Housing benefit 2026 and 2027
Calculate housing benefit (Wohngeld) – step by step, with the full calculation.
Our calculator uses the statutory values and the rent level (Mietenstufe) of your municipality and shows every step of the calculation – also under the rules planned from January 2027.
Applying for housing benefit at your housing benefit office (Wohngeldbehörde) is free of charge. Einfach Wohngeld is a private service, not a public authority. You submit the application yourself.
- Free of charge, no registration
- Your details are not stored
- All 10,940 municipalities
Example from the official sample calculations
Family with two children in Weimar, gross rent excluding heating 580 €, gross wage 2.240 €
485 € housing benefit per month
Under the draft law for 2027 it would be 388 €.
Source: BMWSB, Rechenbeispiel 7 (as of 1 January 2025); 2027: our own calculation based on BT-Drs. 21/8284.
How it works
1
Place of residence and rent
Enter your postcode and choose your municipality – we determine the rent level (Mietenstufe) from the Housing Benefit Ordinance (Wohngeldverordnung).
2
Household and income
Who lives with you? Wages, pension, parental allowance or maintenance – we calculate the deductions under the Housing Benefit Act (Wohngeldgesetz).
3
Result with full calculation
You see the expected housing benefit, every calculation step with its legal reference and the comparison with 2027.
Filling in the application correctly
The housing benefit application form has 31 questions and requires many supporting documents. Our assistant asks you in plain language and then shows you, for each question, what to enter or tick on the form. Plus: your personal list of documents and pre-filled certificates for your landlord and employer.
You submit the application yourself – free of charge at your housing benefit office.
Wohngeld 2027: better apply in 2026?
The Federal Government plans to cut housing benefit from January 2027 (draft law, not yet passed). Under the draft, anyone who is granted housing benefit by the end of 2026 or applies by 31 December 2026 will in principle keep the current amount for the ongoing approval period. All details (in German)
Good to know
The application is free of charge
You submit the housing benefit application to the housing benefit office (Wohngeldbehörde) of your town, municipality or district. That office also makes the binding decision on your entitlement. Find your housing benefit office (in German)
Child benefit does not count
Child benefit (Kindergeld) and the child supplement (Kinderzuschlag) are not counted as income for housing benefit. Families can often receive housing benefit and the child supplement together. Learn more (in German)
From the month of application
Housing benefit is paid from the first day of the month in which your application is received – not retroactively. You can submit missing documents later. Processing time (in German)
Usually for twelve months
Housing benefit is usually granted for twelve months. After that you submit an application for continued payment (Weiterleistungsantrag) – ideally two months in advance. Renewal application (Weiterleistungsantrag) (in German)
Find your housing benefit office and application form
For every municipality in Germany: the responsible office, the rent level and the official form of your federal state.
Application forms of all federal states (in German) · All guides (in German)