Tools we actually use.

Free mobile bank account with a German IBAN. Fully digital, English-friendly app.

Free smart banking with up to 2.5% interest on your balance. German-only app.

Germany's largest direct bank. Free Visa debit card, great for international travel.

Mobile bank with cashback, sub-accounts, and investing built in. English app, German IBAN.

Major traditional bank with physical branches and a welcome bonus. Good if you want in-person service.

Germany's largest direct bank. Free current account, solid app, free ATM withdrawals from €50.

Commission-free investing in stocks, ETFs, and crypto. 1 EUR per trade for savings plans.

Modern broker with free ETF savings plans and a robo-advisor option.

Global broker with the widest market access and lowest FX costs. Best for serious or international investors.

Social/copy-trading platform, English-first. Popular for stocks and crypto, though costs are higher.

Established German broker (Commerzbank group) with a huge fund/ETF selection and savings plans.

Germany's largest public health insurer. Excellent English support for expats.

Insurance broker for expats. Handles public and private health insurance in English.

Germany's first fully digital private health insurer (PKV). English app and concierge, built for expats and freelancers earning above the threshold.

One of Germany's largest public insurers with strong regional presence and many local offices.

Major public insurer with a solid app and English-language onboarding help for expats.

Free gold credit card with no foreign transaction fees and travel insurance included.

Free gold Mastercard with travel insurance and no foreign transaction fees. No German credit history needed.

Free Visa credit card with up to 2 months interest-free on purchases. Good for building German credit history.

Strong rewards and travel perks, widely issued to expats with income proof. Not accepted everywhere in Germany.

Add-on card for N26 account holders. Fully English, instant in-app, good for expats already banking with N26.

Simple online tax return software in English. Average refund: 1,063 EUR.

Online tax return software with an English interface. Guided process walks you through every step.

Mobile-first tax app that files your return in under 30 minutes. Simple Q&A format, average refund over 1,000 EUR.

Hands-off option: a real Steuerberater files for you, fee based on your refund. Good for complex situations.

The tax office's own free online portal. No cost, but German-only and no guidance. The baseline everything else beats on UX.

Simple, no-contract mobile plan on Telekom's network. 5 GB for 10 EUR/month.

Affordable prepaid SIM on the O2 network. Available at any ALDI store, no contract required.

Prepaid mobile on the Vodafone network. No contract, decent rural coverage, competitive pricing.

Major carrier with contract and prepaid options, decent city coverage and frequent data deals.

Low-cost SIM on the Telekom network with app management. Good balance of price and coverage.

Furnished apartments for medium-term stays (1-24 months). Verified landlords, no SCHUFA needed.

Structured German language courses built by linguists. Berlin-based company with the best German course on the market.

Job board for tech roles that include relocation and visa-sponsorship support, popular with expats moving to Germany.

The largest job board in Germany by listing volume. Aggregates postings from company sites and other boards, with a huge range across every industry and seniority.

One of Germany's most established job boards, strong for permanent professional and mid-to-senior roles across traditional industries.

The default professional network for expats. Best for English-speaking roles at international companies, recruiter outreach, and roles that value your existing network.

The German-speaking equivalent of LinkedIn, still widely used by recruiters for the DACH region, especially for German-language and local roles.

Job board focused purely on tech roles in Germany, with transparent salary ranges and an English-first audience.

Long-running global job board with a solid German presence across many industries and experience levels.

The Federal Employment Agency's official job portal. The largest single database of German job listings, free and comprehensive.

German job board focused on qualified professional and specialist roles across engineering, IT, and business.

Job listings plus salary data and employee reviews. Great for researching a German employer before you apply.

The German-speaking Glassdoor: employer reviews and ratings for the DACH region, with linked job listings.

Job board from The Local (English-language German news), aimed squarely at English-speaking internationals.

The go-to board for startup roles in Berlin and beyond: tech, marketing, product, and ops, mostly English.

English-first job board highlighting visa-sponsorship and English-speaking roles across Germany, strong in tech.

Startup and SME hiring platform popular across Europe; many English-speaking tech and operations roles.