Before the move · Salary
How much does an IT professional earn in Germany?
In short
Full-time employees in software development in Germany earn a median of €6,301 gross a month, in cybersecurity occupations €6,680 and in DevOps €5,864. These are medians from the Federal Employment Agency as of 31 December 2025, including one-off payments. In Munich the figure for software development is €7,284, for under-25s €4,157. From €6,301 gross, about €3,807 net a month remain in tax class I.
Sources: Federal Employment Agency, salary atlas, Salary atlas, IT security coordination, Salary atlas, DevOps, IseeIT comparison calculator, calculated on 26 October 2026
gross a month: median salary in software development in Germany.
Median of full-time employees as of 31 December 2025, expert level, including one-off payments. A quarter earn less than €5,034, a quarter more than €7,723.
Source: Federal Employment Agency, salary atlas, retrieved on 26 October 2026.
Three occupational groups compared
| Occupational group | Median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|
| Software development, expert, including cloud architects | 6,301 | 5,034 to 7,723 |
| Cybersecurity, expert, for example IT security coordination, ethical hackers | 6,680 | 5,235 to 7,928 |
| IT coordination, specialist, including DevOps and site reliability engineers | 5,864 | 4,649 to 7,250 |
The figures come from the salary atlas (Entgeltatlas) of the Federal Employment Agency. It shows occupational groups, not single job titles: cloud architects belong to software development, ethical hackers and cyber security consultants to a group with IT security coordination and IT forensics, DevOps engineers to IT coordination. Only full-time employees are counted. Pay is included only up to the contribution ceiling of the pension insurance.
By city and age
| Place or group | Median |
|---|---|
| Munich | 7,284 |
| Stuttgart | 6,926 |
| Berlin | 6,913 |
| Nuremberg | 6,868 |
| Frankfurt am Main | 6,822 |
| Düsseldorf | 6,371 |
| Hamburg | 6,329 |
| Cologne | 6,019 |
| Hanover | 5,886 |
| Germany | 6,301 |
| Under 25 | 4,157 |
| 25 to 54 | 6,238 |
Berlin and Hamburg are shown as federal states, the other cities as cities with 500,000 or more inhabitants. The statistics distinguish by age, not by years in the job.
What is left net
€6,301 a month is €75,612 a year. In tax class I with no children and no church tax, about €45,685 net remain, about €3,807 a month. Calculated on 26 October 2026 with the IseeIT comparison calculator. Figures from €50,000 to €90,000 gross are on the station Net pay and rent.
More questions
What does a software developer earn as a beginner?
Under 25, the median in software development is €4,157 gross a month, between 25 and 54 it is €6,238 (salary atlas of the Federal Employment Agency, 31 December 2025).
Where in Germany does IT pay the most?
Among cities with 500,000 or more inhabitants, Munich leads in software development with €7,284 a month, ahead of Stuttgart with €6,926 and Nuremberg with €6,868. Among the federal states, Berlin leads with €6,913.
How much is that net?
From €6,301 gross a month, about €3,807 net remain in tax class I with no children and no church tax, calculated with the IseeIT comparison calculator.
Three views of this station
IT professional
“Is the offer I have fair?”
What helps: Compare it with the median of your occupational group and your city, then calculate the net.
Partner
“Is that enough for both of us?”
What helps: Put net pay and rent in the destination city side by side on the station Net pay and rent.
Company
“Is our offer competitive?”
What helps: Check the median for the occupational group at your location in the salary atlas.
How we work
- Before every interview
- You know the company, the interview style, the typical questions and the salary range.
- After the first conversation
- Your net-income breakdown is on the table: in writing, with a source and date on every figure, in your mother tongue.
- Cost
- Free for you. Always. We are paid by the hiring company. Never by you.
Not in our hands: The size of the offer. The company decides.
Related
- What is left of an IT salary in Germany once the rent is paid?
- Is life in Germany more expensive than in Spain or Greece?
- What does a recruitment agency do for IT professionals, and what does it cost me?
How does moving to Germany as an IT professional work?
Calculate your own path
With your city and your salary: comparison calculator. Talk your path through with us: write to us. Who we are: home page.
Sources
- Federal Employment Agency, salary atlas (Entgeltatlas): software developer, occupational group software development, highly complex tasks (expert), median and quartiles, full time, by region and age, data as of 2025, retrieved on 26 October 2026.
- Federal Employment Agency, salary atlas: IT security coordinator, occupational group IT network engineering, coordination, administration and organisation (other specific activities), highly complex tasks (expert), data as of 2025, retrieved on 26 October 2026.
- Federal Employment Agency, salary atlas: DevOps engineer, occupational group IT coordination, complex specialist tasks (specialist), data as of 2025, retrieved on 26 October 2026.
- Federal Employment Agency, help page of the salary atlas: full-time employees on 31 December, gross monthly pay including one-off payments up to the pension insurance contribution ceiling, data up to 2025, values per occupational group, not per single job title, retrieved on 26 October 2026.
- IseeIT comparison calculator, net pay for EUR 50,000 to 90,000 gross, Munich, tax class I, age 30, no children, no church tax, calculated on 26 October 2026, retrieved on 26 October 2026.