Salaries in Berlin have always been a difficult topic to discuss. Talking about it with your boss or colleagues can be tricky. In general, people tend to keep this figure low, probably because they fear being underpaid or overpaid, or even arousing envy in others. I think it also depends on your cultural background. You usually keep where I come from a secret.
However, this is the wrong approach as it can sometimes work in the employer's favor and they will take advantage of the lack of information to negotiate less than what you deserve.The purpose of this post is to address this issue for your (employee) benefit. With better information, you can better negotiate your next paycheck or next raise.
Incomplete information can work in the employer's favor during negotiations, so use common sense and do your research
Unfortunately, there will never be an exact match with your profile, profession, level of experience, qualifications or diplomas. However,By adding up some numbers, you can decide how much to ask for. Try to imagine placing yourself somewhere on the chart, like this:
All data below represent average annual gross salaries.
How much should someone with experience earn in Berlin?
Study in 2021Stepstone, the leading recruitment platform for skilled workers and managers, reveals some interesting facts about the current state of affairs based on job category. It already reveals a simple fact: wages in Berlin are lower than the national average. Here are some examples.
| Category work | Berlin average (Euro) | National average (euros) |
|---|---|---|
| Engineer and technical positions | 56888 | 62 564 |
| arrive | 56 746 | 59 870 |
| Marketing in PR | 55 046 | 60174 |
| marketing | 55958 | 59691 |
| Human Resources | 53 686 | 58 029 |
| Finance, banking, insurance | 62624 | 66 786 |
| Shopping and logistics | 49163 | 50 358 |
| care and treatment | 43 476 | 45 724 |
| average - everything | 53408 | 56 985 |
Before these numbers scare you, remember that these numbers come from relatively experienced profiles and include commissions and other benefits.
How do you explain the difference in income between Berlin and the rest of the country?
The reason for this may be the lower cost of living(At least, it used to be). The city's economy is also becoming more and more developeddriven by start-upsThis often lowers wages for employees, automatically lowering average wages, especially in sales, marketing, and human resources. Let's not forget the impact of immigrants like usAn influx of well-educated peoplefrom abroad, leading to more competition between applicants. A large number of skilled workers also maintain the average wage in Berlin. This also applies to other highly educated employees from other parts of Germany.
How much should teenagers in Berlin earn?
Are you just starting your career and are you looking for a starter position?The next survey is in 2021The same company has scrutinized the data on young professionals.
For entry-level positions in academia, here are the average entry-level salaries based on major in Berlin:
| study | Berlin average (Euro) |
|---|---|
| Humanities | 34646 |
| arrive | 45292 |
| natural Science | 44 474 |
| engineering sciences | 44938 |
| psychology, sociology | 39738 |
| business economics | 40 427 |
| average - everything | 41 670 |
Again, remember that these numbers include commissions and other benefits. Data comes from profiles with less than 2 years of experience. And that's no surprise: the more professional your profile is, the better your chances of getting a good salary in Berlin at the end of the month.
For starter positions, the starting salary also depends more on the size of the company
There is another factor that young professionals should consider when starting their career. The pay gap is even bigger in Berlin, depending on the size of your company. Larger companies usually agree to higher starting salariesthis is another studyFrom 2012 (sorry, couldn't find an updated date).
| Company size | Average starting salary (euro) |
|---|---|
| 1 to 10 employees | 35 000 |
| 10-99 employees | 37 000 |
| 100 to 999 employees | 39 000 |
| More than 1000 employees | 42 000 |
These are national figures, so the usual 10-15% discount must be applied to get the actual Berlin figures.
A 2016 survey of over 2,000 respondents to the employment portalJobs for startups in BerlinThe following matrices were also found. This is an excellent summary of the experience and field of work of Berlin-based startups.Read more about the research here。
Salary in Berlin: How much should I earn as a developer
The leading job placement platform for developers, Honeypot, published a survey in 2021 focusing on employment in the German technology industry. Berlin also has the highest, average and lowest marks for the various roles. very important things. The infographic is too long to post here, butThis is the original message。
However, these are the main observations:
- Tech professionals with at least 8 years of experience earn more on average in Berlin than in Hamburg.
- On average, DevOps is the highest paid technical job in Germany for engineers with 6-8 years of experience.
- Berlin remains the most attractive city for German developers
How much should I earn if I don't speak German well?
This is probably close to the character you have in mind.But we need to dig deeper here and not kid ourselves. We all know that if you don't speak German fluently, your chances of getting a good salary become even smaller. The reason is simple: in Berlin there are many more expats who are not fluent in German than there are expats who can use German in the workplace. As a result, more people started competing for English-only jobs. (as already mentioned here: Yes, the key to a real job and career is learning German. )
If you don't speak German in the workplace, your chances of getting a higher salary may be reduced
The closest data I can find that examines this particular population is:Research early 2016Compiled by Taledo.com, another job portal. In this study, we learned more about the expectations of people who want to work in startups. However, the data sample is less reliable as it only focuses on startup profiles and is a European study. However, many people who come to Berlin and don't speak German often work for start-ups, so this is still relevant to some extent.
Here are the team's findings:
| experience level | Expected salary (euros) |
|---|---|
| junior role | 29 500 |
| older role | 39 800 |
| management functions | 42 400 |
| C level manager | 61 000 |
More personally, there are two:
During my career, I have had the opportunity to deal with the recruitment of employees, which led me to share the following observations with you:
- more often than you thinkCandidates underestimate their worthAnd set salary expectations lower than what they actually ask for. Keep in mind that the grades you ask for in the interview are also a way for the recruiter to assess how you see your worth and whether you feel confident about it.
- Don't be fooled by all these "pros".to compensate for lower wages in Berlin. A free MacBook and an all-you-can-eat breakfast are no substitute for a living wage.
- If you are planning a performance-based system,Make sure this is also in the contract,Use the correct percentage or amount.
- Stocks seem like a good dealbut sometimes not。Trust this man, he knows.
How to view a specific company or role within a company
IIf you want to do some research on a particular company to find out what they pay their employees, you can use employer review sites such asGlass doorIKununuThis includes data on former and current employees and potential candidates.
I highly recommend you check it outGerhardt-websiteAlso ("Gehalt" means "salary"), it also contains current information.
As mentioned at the beginning of this article, there is not a single source to refer to, so if you know of a Berlin and current source, please let me know so I can add it here. I would also like to hear your opinion.
How to Calculate Your Net Salary
When you land that high-paying dream job, you may be wondering how much of your paycheck will end up in your bank accountGerman income taxand pay donations. You can also useGermany net salary calculatorFor this reason.
Why not list your earnings, describe your role, experience level and company size in the comments section? This may help others.