What a puppy actually costs in the first year

Money · 8 minute read

Most cost articles give you one big number and no working. This one shows the line items, so you can cross off what you do not need.

All figures are European retail, September 2026, in euros. Treat them as ranges rather than quotes. Slovenia and most of central Europe sit near the lower end. Germany, Austria and the Nordics sit near the top.

The short answer

Budget 1,200 to 2,600 EUR for year 1, on top of what you paid for the dog. A small dog eating supermarket food with no health problems lands near the bottom. A large dog on premium food with pet insurance and professional grooming lands near the top.

The number people underestimate is not food. It is veterinary care and grooming.

One-off costs, first month

• Crate 45 to 110 EUR. Buy the adult size with a divider, not the puppy size.
• Bed 25 to 70 EUR. Buy a cheap one first. It will get chewed.
• Harness and lead 30 to 70 EUR. You will replace the harness once as the puppy grows.
• Bowls 15 to 30 EUR.
• Toys and chews to start 40 to 80 EUR.
• Grooming kit 25 to 60 EUR: brush, comb, nail clippers, shampoo.
• Car restraint 30 to 90 EUR. A crate or a crash-tested harness. Legally required in most of Europe.
• Enzymatic cleaner 10 to 20 EUR. Not optional during toilet training.

Subtotal: 220 to 530 EUR.

Veterinary, first year

• Vaccination course 90 to 180 EUR across 3 visits.
• Microchip and passport 40 to 80 EUR, often done by the breeder.
• Worming and flea or tick treatment 80 to 160 EUR for the year.
• Neutering or spaying 150 to 500 EUR, depending on size, sex and country. A large female is the expensive end.
• One unplanned visit 60 to 200 EUR. Assume it happens, because it usually does. Puppies eat things.

Subtotal: 420 to 1,120 EUR.

Ongoing, per month

• Food 25 to 90 EUR. Small dog on supermarket kibble at the bottom, large dog on premium or raw at the top.
• Treats for training 8 to 20 EUR. You will use more than you expect in the first 6 months.
• Chews 10 to 25 EUR, and higher between 3 and 7 months during teething.
• Poo bags and consumables 4 to 10 EUR.

Subtotal: 47 to 145 EUR per month, so 560 to 1,740 EUR for the year.

The two that catch people out

Grooming. If your dog has a coat that grows continuously, which covers poodles, cockapoos, bichons, shih tzus, schnauzers and many terriers, you need a professional groom every 6 to 10 weeks at 40 to 80 EUR. That is 260 to 690 EUR a year, forever. Nobody mentions this before you buy the puppy.

A short-coated dog costs close to nothing here.

Insurance. 12 to 45 EUR a month depending on breed and cover. Optional, and the maths is genuinely arguable. What is not arguable is that if you skip it, you need a savings buffer of at least 1,500 EUR, because one cruciate ligament operation can cost 1,500 to 3,500 EUR.

What you can skip

• A puppy-sized crate. Buy adult size with a divider and use it for 12 years.
• Expensive first bed. Buy the nice one at 18 months.
• Puppy pads, unless you live several floors up with no lift. They teach the puppy that indoors is an acceptable toilet, which then has to be untaught.
• Clothing, unless the dog is genuinely small, thin-coated and living somewhere cold.
• Retractable leads. They teach constant tension, which is the opposite of loose lead walking. A 2 metre lead and a 10 metre long line cost less and work better.
• Most subscription boxes. You pay a premium for surprise.

Where the money is well spent

1. Food. The one recurring cost where the cheapest option is a false economy.
2. A front-clip harness. Roughly 30 EUR that saves your shoulders for a decade.
3. A long line. Roughly 20 EUR, and it is what makes recall training possible at all.
4. Chews during teething. Cheaper than a skirting board.
5. A vet you trust. Not the cheapest one within walking distance.

The honest summary

The purchase price of a dog is the smallest number in this article. If 1,200 EUR a year is comfortable and 2,600 EUR is not, choose a short-coated dog and put 100 EUR a month aside from month 1.

Training itself does not have to be a cost. That is the part we have made free.