Why is Dutch easier than German? Dutch and German share the same origin, but the further away a language has grown from that origin, the more it has changed and developed. German is an older language. One of the main factors affecting how difficult a language is, is language contact.
It's also the official language of several countries, including Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Both Dutch and German have their challenges, but Dutch is generally considered easier to learn than German. However, your decision should ultimately be based on your goals and interests.
If you will note, Dutch is in category 1, "Languages closely related to English" and German is in Category 2, "Languages similar to English", so their extensive experience shows that German will be significantly harder to learn than Dutch.
Many would consider German a good language to learn for business, and knowing German while doing business in Germany, Austria or another German-speaking country is extremely important. But Dutch is also a language that can be extremely useful when trying to qualify for jobs and finding professional opportunities.
Compared to the very popular Romance language Spanish and French, German is regarded as hard to learn. But in truth, German is actually easier to learn than a lot of other languages.
Across multiple sources, Mandarin Chinese is the number one language listed as the most challenging to learn. The Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center puts Mandarin in Category IV, which is the list of the most difficult languages to learn for English speakers.
Mandarin is unanimously considered the most difficult language to master and is spoken by over a billion people in the world.
If financial aspects are important to you as an international student, then you might prefer Germany. But if ease of admission and English-taught courses matter more, then you should consider the Netherlands as your university destination.
Perks of working in the Netherlands vs Germany
Germans make more money, too. The average net-adjusted disposable income per capita in Germany, according to the OECD Index, is USD 31,925, while the Dutch earn USD 27,759.
Dutch, German, English, Swedish and Danish are all Germanic languages but the degree of mutual intelligibility between these languages differs. Danish and Swedish are the most mutually comprehensible, but German and Dutch are also mutually intelligible.
Its closest relative is the mutually intelligible daughter language Afrikaans. Other West Germanic languages related to Dutch are German, English and the Frisian languages and the un-standardised languages Low German and Yiddish.
Dutch is Very Similar to English and German
We're guessing that you already speak one of those two languages (probably English since you're reading this article). That's great! It means that you have a head-start: Dutch is one of the easiest languages to learn for native English– or German-speakers.
There are three separate dialects of the language, and it's only spoken at the southern fringes of the North Sea in the Netherlands and Germany. However, the closest major language to English, is Dutch.
Luxembourgish
As part of a group of high German languages, Luxembourgish is the closest language to German—more closely related to standard German than some of the other high German dialects you'll hear in countries such as Austria and Switzerland.
French tends to be easier for beginners, though it gets harder as you get into its intermediate and advanced layers. German has a tougher on-ramp for beginners, but gets easier as you go along.
As far as the cities themselves, they each have their own compelling charms. Berlin is quirky, artsy, and interesting. Amsterdam is healthy, gorgeous, and creative. Both cities have a similar cost of living, but it's the quality of life that expats should consider first when choosing between the two.
Low or No Cost of Education
For Bachelor's or Master's degree level, international students can enjoy free tuition in German public universities. International Students only need to pay a small administrative fee or semester fee. This is why so many Indian students choose to study abroad in Germany.
In general, Dutch income tax is lower than German income tax. Dutch wage tax is comparable to German tax class 3. Dutch taxes are progressive, just like in Germany. This means that you pay higher taxes if you have a higher income.