Minijob and Midijob Calculator

How this is worked out

Germany has three bands for small jobs, and the boundaries matter more than people expect.

Up to 603 a month — Minijob. You pay no social contributions at all and normally no income tax. The employer pays flat-rate levies. You are automatically enrolled in the pension scheme but can opt out, and most people do. The 603 limit is not arbitrary: it is the minimum wage multiplied by 130 and divided by 3 — deliberately set so a Minijob is always about ten hours a week, and it rises whenever the minimum wage does.

603.01 to 2,000 — Midijob, the Übergangsbereich. Contributions phase in gradually instead of hitting you all at once. Your contribution base is reduced by a formula in §20 SGB IV:

reduced base = (2,000 ÷ 1,397) × (earnings − 603)

At 604 the base is almost nothing, so you pay almost nothing. At 2,000 the base equals your full earnings and you are paying the normal rate. The employer covers the difference. You keep full insurance cover throughout — health, pension, care and unemployment all count as if you paid in full.

Above 2,000 — normal employment. Full contributions on everything.

This design exists to remove the old cliff edge, where earning one euro more could leave you worse off. It works: there is now no point in the range where more gross means less net.

A worked example

900 a month over 65 hours, one child:

• Category: Midijob
• Hourly rate: 13.85 — just below the 13.90 minimum wage
• Reduced contribution base: about 425 instead of 900
• Contributions: about 89
• You keep about 811

Two things to notice. Your contributions are roughly 9.9% of pay rather than the 21% a normal employee pays, because the base is reduced. And the hourly rate is illegal by five cents — at 65 hours the minimum lawful pay is 903.50.

Now compare the two edges. At 603 you keep all of it. At 604 you pay about 20 cents. The cliff really is gone.

What this doesn't cover

• Income tax is not included. A Minijob is normally taxed at a flat rate by the employer and costs you nothing. Midijob earnings go on your tax card and are taxed according to your tax class — if this is a second job, that means Steuerklasse VI, which is expensive.
• The Minijob limit is an average across the year. Occasional overruns are tolerated in up to two months; regular ones reclassify the job.
• Students, pensioners and people on parental leave have additional rules, particularly around health insurance, that this does not model.
• A Minijob alongside a main job is treated differently again — the first one stays exempt, further ones are added to your main employment.
• Minimum wage is 13.90 in 2026, rising to 14.60 in January 2027 — which will also push the Minijob limit up.

Common questions