German Premium-Rate Numbers: 0180, 0900, 0137 Costs
Short answer
German special-rate prices are fixed by the regulator and are the same from landlines and mobiles. 0180 numbers cost 3.9 to 14 cents a minute or 6 to 20 cents a call. 0137 costs 14 cents to €1 a call. On 0900 numbers the digit after 0900 sets the price, from €0.49 to €2.99 a minute. 0800 is free.
German hotlines confuse a lot of people who grew up with simpler systems. British callers know 0800 and 0808 as free and 09 as premium; Americans know toll-free numbers by 800 or 888. Germany has a whole menu of special ranges, each with its own pricing rules, and those rules changed twice in the last few years.
Every German special-rate range at a glance
Since the 2021 Telecommunications Act, most German special-rate prices are set by the Bundesnetzagentur and apply equally to landline and mobile callers. Above that sit legal caps in section 112 of the Act. All prices below include VAT.
| Criterion | Price for callers | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| 0800 | free | numbering plan; section 121 for 00800 |
| 0180 | 3.9 to 14 ct/min or 6 to 20 ct/call | order 101/2021, since 1 Dec 2021 |
| 0137 | 14 ct to €1 per call; 0137-2 to -4: 14 ct/min | order 100/2021, since 1 Apr 2022 |
| 0900 | €0.49 to €2.99/min by digit | order 72/2023, since 1 Dec 2024 |
| 118xy | €0.49 to €2.99/min, some plus €0.99 or €1.99 per call | order 69/2023, since 1 Dec 2024 |
| 0700 | max. 9 ct/min | section 112(5) |
| 032 | max. 9 ct/min | section 112(5) |
Source: Section 112 TKG; Bundesnetzagentur orders 100/2021, 101/2021, 69/2023, 72/2023
Realistically, only 0900, 118 and foreign numbers can get genuinely expensive. Even a long wait on an 0180 hotline rarely costs more than a few euros. To classify an unfamiliar number before you dial it, paste it into our number checker.
0180 service numbers: the fifth digit sets the price
With 0180 numbers, the digit after 180 is the tariff band. Since 1 December 2021, order 101/2021 has set one price for all networks. Before that, an 0180-3 call cost 9 cents a minute from a landline but up to 42 cents from a mobile. If you read an older guide quoting 42 cents, ignore it.
Source: Bundesnetzagentur, order 101/2021
By law, 0180 calls are capped at 14 cents a minute or 20 cents a call, billed in steps of at most 60 seconds. No spoken price announcement is required for 0180, but any business advertising such a number must print the price clearly next to it, under section 109.
Hold queues have their own rule. Section 115 allows unrestricted hold queues only on freephone and geographic numbers as well as mobile numbers. On a per-minute 0180 line the hold time must be free for you, unless the call has a fixed price per connection, as with 0180-2, 0180-4 and 0180-6. At the start of the first hold queue a message must tell you the expected wait and whether you are paying. If that is missing, you owe nothing for the whole call.
0900 premium numbers: the price is now in the number
Since 1 December 2024, the first digit after 0900 is a tariff code. The regulator set nine levels:
- 0900-0: €0.49 a minute
- 0900-1: €0.69
- 0900-2: €0.99
- 0900-3: €1.49
- 0900-4: €1.69
- 0900-5: €1.99
- 0900-6: €2.29
- 0900-7: €2.49
- 0900-8: €2.99
0900-9 is held in reserve. The legal ceiling stays at €3 a minute or €30 per connection, and it may only be exceeded if you identify yourself beforehand through a special procedure. Per-minute calls must be cut off after 60 minutes (section 113).
The price has to be announced before charging starts, finishing at least three seconds before the meter runs. From a mobile, your own network now plays that announcement. Who runs a given 0900 number is public: the regulator keeps an online 0900 database. Note that no legitimate business calls you from an 0900 number. German law forbids transmitting 0900 numbers as caller ID at all.
0137 and 118: two ranges with quirks
0137 numbers are for mass calling: TV votes and competitions with many short calls. Since 1 April 2022 the prices are uniform. 0137-1 and 0137-5 cost 14 cents per call, 0137-2 to 0137-4 cost 14 cents a minute, 0137-6 costs 25 cents, 0137-8 and 0137-9 cost 50 cents and 0137-7 costs one euro per call. If the price is one euro or less, the announcement may come straight after the call instead of before.
Directory enquiries use the numbers 11810 to 11899, dialled without a leading 0. Since December 2024 there are eight tariffs. Five charge only per minute (€0.49 to €2.99), three combine a per-minute rate with a flat €0.99 or €1.99 per call. Since August 2022 directory services may no longer put you through to the number you asked for. That used to be the classic trap: you got connected and kept talking at the directory rate.
What 20 minutes cost on different numbers
- 0800 freephone
- €0.00
- 0180-3 (9 ct/min)
- €1.80
- 0180-5 (14 ct/min)
- €2.80
- 0700 or 032 (max. 9 ct/min)
- up to €1.80
- 0900-2 (€0.99/min)
- €19.80
- 0900-8 (€2.99/min)
- €59.80
An 0900-8 call costs more than twenty times as much as an 0180-5 call of the same length. And a service that earns by the minute has little reason to let you hang up quickly.
Calling German special numbers from abroad
This trips up many people who have left Germany or are calling a German company before they move. Special ranges such as 0180 or 0137, and even 0800, are designed for callers inside German networks, and they are often unreachable from abroad. Companies with international customers usually list a normal geographic number in +49 format. If you only find an 0180 or 0800 number, check the contact page for a line marked “from abroad” or “aus dem Ausland”.
International freephone numbers in the 00800 format are different. Under section 121 of the Act they must be free for the caller, though your own provider may still charge for the device or line you use.
If your German phone bill is too high
Three rules in the Act help. First, under section 116 you owe nothing for a call if the required price announcement was missing or a price cap was exceeded. Second, you can dispute a bill within eight weeks of receiving it (section 67), and your provider then has to itemise the connections and run a technical check. Third, you can have ranges such as 0900 and 0137 blocked on your line free of charge (section 61). Our guide to the third-party billing block explains a related protection for mobile bills. Missing or misleading price information can also be reported to the regulator, as described in reporting scam calls in Germany.
For businesses the reverse applies. If you serve customers on an 0180 or 0900 number, the price must sit right next to it. Most companies are better off with a geographic number or 0800 and a well-run customer service operation, because paid hotlines tend to annoy callers before they have said a word.
Worth doing this week: log in to your mobile and landline provider accounts and block 0900 and 0137 if you never use them. It is free and takes a few minutes. To understand which other prefixes are not places at all, read our guide to German area codes.
Classify a number: Uses the prefix to tell whether a number is landline, mobile, a special-rate range or foreign, and roughly what calling back costs.
Questions people ask
Can I call German 0180 or 0800 numbers from abroad?
Often not. Many German service and freephone numbers are only reachable from German networks. Companies usually publish a separate geographic number in +49 format for callers abroad, so look for that on their contact page.
Why does my German bank or insurer use an 0180 number?
0180 numbers are service lines with nationwide fixed prices, used for hotlines. Since December 2021 they cost the same from mobiles as from landlines, and the price must be shown next to the number.
Do I have to pay a 0900 charge if no price was announced?
No. Section 116 of the Telecommunications Act cancels the entire charge for that call if the mandatory price announcement was missing. Dispute the bill in writing within eight weeks.
Are 118 directory numbers expensive?
They can be. Since December 2024 there are eight tariffs from €0.49 to €2.99 a minute, three of them with an extra €0.99 or €1.99 per call. Searching online is free.
