Quick answers: healthcare in Germany
- How much does health insurance cost in Germany for expats?
- Indicative international health insurance for a 32-year-old living in Germany (inpatient and outpatient, mid-level plan, worldwide excluding the USA) typically costs £181 to £339 a month, with a median of £259 and the cheapest at £121, based on 14 plan quotes from the 14 insurers on our panel, taken in 2026-09. Your price depends on your age, medical history, plan and deductible, and is only confirmed by the insurer.
- How much does expat health insurance cost by age in Germany?
- Indicative median monthly premiums in Germany (inpatient and outpatient, mid-level plan, worldwide excluding the USA): age 25 US$237, age 35 US$312, age 45 US$417, age 55 US$658, age 65 US$1,121. Quotes taken 2026-09; the insurer confirms the final price. Shown in US$. Other HealthiNomad prices are in GBP.
- Do foreigners need health insurance in Germany?
- It depends on the visa. Employees on a work visa or EU Blue Card: Statutory health insurance is compulsory for most employees; those earning above the compulsory insurance limit may choose private cover. All long-stay (national D) visa applicants, including retirees: Cover must be commensurate with German statutory health insurance. Freelancers and self-employed (Germany has no dedicated digital nomad visa): The freelance D-visa requires confirmation of health insurance cover at the level of German statutory health insurance. Job seekers and Opportunity Card holders (non-EU): Non-EU citizens who are not in employment must take out private health insurance. Countries that require travel insurance to enter
- Can foreigners use public healthcare in Germany?
- Statutory insurance covers doctor visits, hospital care and prescriptions with modest patient co-payments: 10% of the price of each prescription item (minimum €5, maximum €10) and €10 per hospital day for up to 28 days a year. Visitors holding a valid EHIC or UK GHIC can use medically necessary state healthcare on the same basis. People with no German or EU cover are billed as self-payers.
- Do hospitals in Germany ask foreigners to pay upfront?
- Privately insured patients and self-payers normally receive an invoice and pay it themselves, then claim from their insurer. For planned hospital treatment, patients from outside the EU without German cover are generally given a cost estimate and asked to pay it in advance, with the final bill settled afterwards.
- What is the emergency number in Germany?
- Call 112 for an ambulance in Germany.
What health insurance costs in Germany (indicative)
These are indicative prices, based on 14 plan quotes from the 14 international insurers on our panel, for one standard profile: a 32-year-old living in Germany, inpatient and outpatient cover, mid-level plan, worldwide excluding the USA. The typical monthly price is £181 to £339, with a median of £259 and the cheapest at £121. Your actual price depends on your age, medical history, the plan, your deductible and where you want cover, and is only confirmed by the insurer. Snapshot 2026-09-24. See the Health Insurance Cost Index.
Indicative prices: the 5 lowest of 14 plan quotes, monthly in GBP, cheapest mid-level plan in each insurer's range. Quotes taken 2026-09-24.
See the figures
| Age | Cheapest | Median | Higher end | Plans quoted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | US$123 | US$237 | US$309 | 15 |
| 35 | US$163 | US$312 | US$389 | 15 |
| 45 | US$209 | US$417 | US$497 | 15 |
| 55 | US$328 | US$658 | US$732 | 15 |
| 65 | US$513 | US$1,121 | US$1,226 | 14 |
Indicative. Single adult, inpatient and outpatient, cheapest mid-level plan per insurer, worldwide excluding the USA. Quotes taken 2026-09-29. The insurer confirms the final price. Shown in US$. Other HealthiNomad prices are in GBP.
How healthcare works for expats
Health insurance is compulsory for everyone living in Germany. Most people are covered by statutory health insurance (gesetzliche Krankenversicherung), funded by income-related contributions of 14.6% plus a fund-specific supplementary rate that averages 2.9% in 2026, shared between employer and employee. Higher earners, the self-employed and civil servants can instead take out private health insurance.
Public care and state schemes
Statutory insurance covers doctor visits, hospital care and prescriptions with modest patient co-payments: 10% of the price of each prescription item (minimum €5, maximum €10) and €10 per hospital day for up to 28 days a year. Visitors holding a valid EHIC or UK GHIC can use medically necessary state healthcare on the same basis. People with no German or EU cover are billed as self-payers.
Private hospitals
There is no separate private hospital network for most care: the same hospitals and practices treat statutory and private patients. Private patients and self-payers are billed under the doctors' fee schedule (GOÄ), usually at a multiplier of up to 2.3, and can buy optional extras in hospital such as a single or double room, which are charged on top of the standard case fee.
Paying up front
Privately insured patients and self-payers normally receive an invoice and pay it themselves, then claim from their insurer. For planned hospital treatment, patients from outside the EU without German cover are generally given a cost estimate and asked to pay it in advance, with the final bill settled afterwards.
Typical medical costs in Germany
Published prices, mostly from private hospitals. Pound figures are approximate conversions.
| Treatment | Price | About |
|---|---|---|
| Specialist consultation and examination, private dermatology practice (Hautarztpraxis Mitte), Berlin4 Berlin, per consultation, approximately; tests extra | €50 | £43 |
| Private doctor home or hotel visit, RAB Arztbesuche, Berlin3 Berlin, per visit, typical total for self-payers | €150 to €300 | £129 to £258 |
| MRI, one body region (knee €249, lumbar spine €299, head €325), Radtop Radiologie5 Bochum and other Ruhr cities, per examination, self-pay; contrast typically about €100 extra | €249 to €325 | £214 to £280 |
| MRI knee (from €430) to head (from €645), ARISTRA radiology network6 Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne and other cities, per examination, guide prices shown as 'from' | €430 to €645 | £370 to £555 |
| CT scan, head (€249) to abdomen (€399), Radtop Radiologie5 Bochum and other Ruhr cities, per examination, self-pay | €249 to €399 | £214 to £343 |
| Basic blood test panel (Basis-Check), MVZ Labor Berlin (Mein Labor)7 Berlin, per panel, incl. VAT; blood draw €5 extra | €74 | £64 |
| Inpatient case fee base rate, Charité Universitätsmedizin1 Berlin, per case at a DRG relative weight of 1.0; actual fee = weight x base rate plus supplements | €4,616 | £3,972 |
| Inpatient nursing charge (Pflegeentgelt), Charité Universitätsmedizin1 Berlin, per inpatient day, on top of the case fee | €384 | £330 |
| Optional single room supplement, Charité (Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité)2 Berlin, per day, on top of treatment costs | €155 to €185 | £133 to £159 |
| Optional double room supplement, Charité (Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité)2 Berlin, per day, on top of treatment costs | €75 to €95 | £65 to £82 |
| Professional dental cleaning, AllDent Zahnzentrum8 Berlin, per session (lower price for statutory patients, higher for private) | €99 to €130 | £85 to £112 |
| Prescription co-payment under statutory insurance9 Nationwide, per prescribed item (10% of price, min €5, max €10) | €5 to €10 | £4 to £9 |
| Hospital co-payment under statutory insurance10 Nationwide, per day, maximum 28 days per calendar year | €10 | £9 |
Health insurance rules for foreigners
Employees on a work visa or EU Blue Card
Statutory health insurance is compulsory for most employees; those earning above the compulsory insurance limit may choose private cover. Contributions are 14.6% of income plus a supplementary rate averaging 2.9% (2026), split with the employer, on income up to €5,812.50 a month. Travel health insurance is only expected to bridge the gap between arrival and the start of employment.11,12
All long-stay (national D) visa applicants, including retirees
Cover must be commensurate with German statutory health insurance. Travel insurance, and an EHIC from another member state, are not accepted as proof. Private policies must be open-ended with no expiry or cancellation clauses tied to age, end of employment or change of residence purpose; an 'incoming' expat policy is accepted.13,15
Freelancers and self-employed (Germany has no dedicated digital nomad visa)
The freelance D-visa requires confirmation of health insurance cover at the level of German statutory health insurance.14,13
Job seekers and Opportunity Card holders (non-EU)
Non-EU citizens who are not in employment must take out private health insurance.12
Students
Students are generally required to take out statutory health insurance, at a reduced student rate of about €120 to €130 a month under age 30; the standard contribution applies from age 30, and some students over 30 are exempt from the statutory requirement. EU/EEA students with statutory home cover and an EHIC may keep it.17,12
Short-stay Schengen visa visitors
Travel medical insurance of at least €30,000, valid in all Schengen states for the whole stay, covering treatment, hospitalisation, evacuation and repatriation, with no deductible or co-pay.16
Tips before you buy cover
- Single or double rooms and chief-physician treatment are optional hospital extras (Wahlleistungen) billed on top of the standard case fee, so check what is being agreed before signing an admission form.
- Hospitals quote treatment for self-payers from the DRG case system; for planned care, non-EU patients without German cover are usually asked to pay the estimated cost in advance.
- Self-pay prices at radiology practices vary widely between providers and regions, from about €249 to over €600 for the same MRI region in the price lists above.
- Statutory patients still pay co-payments: €5 to €10 per prescription item and €10 per hospital day for up to 28 days a year.
- Travel insurance is not accepted for any long-stay (D) visa; the cover must match German statutory health insurance.
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Sources
- 1.Entgelttarif für Krankenhäuser (valid from 1 September 2026), Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin (September 2026)
- 2.Wahlleistungsvereinbarung, version 4.5, Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité (March 2025)
- 3.Kosten: Privatarzt-Hausbesuch und Notdienst Berlin, RAB Arztbesuche (July 2026)
- 4.FAQ, Hautarztpraxis Mitte, Berlin (accessed September 2026)
- 5.MRT-Kosten: Preisübersicht für Selbstzahler und Privatpatienten, Radtop Radiologie und Nuklearmedizin (January 2026)
- 6.MRT Kosten Übersicht: Preisliste für Selbstzahler, ARISTRA Radiologie-Netzwerk (September 2024)
- 7.Mein Labor: Leistungsübersicht und Preise, MVZ Labor Berlin (February 2026)
- 8.Kosten Zahnbehandlung Berlin: einzelne Preise, AllDent Zahnzentrum Berlin (accessed September 2026)
- 9.Zuzahlung und Erstattung von Arzneimitteln, Bundesministerium für Gesundheit (September 2026)
- 10.Im Krankenhaus: Leistungen und Kosten, gesund.bund.de (Bundesministerium für Gesundheit) (April 2026)
- 11.Beiträge der gesetzlichen Krankenversicherung, Bundesministerium für Gesundheit (2026)
- 12.Health insurance, Make it in Germany (Federal Government) (September 2026)
- 13.Health insurance requirements for national (category D) visas, German Embassy London, Federal Foreign Office (accessed September 2026)
- 14.D-Visa: Self-employed freelancers including artists, German Embassy London, Federal Foreign Office (accessed September 2026)
- 15.Health insurance in the national visa procedure, German Embassy Dar es Salaam, Federal Foreign Office (February 2024)
- 16.Medical health insurance (Schengen visa), German Missions in the United States (accessed September 2026)
- 17.Healthcare and health insurance, DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) (accessed September 2026)
- 18.Germany travel advice: health, FCDO (UK Government) (August 2026)
- 19.Euro foreign exchange reference rates: Pound sterling (GBP), European Central Bank (25 September 2026)
- 20.Patients from non-EU countries, Bethanien Krankenhaus Frankfurt (accessed September 2026)
Costs and rules change. Always check with the hospital, the insurer or the relevant authority before relying on a figure.