, A3 and A59 work is explained on the page Moving Berlin – Duisburg.

According to the city, anyone moving to Duisburg must register within 14 days. This can be done online or at a citizens' service station; both are free of charge. For online registration you need an ID card with the online function activated and its PIN, an NFC-enabled smartphone or card reader, the AusweisApp and a BundID account. The service is open to German and EU/EEA nationals; it starts at wohnsitzanmeldung.de. The address stickers for your ID card are sent by post to your new address.

Tenants need the landlord confirmation (Wohnungsgeberbescheinigung); owners whose property is not yet entered in the land register also need proof of ownership. If you are coming from another city, have your birth, marriage or naturalisation certificate ready. There are seven citizens' service stations: Walsum, Hamborn, Meiderich/Beeck, Homberg/Ruhrort/Baerl, Mitte, Rheinhausen and Süd. An appointment via the city's booking system is required for a visit. Foreign nationals with tenancy agreements from 1 July 2024 are registered at the citizens' service; people with a residence permit pending asylum (Aufenthaltsgestattung) or a tolerated stay (Duldung) at the Office for Integration and Immigration Services.

Your vehicle also needs a new address: within Duisburg you change it at a citizens' service station, and if you are moving from elsewhere, at the road traffic office. You can reach the city administration on 0203 94000 (Mon to Fri 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sat 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.). Everything else about the move can be found under Moving in Duisburg and in the re-registration guide.

The administration is divided into seven districts with their own district administration offices, which the city lists by postcode: Walsum (47169, 47178, 47179), Hamborn (47166, 47167, 47169), Meiderich (47119 Laar, 47137, 47138, 47139, 47166), Homberg (47119 Ruhrort, 47198, 47199), Mitte (47051, 47053, 47055, 47057, 47058, 47059), Rheinhausen (47226, 47228, 47229, 47239) and Süd (47249, 47259, 47269, 47279). Which station is responsible for you follows from your postcode.

Public transport is run by the Duisburger Verkehrsgesellschaft (DVG) with trams and buses in the VRR fare zone. According to DVG, the customer centre is open Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 6.30 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; appointments can be booked online. There is also the on-demand service myBUS.

Waste is the responsibility of the Wirtschaftsbetriebe Duisburg (WBD), which also clean the streets and maintain green spaces. You book bulky waste collections online or by phone on (0203) 283-5000, and the information line is (0203) 283-3000 (Mon to Fri, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.). WBD also offers an online waste calendar and a WBD app with the collection dates for your address. You apply for housing benefit via the Gemeinsam-Online service portal; the city links to a housing benefit calculator. More detail on districts and costs: Duisburg moving guide.