Germany is one of Europe’s largest B2B markets, and German customers value a local contact number. It also has one of the more detailed numbering plans, with around 5,000 area codes of different lengths. Here’s what matters when you choose a German number.
German area codes
German geographic codes (Vorwahlen) range from two to five digits after the leading 0. The big cities have the shortest codes:
- 030 Berlin
- 040 Hamburg
- 089 Munich
- 069 Frankfurt am Main
- 0221 Cologne, 0211 Düsseldorf, 0711 Stuttgart
Subscriber numbers vary in length too, so German numbers are not all the same number of digits. That’s normal. Browse Berlin and Munich numbers, or all German cities.
Local presence requirements
The German regulator expects geographic numbers to be used by someone with a residence or business establishment in the area of the code. In practice this means address verification for most German local numbers. If you don’t have a German address, a national or toll-free number is often the simpler route. We explain why operators ask for this in KYC and address requirements.
Freephone: 0800
German 0800 numbers are free for callers from landlines and mobiles and are widely used for customer service. The inbound cost is paid by you. See Germany 0800 numbers.
Service numbers: 0180
The 0180 range is a shared-cost service range where callers pay a regulated tariff. It’s still used, but many companies now prefer geographic or 0800 numbers because callers see them as fairer.
Dialling German numbers
Domestically: 089 1234567. From abroad: +49 89 1234567, dropping the leading 0. More in trunk prefixes and international dialling.
Frequently asked questions
Can a foreign company get a German geographic number?
Often yes, if you can show an address in the relevant area, such as an office, a branch or a registered address. The number page lists the exact requirement.
Is 0800 free from German mobiles?
Yes. German 0800 numbers are free from both landlines and mobile networks.
Browse German numbers