Commuter allowance calculator 2026 (Pendlerpauschale)
Since 1 January 2026 the German commuter allowance is 38 cents per kilometer from the first kilometer; before that it was 30 cents for the first twenty. This calculator shows your allowance, the comparison with the old rule and, which most calculators leave out, how much of it actually saves tax once the employee lump sum is accounted for.
Tax saving per year (estimate)
EUR / year
Example calculation with default valuesView sources
The 2026 reform pulls the 38 cents forward to the first kilometer. Short commutes gain the most, because they previously only ever saw the lower rate.
Next step:Calculate the home-office allowance for your working daysCalculate the taxable benefit of a company car
Your commute
One direction only, not the round trip.
For remote and hybrid work the annual figure is the hard part of this calculation. State how many days a week you travel to the office instead and the calculator does the rest. This choice decides which of the two fields below applies.
Used with the first option only. Typically 220 to 230 days on a five-day week.
Used with the second option only. Half days are allowed. The calculation uses 46 working weeks, that is 52 weeks less holiday, public holidays and sick days, so five office days produce 230 trips, the upper end of the usual range.
Without your own car the allowance is capped at 4,500 euro.
Sets your marginal rate and with it the real saving.
Tools, training, job applications. They count towards the lump sum too.
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Side by side
Difference+352 EUR / year
How the figure adds up
- Commuter allowance
- 2,090 EUR / year
- Total work-related expenses
- 2,090 EUR / year
- Employee lump sum
- 1,230 EUR / year
- Of that, effective for tax
- 860 EUR / year
- Your estimated marginal rate
- 24.58 %
- Saving per month (estimate)
- 17.62 EUR / month
- Under the rule up to 2025
- 1,738 EUR / year
- Gain from the 2026 reform
- 352 EUR / year
Good to know
Only the one-way distance counts, even though you do of course drive home again.
- The allowance itself can be worked out exactly, the tax saving cannot. It is an estimate: the calculator measures your marginal rate against PAP 2026 and multiplies it by the effective amount. Your actual assessment also depends on other income, allowances and church tax.
Non-binding estimate. The marginal rate is derived from your gross salary via PAP 2026, without church tax, allowances or other income. Not tax advice.
The link carries your inputs, not the result: whoever opens it calculates with the current figures.
How much is the German commuter allowance in 2026?
The German commuter allowance is a flat 38 cents per one-way kilometer from the first kilometer in 2026, counted once per working day, and it only changes your tax where your work-related expenses exceed the employee lump sum of 1,230 euro.
The formula
Commuter allowance = one-way distance in kilometers x working days per year x 0.38 euro. Only the part that, together with your other work-related expenses, exceeds 1,230 euro has any effect, and that part saves tax at your marginal rate.
Worked example
Example: 25 km one way on 220 working days gives a commuter allowance of 2,090 euro. After the employee lump sum, 860 euro remain effective, which at a marginal rate of 24.58% saves roughly 211.39 euro a year, about 17.62 euro a month.
Key figures for 2026
| Rate for 2026 | 0.38 euro per kilometer from the first kilometer |
|---|---|
| Until 2025 | 0.30 euro for kilometers 1 to 20, then 0.38 euro |
| What counts | the one-way distance, once per working day |
| Ceiling without your own car | 4,500 euro a year |
| Employee lump sum | 1,230 euro, only above it does the allowance bite |
| Also known as | Entfernungspauschale, Kilometerpauschale, km-Pauschale, Fahrtkostenpauschale |
Figures verified:
Kilometerpauschale, Fahrtkostenpauschale, Pendlerpauschale: what is what?
For the commute, Kilometerpauschale, km-Pauschale, Fahrtkostenpauschale and Pendlerpauschale all mean the same thing: the commuter allowance under section 9 EStG, a flat 38 cents per one-way kilometer and working day in 2026. Business trips are different: they are claimed under their own rules per kilometer actually driven, there and back, and this calculator only covers the way to your first place of work.
What changed in 2026
Up to 2025 the allowance was tiered: 30 cents for the first twenty kilometers and 38 cents from the twenty-first. With the 2025 tax amendment act, a flat 38 cents from the first kilometer applies from 1 January 2026.
What counts is the one-way distance, once per working day, regardless of the means of transport. Public transport, car pooling, cycling and walking all qualify, but then the allowance is capped at 4,500 euro a year. Only with your own car is the deduction uncapped.
The part most calculators stay quiet about: work-related expenses only bite where they exceed the employee lump sum of 1,230 euro, which you receive without any proof. On short commutes the allowance therefore often does nothing at all, and this calculator says so rather than promising a saving that is not there.
Frequently asked questions
- Does the return trip count?
- No. The one-way distance is what you claim, but for every working day. That has always been the rule and does not change in 2026.
- Does the allowance apply without a car?
- Yes. It is independent of the means of transport, so train, bike and walking all qualify. Without your own car it is capped at 4,500 euro a year.
- Why does the allowance do nothing for me?
- Because your total work-related expenses stay below the employee lump sum of 1,230 euro. The tax office deducts that regardless. Only what goes beyond it lowers your tax.
- What does the 2026 reform give me in concrete terms?
- For the first twenty kilometers the rate rises from 30 to 38 cents, so eight cents more per kilometer and working day. At twenty kilometers and 220 working days that is 352 euro of extra work-related expenses a year. The calculator shows you the difference to the old rule directly.
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As of (tax year 2026) · last verified:
Scope of review: formulas and reference values were checked against the sources listed above, by the Nomado24 editorial team. What is verified is the calculation logic, not your personal situation. Not tax or legal advice.