Before you start

Passport or national ID for verification
A German address, for postpaid contracts
A German bank account, for postpaid direct debit

Step-by-step

1
Buy a prepaid SIM and verify your identity
Available from supermarkets, phone shops and online. Activation requires identity verification — in shop with your passport, by video call, or through the Post's identification service.
In personWho: YouWeek 1
2
Do not attempt a postpaid contract in your first weeks
Contracts run a Schufa check and require a German bank account and registered address. With no credit history you will be declined or asked for a deposit.
OnlineWho: You
3
Order home internet the day you sign the lease
German broadband provisioning routinely takes several weeks. Frankfurt's infrastructure is genuinely excellent once connected — DE-CIX means very low latency to most of the internet — but the connection wait is the same as anywhere.
OnlineWho: You
4
Check coverage on your regional commute
If you live in Offenbach, Wiesbaden, Mainz or the Taunus and commute by S-Bahn, compare operators on actual coverage rather than price — German rail-corridor coverage has persistent gaps.
OnlineWho: You
5
Switch to a contract once you have a Schufa record
After a few months with a registered address, a bank account in good standing and prepaid history, a postpaid contract becomes achievable and is usually cheaper for the same allowance.
OnlineWho: You
6
Know the cancellation rules
Since December 2022, contracts continuing past the minimum term can be cancelled with one month's notice rather than auto-renewing for a full year. Check your specific terms, because older contracts may differ.
OnlineWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Passport or national ID for SIM registration
Meldebescheinigung, for postpaid contracts
German bank details, for direct debit
Schufa report, which some providers request

Things most newcomers don’t know

Frankfurt sits on top of one of the world's biggest internet exchanges.

DE-CIX in Frankfurt handles among the highest traffic of any internet exchange point globally, and the continental European data centre cluster grew around it. In practice this means unusually low latency from a Frankfurt home connection to most of the internet — genuinely noticeable for anyone doing remote work, gaming or video calls across continents.

Source: DE-CIX

Even prepaid SIMs require identity verification in Germany.

Every SIM must be registered to an identified person, so a supermarket prepaid card still needs a passport check by video, in shop, or at the Post. Arriving expecting to buy an anonymous SIM off a shelf wastes an afternoon.

Source: Bundesnetzagentur

Home internet takes weeks, so order at lease signing.

German broadband provisioning routinely takes several weeks and can require engineer visits. Ordering on move-in day means a month of tethering. Order the day the lease is signed with the future address.

Source: community-reported

The 2022 rules fixed a real contract trap.

German telecom contracts historically rolled over for another full year if you missed the cancellation window. Since December 2022, contracts continuing past the minimum term can be cancelled with one month's notice.

Source: Bundesnetzagentur — consumer rights

Common mistakes to avoid

Expecting to buy an unregistered prepaid SIM off a shelf.
Applying for postpaid before you have any Schufa record.
Ordering home internet on move-in day rather than at lease signing.
Choosing a network on price when your S-Bahn commute runs through a coverage gap.
Missing a cancellation window under older terms that still auto-renew annually.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.