How to dial phone numbers in Germany

This guide explains how German phone numbers are formatted, and how to call people in Germany.

German phone number format

German phone numbers have 3 parts:

The country code (Ländervorwahl)
Germany’s country code is +49 or 0049.
The area code (Vorwahl)
Berlin’s area code is 30. Mobile phone numbers have a different area code, like 1522. See the list of area codes. If there is no country code, put a 0 before the area code. For example, 030 or 01522.
The local number (Rufnummer)
This is the rest of the phone number. For example, 901820.

You can write the number without the country code. You must add a 0 in front of the number:

+49 30 901820 ➞ 030 901820
+49 1522 3433333 ➞ 01522 3433333

Sometimes, phone numbers are written as +49 (0)30 901820. This is the same as +49 30 901820 or 030 901820.

How to dial German phone numbers

There are 3 ways to call a German phone number:

Dial the international number
For example, +49 30 901820 or 0049 30 901820. This is the easiest way, because it always works. If you call from another country, you must dial the international number.
Dial the national number
For example, 030 901820. You must put a 0 in front of area code. If you call from Germany, you can dial the national number.
Dial the local number
For example, 901820. If you call from the same area, you can dial the local number.

Example 1: +49 30 901820, 0049 30 901820, 030 901820 and 901820 are the same phone number.

Example 2: +49 1522 3433333, 0049 1522 3433333 and 01522 3433333 are the same phone number.

How to format German phone numbers

In German, follow the DIN 5008 format: +49 1522 343333. Each part is separated by a space. Without the area code, it’s 01522 343333.⁴

In English, follow the E.123 format: +49 1522 343333. Without the area code, it’s (01522) 343333.⁵

Special phone numbers

Emergency numbers

Emergency numbers in Germany

Toll-free numbers

If a number starts with 0800, it’s a toll-free (gebührenfrei) number. For example, 0800 285 85 85. Toll-free numbers are completely free for the caller.¹ Your mobile phone company won’t charge you anything.

There are 2 ways to call German toll-free numbers:

Without the country code
For example, 0800 285 85 85. This will work from anywhere in Germany.
With the country code
If you call from another country, put the country code before the number, and remove the first 0. For example, +49 800 285 85 85 or 0049 800 285 85 85.

Some toll-free numbers don’t work with Skype, or don’t let you call from another country.²

Premium numbers

If a number starts with 0900 or 0137, it’s a premium number.³ When you call premium numbers, you pay a fee. For example, 0900 1 5293 6611 is a legal hotline that costs 2€ per minute. The cost is charged on your phone bill.

Sources and footnotes