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Comment by fnom

11 years ago

MBP Retina 15", top of the line $2,499.00 in the us, 2,499.00€ ($3,327.94) in germany . its exactly the savings range that they are targeting

Wow ! That's huge, I did not expect such a big difference between prices in Germany and USA . Thanks for pointing this out -

1. Are these due to local taxes in Germany ? 2. Is this price difference common in other parts of Europe as well ?

  • i just checked this particular item but all the countries that use € are all 2499€ and the others (uk, swe..) are about 2500€. i guess the difference here comes from the actual curreny differences.

    i think its mostly taxes, because when i add the 19% VAT that i would have to repay when entering germany with a us bought laptop (i think laptops are toll free, not sure ... but some electronic devices have tolls) im at ~$3000

    • Don't forget trade within the EU is "free", so I - being located in the UK - could buy a laptop in Germany and import it free and legally (bar shipping costs). Therefore, the arbitrage would be simple and legal. Importing from the US, on the other hand, carries significant import charges as I found out the other day when I imported a BeagleBone Black.

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  • Import duties may be different if you're a business doing large quantities vs. a single person buying a single thing for personal use.