Not so long ago, the issue of inflation did not seem particularly relevant to many Germans, even if they had experienced very different times before.

Two years ago, according to the Federal Statistical Office, the inflation rate in Germany was 0.9 percent in June.

Twelve months later it was already 2.3 percent and finally 7.6 percent.

Above all, the corona pandemic and its consequences as well as the Ukraine war are considered price drivers.

The prices for energy such as petrol, heating oil or gas and food have risen significantly.

Kerstin Papon

Editor in Business.

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This environment is meanwhile leading to more and more people adapting their behavior – and not just because they absolutely have to do so financially.

On average, four out of five Germans now compare prices more frequently because of inflation.

In any case, this is the result of a representative survey conducted by the market researcher GfK on behalf of the online retailer Galaxus.

Petrol prices at a glance

Consumers are paying more attention to gas prices, searching more intensively for the cheapest flight or perhaps opening two dozen pages when buying online before diapers, for example, end up in the shopping cart.

Of course, income plays an important role.

Because according to the survey, on average more than 80 percent of people with a net household income of less than 3,000 euros per month now compare prices more frequently.

On the other hand, around a quarter of those who have a net income of more than 5,000 euros per month do not do this.

For online shopping, however, the high rate of inflation does not mean that the range of prices is widening, says the online retailer Galaxus.

The prices for toothbrushes, coffee machines or cell phones, for example, are so dynamic and easy to compare on the Internet that retailers cannot pass on the higher prices one-to-one when making purchases.

If someone were to try this anyway, they would be left with their goods, says Hendrik Blijdenstein, who is responsible for Galaxus' purchasing and sales.

With the exception of scarce goods.

Because in the past few months there have been big price differences in graphics cards or game consoles, for example.

Inflation expectations are age dependent

The survey also shows that inflation sometimes even leads to safety or panic buying, says Galaxus.

On average, more than one in four purchases are now made earlier than originally planned - for fear that prices would continue to rise.

Many young people in particular reacted in this way.

According to the analysis, about 38 percent of those surveyed aged 30 to 39 prefer to make purchases because of this.

At the age of 60, about a fifth say so.

The thinking behind it: If, for example, a sofa costs 400 euros today but maybe 450 euros at the end of the year, “then I’d rather get it now than later”.

And what about consumer inflation expectations?

Older people in particular expect higher inflation.

Eight out of ten respondents aged 70 and over expect inflation of a good 5 percent for the current year, and around three quarters of those aged 60 to 69 expected the same.

This is no wonder, because these people had already experienced the high inflation in the 1970s and 1990s, says Galaxus.

On the other hand, only about half of those surveyed in the 30 to 39 age group expect inflation to be this high, and 44 percent of those aged 18 to 29 expect the same.

The inflation expectations of German citizens also differ with regard to income.

According to the survey, higher earners are more likely to expect higher inflation rates than people with lower incomes.

The latter are hit harder than average by inflation because heating oil, gas, petrol and diesel make up a larger part of their budget, says Galaxus.

Around 1,000 residents of Germany aged between 18 and 74 were surveyed in the second week of June.