r/germany

I was in Freiburg, Germany, eating this immaculate dark sausage. I thought it was just fancy smoked ham. Then the waiter told me it was 'Zungenwurst'—literally pig’s blood and pickled tongue.

I just calculated mine and it's much higher than the previous year, €322.70/person/month not counting some of the essentials i bulk order from amazon like whey protein, olive oil, spices etc.

Thing is i shop exclusively at Penny, and once a month at REWE just to get some items not found elsewhere, I also never eat out, everything home cooked.

It made me curious how much are people spending on their groceries

I do not wish to discuss if tipping is needed and how much you should tip.

I am asking people who work in the restaurant or bar business, especially waiters.

These days it's super popular to have those "add x% tip" options at the card payment terminals.

Now, if I give 10€ cash, I expect that staff will share it, or waiter keeps it, whatever arrangement they have internally.

But what about the digital payments? Do owners take a piece? Taxes? Bank charges? How much of those 10€ would end up in the pockets of workers?

Hello everyone! Me and my wife gonna move to Saarbrücken 1.5-2 months later from Turkey. We are 25y old both and married couple months ago. What are the pros about the city and the area. I made huge research about the city but im looking ideas and tips from the people who actually live in the Saarbrücken and Saarland. It looks like a slow and easygoing town and actually this is something me and my wife are looking for. We are living in Istanbul for a while and it’s very crowded city, we’re sick of people population and unorganized city systems.

About us, we are very calm persons. We love hanging in the house and do our hobbies, do sportive activities outside (runnings, long walks and hiking paths) and travel culture, museums and nature. Do you think living and building a live in Saarbrücken is a good choice for me and my wife. We want to create our future so i wanna know details about city and area. We want to integrate very well. We are studying German language and also making research about the history and culture of Germany and Saarland/Saarbrücken. I Summarized us a little and with that informations what do you think?

Thank u all for reading this message. If u can give us some advices we ll be very thankful. All ideas and comments are very precious to us. Thanks a lot

I think Instagram has successfully brainwashed me AND my feed is currently almost 80% Cologne Cathedral (don’t get me wrong, it’s absolutely stunning! And I fully respect the algorithm).

But it got me exploring…it seems Germany clearly has some of the world’s premium Gothic architecture. So this summer I’m planning to go beyond the obvious. I’m especially looking for hidden gems...whether that’s a cathedral or smaller towns with a dramatic Gothic aura. Basically anything that made you stop and go: “I want that on a postcard” (I love—LOVE—random postcards...feel free to name any/all postcards shops too).

Would love your suggestions here!!

Hi everyone,

I moved out of my apartment in Berlin at the end of February 2025. The move-out protocol was perfect—no damages, and the landlord confirmed I’d get my full deposit back.

However, they withheld €500, claiming it’s a "safety buffer" for potential heating cost increases for January and February 2025. They are now telling me I have to wait until late 2026 (when the 2025 Nebenkostenabrechnung is finalized) to get it back.

I find this completely disproportionate. My monthly utility advance was much lower, and withholding €500 for only 2 months of occupancy seems like an interest-free loan at my expense, especially with inflation. I never consented to such a high amount being held for nearly two years.

My questions:

1. Is it legal in Berlin to hold such a high amount (€500) for only two months of potential heating costs?

2. Since it's now April 2026, shouldn't they already have the data for 2025?

3. What is the best way to pressure them? Should I go straight to the Berliner Mieterverein or issue a Gerichtlicher Mahnbescheid?

Thanks for any advice!

Hi everyone,

I am looking for some advice and would really appreciate your guidance.

I have around 6 years of experience in software testing (QA). I am currently based in Berlin, and I am planning for pregnancy soon. During my last pregnancy, I had severe nausea which made it very difficult to continue working, so this time I have decided to take a career break for about a year.

I am a bit worried about this gap, especially since I may look for jobs later in India, where career gaps are often questioned more strictly.

I am thinking of using this time to upskill, possibly in AI, DevOps or a related field, and I am considering enrolling in some kind of degree or certification (preferably flexible/online so I can study from home).

Are there any good, recognized distance/online programs in Germany (ideally in English) that are at low-cost that I can pursue and later mention as a formal degree/certification on my CV to both upskill and cover my career gap?

My goal is to make sure this break doesn't negatively impact my career and ideally helps me transition into a better role

Thanks a lot in advance for your suggestions!

I’m a huge fan of sugar (disclaimer before judgement: I like to think it’s a healthy obsession).

This weekend, I’m thinking of going slightly overboard and planning a mini travel mission just to find the best pastries in Germany.

Where should I go (or) which bakeries should I try?

Hello everyone!

I am currently living in Germany and am in the process of transferring my New York nursing license to Arizona. The Arizona State Board of Nursing requires me to submit a set of fingerprints on an FD-258 card.

They suggested going to a local police station, but after some research, it seems German police stations (Polizei) don't offer this as a private service for foreign license applications.

Has anyone here gone through this process while living in Germany? Are there specific private agencies in Hamburg or Berlin that you recommend for ink-on-paper fingerprints that meet US standards?

Any advice or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

I have opened a blocked account from Fintiba. However, my surname contains Turkish characters (Gündoğan). While creating my account, I entered it using English characters (Gundogan).

I am concerned that this difference may cause confusion or issues during transactions, as the spelling does not match my passport. Is there any international students having similar experience? What do you think I should do?

I opened an inquiry from fintiba but they haven't respond back yet.

Hallo zusammen!

I met this German guy on a dating app in my country and now he’s back in Germany. We could only had two dates because of his work schedule but he is planning on visiting my country again in a month(we met at 8am lol he travelled an hour to see me!). He also has a plan to live in my country from 6 months to a year later this year as well(not because of me!).

Anyways, we haven’t labeled what we are because we only had two dates. I really liked him so I told him I deleted my dating app account. He said he hadn’t opened the app ever since he had my WhatsApp and he would delete it too. Now we FaceTime and text often. I love books and yesterday he said, “so basically I’m dating a bookworm?.”

So.. are we dating?? Dating = in a relationship?

I better ask him about it on our next call but I want to understand the dating culture first before I make any stupid mistakes cause I really like him!

Hi everyone,

I wanted to share my situation and hopefully get some honest advice from people who have experience with German visas.

About one month ago, my visa application for an Ausbildung in hairdressing was rejected. The reason was quite unexpected — my employer’s salon in Germany was sealed by the authorities due to tax-related issues. Because of that, my application was denied.

Now I’m planning a different path. I currently have a Goethe B1 certificate, and I want to apply for a German language course visa to study from B2 up to C1.1 (intensive course).

My main question is: How strong are my chances of getting a visa this time?

Also, if anyone has experience or practical tips that could increase my chances (documents, motivation letter, financial proof, interview tips, etc.), I’d really appreciate your insights.

Thanks in advance 🙏

Good evening, I'm looking for general knowledge websites, such as multiple-choice quizzes or daily riddles, in german and focused primarily on germanic culture, simply to improve my german while having fun.

Do you have any suggestions ?

Hi all, I recently graduated from a public university in the winter semester. However, I was not sure about the result of my final exam which got released in the current semester, so I reregistered myself for the current SoSe semester.

I passed the exam so I asked my university to exmatriculate me since it is no longer have any credits to finish. They did and TK got notified. They have updated that I will be covered in student insurance until October but I want to apply for Job seeker residence permit and I need to be covered voluntarily from now.

Have I put myself in a bad spot by reregistering. I wrote to TK but I am feeling confused and nervous as my exmatriculation certificate states that I registered for this semester as well but the date of completion is in March 2026. Now, I am facing no refund from my uni for the semester contribution and confusion with everything ;( . I would like to know, would TK update it or would I end up in trouble?

Hello, please give me your precious advice.

I plan to visit Germany this autumn.

Ten years ago, I have went around Germany 15 days.

My purpose is here.

1. Watching football in Gelsenkirchen, Veltins-Arena.

2.Visit Lubeck (very beautiful city)

I have went to Oktober fest and Christmas market.

It was very nice.

And I will visit from Japan , so arrive at Frankfurt-Airport.

Below, there are my question and I need your advice.

1. Where is my staying? (Hamburg? Dortmund?)

2. Your recommendation(park, spot, food, the others)

Thanks!

Hi, I'm traveling by bicycle and I'll be in South Germany for 3 months, I'm looking for a soap bar to use for handwashing clothes, in Italy I could easily find Marseille soap at supermarkets while now in Germany I can't even find similar products, I go to supermarkets almost daily and so far never seen something like that. I very much need to wash my clothes, where can I find soap? As I'm traveling by bicycle I can't just buy a big bottle and also buying online is quite complicated.

I want to understand how they manage care, housing, medical support, and daily needs without family support.

And how good are these systems?