How to open a German bank account
A simple step-by-step guide on how to open a bank account in Germany. Open an online Germany bank account and documents required to open a German Bank account
Read MoreFree Credit Cards in Germany
Looking for Free Credit cards in Germany? Online shopping or for airline tickets, free credit cards offer freedom, flexibility and independence. You can save yourself annual fees and still get a good credit card which fulfils all your needs. There are different types of credit cards in Germany. See here for more details on the types of Credit cards in Germany and other recommendations.
There are two types of free credit cards:
- Free Credit cards from Credit Card Providers
- Free Card Card with the Bank Account (e.g., N26, DKB, ComDirect)
Some banks such as N26, DKB, and ComDirect also provide free credit cards along with their checking accounts. We give details of these bank accounts on best bank accounts in Germany. However, this article focuses on the free credit card from independent credit card providers in Germany. Note that free refers to credit cards with zero annual maintenance fees.
Important: Do not apply for a lot of credit cards at the same time. This will affect your credit score and reduce your chances of getting a credit card.
Top 5 Free Credit Cards in Germany:
The following free credit cards are recommended in Germany (in the order of recommendation):
1. Gebuhrenfrei Mastercard Gold
In our opinion, this is the best-recommended card as it provides very good features, as well as easy to get approved if you are new in Germany and do not have a long credit history. Therefore, it is easy for expats and also students, or unemployed people to get a free credit card in Germany. Although the initial credit limit might start low, you can then increase your credit limit once you build your credit history.
- Provided by Advanzia bank
- Always free
- Zero foreign transaction charges
- Up to 7 Weeks Interest-free period
- Free Travel Insurance and other benefits of Mastercard Gold
- Read detailed review on the features of the card and why this card is highly recommended
Apply for Advanzia Mastercard Gold
2. Genialcard
- Provided by Hanseatic Bank
- 15% cashback on online shopping (select stores) and discount coupons
- Instant Online Approval – No waiting for the result
- Transfer money to Checking Account
- Up to 6 Weeks Interest-free period
- Read More
Apply for Genialcard
3. Salander 1 plus Visa Card
- Free Cash Withdrawal (up to 4) – worldwide
- 0 € annual fee – Permanently Free
- 1% tank discount worldwide
- 5% refund on travel bookings
Apply for Salander 1 plus Visa Card
4. Consorsbank Mastercard
This has good offers and usually provide joining bonus up to €50. However, it has a higher refusal rate. Therefore, if you are new in Germany, or a student who does not have a good credit history, it is recommended not to apply for this card as your first card. But if you are an employee with a stable income, living in Germany for a few years and have built a good credit history, then you can apply for this credit card.
- Provided by Consorsbank
- High credit limit
- Free cash withdrawal from 300 Euro withdrawal fee
- Up to 90 days payment term
- App with push notifications included
- Apple Pay Integration + NFC
Apply for Consors Mastercard
5. Barclay New Visa Card
This has good offers and usually provide joining bonus up to €50. However, it has a higher refusal rate. Therefore, if you are new in Germany, or a student who does not have a good credit history, it is recommended not to apply for this card as your first card. But if you are an employee with a stable income, living in Germany for a few years and have built a good credit history, then you can apply for this credit card.
- Provided by Barclays
- Free foreign usage without any transaction charges
- Joining bonus – up to €50 (offer changes)
- Up to 2 months Interest-free period
- Read More about New Visa Card
Cool!! I’ve been meaning to sign up for a MasterCard, and this has all the info I need. Do you know if it affects negatively on my SHUFA if I sign up for the MC while already having 2 Visas?
SCHUFA records all the financial information and the number of cards along with the credit limits. So applying for a credit card will reflect on the record and to some extend affect your score. This is irrespective of VISA or MC. The more important thing however is the credit limit on those earlier cards. If those VISA cards were issued along with a checking account with a nominal €100, being primarily used as a prepaid card, then applying for a new credit card with a higher limit will not affect so much. On the other hand, if you had applied for those VISA cards recently, then do not apply for another card immediately, it may be refused and also may affect your score.
Thanks again for all the info!! I have recently applied for 2 new VISA cards (and closed my DB MC). So I’m going to take your advice and wait before I apply for the Advanzia MC. It’s too bad I visited your site *after* I booked my travel.
What an amazing website for people who are just settling in Germany, are not fluent in German, and are used to fee-free credit cards in the US.
Thanks, it was the exact reason I started this website since I could not get the information I wanted when I first came here.
I just got my Master Card Gold from Advanzia Bank as is reported on your website. It took about a week for them to send me the card, and another week to get it activated and get my pin. This is an annual fee free card. If you have a permanent address in Germany, it looks like they will approve a credit card even if you don’t have a credit history though, with a lower credit limit. When I checked, they mentioned that credit limit will be increased in a few months depending on the payment history. I will report the progress later.
Update: This card has been very useful so far. I have been consistently settling bills in full. As a result, they have increased my credit limit significantly from an initial EUR 600/-. No complains up to now.
if anybody get schufa how can get credit card
Dear Admin,
Based on these expose, which of the cards do you think is the best´?
darajaf42 @gmail.com
I have recently found out that there is another credit card issued by the same bank (Advanzia Bank) that issues the Gebührenfrei Mastercard
It’s called Drivango and comes with exactly the same features as the Gebührenfrei card. The only difference is, that your monthly credit card bill is deducted automatically from your bank account which is a great advantage in my eyes, because you won’t forget to pay.
Thanks for the nice overview!
I can definitely recommend the Mastercard Gold from Advanzia. Have been using it for nearly eight years now and it has saved me a lot of money during travels.
Bună ziua! Am nevoie de un credit de 1500 euro. Cum as putea să-l obțin? Va rog sa ma ajutati cu un sfat!
In addition to the above mentioned credit cards I can also recommend the Santander 1plus VISA card. No foreign exchange fees, free of charge cash withdrawal und 1% discount on fuel.
Help
I would very much like to know what the initial credit amount is for each of these cards. Do you know the answer to this?? I am looking for at least 2500 right away – have been a temporary resident in Germany for 1.5 years. Can anybody tell me?? Much appreciated 🙂
It is not normal to have a high credit condition immediately. But, I can understand the need for a higher amount especially for booking airline tickets and hotels.
One way to get around low credit limit is by depositing funds into your credit card account and using is like a debit card. For example, banks (e.g., DKB, ComDirect, N26) provide cards which have VISA/Mastercard function and allow you to deposit money in your credit card account to have a higher limit and use it just like a debit card, but with the VISA/Mastercard function of credit cards.
It appears that Advanzia’s card starts at 600/- but they steadily increased my limit because I consistently settled bills.
best