Last updated on 2 October 2026
The Deutschlandticket is getting more expensive: From 1 January 2027, Germany's popular public transport ticket will cost €66.80 a month, €3.80 more than before. The price of the Deutschlandticket as a job ticket rises accordingly from €59.85 to €63.46. For employers, the minimum subsidy increases to €16.70 per person per month, so employees pay no more than €46.76.
The Deutschlandticket will cost €66.80 a month from January. The Deutschlandticket Coordination Council (Koordinierungsrat Deutschlandticket) decided this on 30 September 2026. The council is made up of representatives of the federal and state governments, the national associations of local authorities, and the transport industry. The price was announced by the Bavarian Ministry of Transport, which currently chairs the Conference of Transport Ministers (VMK).
It is the third price increase since the ticket was launched in May 2023. Compared with the launch price of €49, the ticket will cost around 36% more. Anyone using it all year will pay a total of €801.60 in 2027.
In percentage terms, the 2027 increase is smaller than the two previous ones.
The 2027 price is the first to be determined by a price index. The Conference of Transport Ministers adopted this procedure in March 2026 to end the annual political dispute over funding.
The calculation was carried out by D-Tix, the company set up specifically for the Deutschlandticket. The Coordination Council then discussed and adopted the result.
The index reflects how staff, energy, and other operating costs develop in local public transport. A second factor accounts for the fact that the federal and state governments will not increase their compensation payments of €1.5 billion each per year until 2030. Cost increases therefore feed into the ticket price more strongly than they actually turn out.
Forecasts ahead of the decision ranged from €66.40 to €66.80. The higher figure, calculated by the data team of the public broadcaster WDR on the basis of diesel price trends, has been confirmed.
The Deutschlandticket as a job ticket will cost €63.46 from January. The starting point is the regular ticket price, known as the issue price (Ausgabepreis). Transport companies grant a 5% discount on this price, provided the employer subsidises at least 25% of the issue price.
With the minimum subsidy, costs for employers rise by €11.40 per person per year. With 1,000 participating employees, that comes to €11,400. Employers that cover the full cost of the job ticket pay €3.61 more per month, or around €43,320 a year for 1,000 participants.
Nothing changes for tax purposes. Under Section 3 No. 15 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG), the employer subsidy remains free of tax and social security contributions if it is paid in addition to the salary already owed. However, the tax-free amount is offset against employees' commuting allowance (Entfernungspauschale). Alternatively, the employer can tax the subsidy at a flat rate of 25% under Section 40(2) sentence 2 No. 2 EStG, in which case it is not offset. You can find out more in our overview of the Deutschlandticket as a job ticket.
Companies that pay a fixed euro amount instead of a percentage should check the amount of their subsidy first. A subsidy of €15.75 was exactly 25% in 2026. From 2027, it is only 23.6% of the issue price, which means the job ticket discount no longer applies. The subsidy must rise to at least €16.70.
The new price also needs to go into budget planning for 2027 and, where amounts are fixed, into policies or works agreements. Employees should also be informed early on.
In future, the price of the Deutschlandticket will be set by 30 September each year for the following year. This gives companies a fixed date that falls early enough for most budgeting processes.
From 2028, a dampening factor will be added that rewards higher sales figures with smaller price increases. However, the index does not allow for a price reduction. If it turns out negative, the price stays the same, and the calculated saving dampens the next increase.
