Child Benefit Calculator

The German family benefits system is remarkably confusing, even though it affects almost every family. The child benefit calculator takes the looking-up off your hands. You add your children with age and status - school, vocational training, university, voluntary service, seeking work or with a disability - and the calculator checks for each child individually whether and for how long there is entitlement.

From 2026 child benefit is 259 euros per child per month, regardless of whether it is the first or the fourth child. Up to the 18th birthday there is always entitlement. Between 18 and 25 only while the child is in training, university or a voluntary service or bridging a transition period. For a disability that arose before the 25th birthday there is child benefit without limit. The calculator applies these age limits automatically.

The truly confusing part is the coexistence of child benefit and the child tax allowance. You do not get both at once: in the tax return the tax office automatically runs the favourability check and picks whichever is better for you. The calculator makes this transparent. It compares the child benefit paid out against the tax saving from the child allowance of 6,828 euros plus 2,928 euros care allowance, together 9,756 euros per child, and shows from which taxable income the allowance becomes more favourable.

For families on a low income there is the child supplement of up to 297 euros per child per month, which can be paid on top of child benefit. Based on your household net income the calculator estimates whether entitlement is fundamentally possible - the exact calculation is ultimately done by the family benefits office.

A small but practical detail: the payout date of child benefit depends on the last digit of your child benefit number. If it ends in 0, the money comes around the 3rd to 5th of the month, with a 9 only towards the end of the month. The calculator shows you the matching range so you know when to expect it.

Everything runs in the browser, without signup and without your family data being transferred anywhere. The calculation is deliberately simplified: the exact favourability check and the precise child supplement amount are set by the tax office and the family benefits office. The calculator gives you a solid orientation and explains the system, instead of leaving you alone with bureaucratic German.