Commuter Allowance Calculator

The Entfernungspauschale lets you deduct the cost of travelling between home and work from your taxable income. This calculator works it out from your one-way distance and the number of days you commuted in the year.

Only the one-way distance counts, no matter how you travel, and it is multiplied by the days you actually made the trip.

For 2026 the rate is 0.30 EUR per kilometre for the first 20 km and 0.38 EUR per kilometre for every kilometre beyond that. Multiply the per-kilometre amounts by your one-way distance, then by the number of commuting days, to get the yearly figure.

The calculator shows the deductible amount per year, which you enter as work-related expenses (Werbungskosten) in your tax return.

It is important to understand this is a deduction, not money you get back. The allowance lowers your taxable income, so the actual saving is your personal tax rate applied to it, typically a fraction of the headline figure.

There is a threshold worth knowing: work-related expenses only reduce your tax above the employee lump sum (Arbeitnehmer-Pauschbetrag) of 1,230 EUR, which everyone gets automatically. The commuter allowance only helps if your total work expenses exceed that amount.

The distance allowance generally applies regardless of the means of transport, whether you drive, cycle, walk or take public transport, though special rules can apply in particular cases.

This tool gives a guide to the deductible amount and runs entirely in your browser. It does not cover every special case, so treat the figure as an estimate rather than tax advice. Official figures may differ, and your actual saving depends on your personal tax situation.