Apartments and flats for Rent in Emmen

Emmen apartments for rent cost about a quarter less than in Groningen, and the flats are not small. Based on over 700 listings tracked on RentHunter since February 2024, an apartment for rent in Emmen averages €931 a month for 68 m², and 80% of the rents fall between €527 and €1,296.

Emmen is the most populous municipality of Drenthe, with 107,490 inhabitants, and it sits right by the German border. The town is best known for Wildlands Adventure Zoo and for the hunebeds, the prehistoric stone graves of the Hondsrug ridge. For renters this means a quiet, green housing market: 48% of apartment listings mention a balcony and 28% mention parking.

Groningen, 58 km to the north, is the nearest large city and the obvious comparison, with apartments averaging €1,258, so a flat in Emmen mostly suits people who work in Drenthe, in Groningen or across the border.

1. Average rent: €931 a month
   The average apartment rent in Emmen is €931 a month across these listings. One-bedroom flats average €810, two-bedroom flats €1,035, three-bedroom flats €1,012 and four-bedroom apartments €1,139.
2. Price band: €527 to €1,296
   80% of apartment listings in Emmen ask between €527 and €1,296 a month, so filter on bedrooms before you compare rents.
3. 26% cheaper than Groningen
   An apartment in Emmen rents for 26% less than in Groningen, where the average is €1,258 a month.
4. New listings: €755 median asking rent
   The median asking rent of new apartments first seen on RentHunter in the 90 days to October 2026 is €755. That is the current price level for Emmen, while the €931 average covers a longer period.
5. Size: 68 m² on average
   An apartment in Emmen offers 68 m² on average, far more space than a room in Emmen. Renters who want a garden usually look at houses for rent in Emmen, since 14% of apartment listings mention one.
6. Furnished: 16% of listings
   16% of apartment listings in Emmen are furnished, a useful filter for expats arriving with a suitcase or a studio budget. Other listings are gestoffeerd, which in Dutch rental property means floors, curtains and lamps but no furniture, or kaal, an empty shell. When a flat is gestoffeerd, budget for furniture only, not for flooring.

Three areas cover most needs of apartment renters in Emmen: the town centre, the districts on the east side and Bargeres to the southwest. Every property type and area is on the Emmen rental page.

The centre of Emmen, around the Raadhuisplein, suits renters who want to walk to the station, the Atlas Theater and Wildlands. Picture a Saturday: coffee on the square, a zoo visit with friends, then home to your flat on foot. In the centre, parking is the first thing to ask the landlord about.

Angelslo and Emmerhout are residential districts east of the centre of Emmen, next to the Emmerdennen woods, where hunebeds stand among the trees. Both were built in the 1960s and 1970s. They suit couples and small families who want a short bike ride to the centre and a forest walk after work.

Bargeres is one of the largest residential districts of Emmen, southwest of the centre, with rental flats next to family homes. It suits renters who put quiet streets before a central address.

In Emmen, 74% of apartment listings state that registration at the address is possible, which you need for a BSN, health insurance and housing benefit (huurtoeslag). Register with the gemeente Emmen within 5 days of moving in: by appointment if you arrive from abroad, online with DigiD if you move from elsewhere in the Netherlands.

Landlords in Emmen ask a deposit of 0.49 months of rent on average in these listings, well under the legal cap. Since 1 July 2023 a deposit may not exceed two months of base rent.

A new apartment lease in Emmen is open-ended by default since 1 July 2024. Temporary contracts remain possible only in exceptions, such as student and youth contracts.