German basic income support 2026 for your household: needs, income allowances, payment
Estimates only, not financial advice. What you type stays on your device. Checked against sources on 18 Oct 2026.Germany's basic income support, now called Grundsicherungsgeld and formerly Bürgergeld, pays a household's needs minus its countable income. In 2026 the standard rate is 563 euros for a single adult. A lone parent with a 4-year-old, 650 euros warm rent and 800 euros gross pay receives 1,141.68 euros a month.
2026 · Rates and rules read from the sources listed on this page (the earliest on 18 Oct 2026); they may have changed since.
Say whether you live alone or as a couple, and add the age of each child under 18.
Type the monthly rent with service charges and heating.
Type the household’s gross and net earnings and any other income.
Read the monthly payment, the needs it covers and how much of the earnings stay free.
This calculator estimates the monthly basic income support of the Social Code II for a household in 2026. The law now calls the benefit Grundsicherungsgeld (§ 19 SGB II); it was called Bürgergeld before, and most people still search for that name.
Needs. Each person has a standard rate (Regelbedarf). From 1 January 2026 it is 563 euros for a single adult or lone parent, 506 euros each for two adult partners, 471 euros for a child of 14 to 17, 390 euros for a child of 6 to 13 and 357 euros for a child under 6. A lone parent gets a Mehrbedarf: 36% of 563 euros with one child under 7 or two or three under 16, otherwise 12% per child if that is more, at most 60%. Rent with service charges and heating is added at the actual cost; in the first year it counts in full, later only up to the local limit.
Income. Net earnings count, but not all of them (§ 11b SGB II): the first 100 euros stay free, plus 20% of the gross between 100 and 520 euros, 30% between 520 and 1,000 euros, and 10% between 1,000 and 1,200 euros, or 1,500 euros with a minor child. Kindergeld of 259 euros per child counts as the child's income. Other income such as maintenance counts in full. The payment is the needs minus the countable income.
Example. A lone parent with a 4-year-old has needs of 563 + 357 + 202.68 + 650 = 1,772.68 euros. Of 640 euros net from 800 euros gross, 268 euros stay free, so 372 euros count, plus 259 euros Kindergeld. The payment is 1,141.68 euros.
Not covered. Young adults of 18 to 24 at home, other Mehrbedarfe, assets, the education and participation benefits, and the local rent limits after the first year.
For net pay from a gross wage, use the Germany Income Tax Calculator.
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The standard rate of the basic income support, now called Grundsicherungsgeld, is 563 euros a month in 2026 for a single adult, the same as in 2025. Two adult partners get 506 euros each. Rent and heating are paid on top, and income is deducted after its allowances.
Children have their own standard rate in 2026: 357 euros under 6, 390 euros from 6 to 13 and 471 euros from 14 to 17. Kindergeld of 259 euros per child counts as the child's income, so it lowers the payment by the same amount.
The first 100 euros of earnings stay free, plus 20% of the gross between 100 and 520 euros, 30% between 520 and 1,000 euros and 10% up to 1,200 euros, or 1,500 euros with a minor child. At 800 euros gross, 268 euros stay free.
A lone parent caring for minor children alone gets a Mehrbedarf under § 21 (3) SGB II: 36% of 563 euros with one child under 7 or two or three under 16, otherwise 12% per child if that is more, at most 60%. With one 4-year-old that is 202.68 euros.
During the first year of receiving the benefit, the Karenzzeit, the actual rent counts in full, and heating counts as far as it is reasonable. After that year the rent counts only up to the reasonable limit of your area, which the local authority (kommunaler Träger) checks.
No. In the current text of the Social Code II the benefit is called Grundsicherungsgeld (§ 19 SGB II). The rules for needs, income and rent in this calculator are those of that current text. Before, the same benefit was called Bürgergeld, the name most people still search for.
Rates and rules change; check the source before you rely on a figure.
Still stuck? Ask about Bürgergeld / Grundsicherungsgeld Calculator 2026 and anybody who knows can answer. No account needed.
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