The cost-of-living crisis of 2022 was expected to trigger large-scale protest in Germany. Drawing on survey data and protest event analysis, this study examines why protest participation stayed moderate despite strong public sympathy. Established unions and parties struggled to mobilize, while the left-nationalist Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) emerged as a challenger with an economically left, culturally nationalist platform. The findings show how ideological (mis)alignment shapes protest dynamics and how the two-dimensional conflict structure complicates mobilisation for traditional left actors.