How much does an au pair earn in Germany?

Pocket money: 280 euro a month

The host family pays you 280 euro every month. This amount does not change with the number of hours you help. If you work fewer hours in a quiet week, you still receive the full amount.

The figure comes from the administrative practice of the Federal Employment Agency, not from a statute. We say that openly because you will read elsewhere that it is 'the law'. In practice, a placement below this figure is not approved.

Language course: 70 euro a month

On top of the pocket money the family contributes 70 euro a month towards your German course and pays your travel costs to the course. Learning German is part of the programme, not an extra. The family must give you the time to attend.

Room and board are free

You get your own furnished room in the family home, and all meals, at no cost. That is a condition of the programme, not a favour. Your room has to be a real room with a door and a window, not a shared or transit space.

This is why the pocket money figure looks small compared with a German wage: rent, food, heating and internet are already covered.

Insurance is paid by the family

The family pays for your health insurance, accident insurance and pregnancy cover for the whole stay. You should see the policy documents before you travel — the mission will usually ask for them anyway.

What you pay yourself

• Your visa fee of 75 euro and travel to the mission.
• Your flight, unless the family agreed to contribute — many do.
• Personal spending: phone contract, clothes, trips of your own.
• Exam fees if you take a German certificate.

What you never pay

You never pay a placement fee. German law caps what an agency may charge an au pair at 150 euro and forbids advance payments (§ 296 para. 2 and 3 Social Code III); any agreement that breaks this is void (§ 297 no. 1). We charge au pairs nothing at all, and there is no payment function anywhere in the au pair side of this platform.

If any agency asks you for money before a placement, treat it as a warning sign.

A realistic monthly picture

• 280 euro pocket money, paid in full every month.
• 70 euro towards your language course, plus travel to it.
• Room, meals, heating and usually internet: free.
• Health, accident and pregnancy insurance: paid by the family.
• Four weeks of paid holiday over twelve months.