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EMPLOYMENT

What and where are the best and worst paid jobs in Germany?

Ever wondered what the top and flop professions are in Deutschland in terms of income, or which states and cities offer the highest salaries?

Published: 19 April 2018 16:57 CEST
Updated: 9 May 2018 11:31 CEST
What and where are the best and worst paid jobs in Germany?
A worker assembling the interior of an aircraft in Hamburg. In some states, aviation is a top-earning sector. Photo: DPA

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After analyzing more than 750,000 pieces of data on the salaries of workers in Germany, the online portal Gehalt.de has revealed which jobs are the best and worst paid in its 2018 Gehaltsatlas.

Here are the jobs that made it out on top in the study, listed in terms of median gross income per year and rounded up.

Top ten best paid jobs

1. Senior doctor (€116,900)
2. Specialist doctor (€78,000)
3. Fund manager (€75,800)
4. Corporate finance manager (€75,400)
5. Key account manager (€72,600)
6. Patent engineer (€72,000)
7. Insurance engineer (€71,000)
8. Regional sales manager (€70,800)
9. Lawyer / Legal advisor (€69,000)
10. Sales engineer (€68,000)

Much like other countries, first place in terms of the highest-paid profession in Germany is a senior doctor. Such physicians have traditionally been well-paid in the country, nowadays earning about €116,900 a year, according to the Gehaltsatlas. To put this in perspective, room service employees earn almost €100,000 less with the lowest paid job the country.

In second place from the top are specialist doctors with a median salary of €78,000 – a considerable gap from senior physicians.

A doctor specializing in midwifery and gynaecology. Photo: DPA

The other eight professions in the list are not in the medical industry, but for the most part are in the financial, economic and judicial sectors.

According to the study, most top jobs require some sort of a degree; jobs filled by unskilled workers tend to be on the lower end of the pay scale.

On the other end of the spectrum, here are the jobs in Deutschland with the smallest salaries, listed according to median annual gross income.

Top ten lowest paid jobs

1. Room service worker (€19,400)
2. Restaurant / kitchen worker (20,000)
3. Hairdresser (€21,400)
4. Waiter (€22,300)
5. Call centre worker (€24,800)
6. Cashier (€24,900)
7. Receptionist (€25,000)
8. Cook (€25,600)
9. Dental assistant (€26,900)
10. Commercial driver (€27,000)

One of the main intentions of the study was to shed light on whether or not working in certain regions of the country plays a role when it comes to an employee’s income.

Parameters which were taken account include educational background, a worker’s industry and the pay gap between men and women (currently around 21 percent in favour of men). 

The analysis of salaries paid in Germany throughout the course of 2017 for the latest Gehaltsatlas came from three portals: Gehalt.de, Gehaltsvergleich.com and Compensation-Partner.de.

Of the over 750,000 pieces of data evaluated, 40 percent of the salaries analyzed came from female workers and 60 percent from male workers.

Hesse takes lead as top-earning German state 

One of the most significant findings of the study is that an employee in Hesse can look forward to an average of over 39 percent more income than an employee in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

Taking a look at the wages of all 16 federal states, Hesse stands out as its wage levels are almost 30 percent above the average across the Bundesrepublik.

Photo: DPA / obs / BASF SE

There are many possible reasons for this, the study states, including varying living costs and costs for rent, as well as the size and the number of companies in a certain region.

In the newer federal states in eastern Germany, for instance, the mainly small and medium-sized companies that exist there don’t pay as much as large, financially strong companies mainly based in the west.

Moreover, according to the study, the average annual income of a worker at a large company with over 1,001 employees can sometimes be twice (€62,700) as high as that of a worker at a small German company with up to 20 employees (€35,400).

Hesse, which is known for its forests and for being home to financial hub Frankfurt, is also attractive for young professionals because it offers the highest income for rookies starting out in their career. Gehaltsatlas figures show that in the central German state academics start on average with a salary of €51,500 and those who have completed an apprenticeship start with €33,500.

Comparatively, academics in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania earn a starting income of €33,600 and rookies who’ve finished apprenticeships initially earn €21,800.

Following Hesse in the top five states for professional newcomers regarding highest income is Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hamburg and North Rhine-Westphalia, respectively.

The states which come in 12th to 16th place, respectively, are Brandenburg, Thuringia, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

Though Schleswig-Holstein came in 11th place, it also saw the largest year-on-year drop in wage levels of almost -3 percent.

Stuttgart takes lead as top-earning state capital

Compared to all the other state capitals across the Bundesrepublik, Stuttgart fares best when it comes to employee wage levels. The Baden-Württemberg capital’s wage levels are around 128 percent above the nationwide average. Trailing closely behind is Munich in second place (126 percent). Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia comes further down in third place (119 percent), followed by Wiesbaden, Hesse (117 percent) and Mainz, Rhineland Palatinate (106 percent).

Workers in Stuttgart. Photo: DPA

The nation’s capital landed further down the list at about 97 percent, though Berlin is still a magnet particularly for young people, the study states, because of its innovative culture and image as a startup hub.

The state capitals at the bottom of the list are Potsdam, Brandenburg (81 percent) in 14th place, Erfurt, Thuringia (80 percent) in 15th place and lastly, Schwerin, Mecklenburg Western-Pomerania (76 percent).

The leading sectors in Germany in terms of income

If you’re curious to know which industries in Germany lend themselves to the highest salaries in the country, among the most attractive nationwide are professions in the pharmaceutical, automotive and banking industries.

In Hesse, the top sectors when it comes to salary levels are jobs in banking, pharmaceuticals, financial services and aviation.

In Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, professions involving computers and office machines as well as the electronics, investments, aviation and automotive industries fare best when it comes to high income.

Sectors such as pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, process engineering and banking lend themselves well to high-paying jobs in the country's most densely populated state, North Rhine-Westphalia.

Meanwhile in Berlin, the biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, aviation, banking, and environmental sector, including energy and water, offer jobs that are typically well paid.

Across most federal states, on the other hand, the industries that tend to be the worst paid include jobs in retail, tourism, call centres, hotels and restaurants, in the crafts and trades and well as in social institutions.

SEE ALSO: Where are the vacant jobs in Germany & which industries are most in demand?

FIND A JOB: Browse thousands of English-language vacancies in Germany

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For members

WORKING IN GERMANY

Five things to know about salaries in Germany

Finding a job is typically a top priority when planning a move to Germany. The country boasts the third largest economy in the world and a continuing need for skilled professionals. 

Published: 2 May 2024 12:26 CEST
Five things to know about salaries in Germany

If you are moving to Germany, you might soon start looking for a job in the country. However, like many other aspects of living abroad, there are several cultural differences and specificities when it comes to job hunting in Germany – especially when it comes to salaries.

Here are five things to know about salaries in Germany.

There is a minimum wage in Germany

Germany’s minimum wage of €12.41 per hour, pre-tax came into effect at the start of this year. This amounts to a monthly salary of €2,054 which ranks ninth in the world. The minimum wage will rise again in 2025 to €12.82 per hour before tax deductions.

There have been calls recently to hike the salary up higher to €14 per hour.

READ ALSO: Millions of workers in Germany ‘earning less than €14 per hour’

Find out salary expectations

Germany does not require companies to list salary ranges for listed positions. But that may be changing soon. The EU parliament passed a wage transparency law to require companies to publish annual reports detailing wage and wage discrepancy information. The rules, which are set to go into effect in 2027, are intended to help close the gender pay gap. 

In the meantime, employees can utilise online resources to find industry averages and expectations for different roles:

  • Gehalt.de offers users access to salary information on more than 800 professions
  • Online platform, Kununu provides compensation information and employer reviews to users in the DACH region  
  • Berlin residents can utilise REDSOFA’s salary survey for an overview of salary averages in the country’s capital city

As of April 2023 the average gross monthly salary was €4,323 according to Germany’s Federal Statistical Office.

Two-thirds of full time workers make less than this average monthly salary and one-third of workers earn more than this average monthly salary.

While wages after deductions may be less than similar roles in other countries, it is also important to take into consideration what other benefits come with a salary. Paid holiday leave, pension contributions, long notice periods and annual bonuses can help make up some of that difference. 

READ ALSO: How much do employees in Germany typically earn?

Check your payment schedule

Internationals can usually expect their salary once a month when working in Germany. Many German companies choose to pay employees either on the 1st or 15th of the month. It is also important to note that most employees can expect to receive their first pay check within 30 or 45 days of starting. 

For positions that offer yearly bonuses, these payments are included in a 13th pay check which are subject to income tax.  

A person works on a laptop.

A person works on a laptop. Image by Bartek Zakrzewski from Pixabay

How many hours do you work?

When looking for a job, don’t forget to check how many hours you can expect. Job descriptions will include expectations for time commitments. 

Mini-jobs, as expected from the name, are limited in hours and pay. Employees can expect up to €538 per month. Mini-jobs do not provide social security because they do not require social security contributions. Employees are also not automatically covered by health and nursing care insurance. 

Teilzeit, or part time jobs, are defined as any job where working hours are less than a full time position.

A common misconception is that part-time work requires working 20 hours or less a week. But an employee working five days a week for 30 hours, at a position that is typically 40 hours when full time can also be defined as a part time worker. 

READ ALSO: The rules in Germany around ‘mini’ and ‘midi jobs’

In fact, Germany has a term for workers who work between 28 and 36 hours a week. Vollzeitnahe Teilzeit, or nearly full time part time workers, can be a popular choice for some people, including parents. These positions can give employees more flexibility to balance work and family responsibilities. It is important to note that these workers are paid according to their time worked, so it will still amount to less than full time.

Depending on the work schedule, part time employees can earn the same amount of vacation as their full-time counterparts. That’s because holiday leave is calculated based on days worked, not hours. If a part time worker comes in five days a week, they will be eligible for at least 20 days of holiday. If that same part time worker comes in three days a week, they will be legally entitled to twelve days of vacation, even if they worked the same hours as the other employee. 

In most companies, weekly working hours between 35 and 40 hours are considered full-time employment or Vollzeitbeschäftigung. 

Watch out for the gross v. net difference

Before you sign the dotted line, it will be important to check how much of your gross salary you’ll be able to keep come pay day. Companies that include salary expectations in descriptions include gross salary (Bruttoeinkommen) – not the net income after taxes and deductions (Nettoeinkommen). The amount deducted will depend on how much you earn, the tax class you’re in and on other factors such as how much you’re paying for healthcare but it is usually around 40 percent. 

Salaried employees can find information on the deductions on their pay slip. Some to expect to see include:

  • Taxes are deducted directly from the gross pay. The amount is based on the tax bracket your salary falls within 
  • A percentage of your gross salary is also deducted for your pension / retirement contributions
  • Church taxes between eight and nine percent of your salary will also be due if you are affiliated with a religion
  • Unemployment insurance amounts to a 2.5 percent deduction from your gross salary. It is important to note that the insurance covers a salary up to €90,600 
  • Health insurance contribution rates are typically split between employers and employees. The rate depends on the provider. In 2024, the TK contribution rate to health insurance is 15.8 percent of the gross income

READ ALSO: What you need to know about your payslip in Germany 

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