What is housing benefit?
Housing benefit (Wohngeld) is a state subsidy towards housing costs. It is for households that earn their own income but cannot fully cover their rent and utilities with it. Housing benefit does not have to be paid back.
Definition: a subsidy towards your rent – not a loan
Housing benefit is a social benefit financed jointly by the federal government and the states. Tenants receive it as a rent subsidy towards the gross rent (before heating costs). It is a subsidy, not a loan – you do not have to pay it back.
Unlike citizen's allowance (Bürgergeld) or social assistance (Sozialhilfe), housing benefit assumes that you generally cover your own living costs. It bridges the gap between your income and your housing costs – nothing more, nothing less.
Who pays housing benefit? Housing benefit is funded half by the federal government and half by the states. In Hamburg it is processed and paid out by the housing benefit offices of the seven district offices – the district office where you live is responsible.
Why Hamburg is special: rent level 6
How much housing benefit you receive also depends on your city's rent level. Hamburg is in Germany's rent level 6 – the second-highest of seven levels. Because rents in Hamburg are high, the eligible rent ceilings are high too – and so is the potential housing benefit.
Wohngeld Plus: significantly more support since 2023
The 2023 Wohngeld Plus reform noticeably increased housing benefit and widened the circle of eligible households. Since then, housing benefit also includes a heating-cost component and a climate component. In Hamburg, the number of housing benefit households more than doubled between 2022 and 2023.
How much housing benefit is paid in Hamburg?
The amount depends on income, rent and household size. In 2023, the average housing benefit in Hamburg was around €318 a month. Your personal entitlement is determined by the calculation under the Housing Benefit Act (Wohngeldgesetz) – we explain it step by step.
Rent subsidy or burden subsidy?
Tenants receive housing benefit as a rent subsidy. Owner-occupiers can receive a burden subsidy (Lastenzuschuss) under certain conditions. This website focuses on the rent subsidy in Hamburg.
The most important questions about housing benefit
Go deeper on the individual topics:
Who gets housing benefit?
Housing benefit goes to households on low or middle incomes that cover their own living costs – but whose money is not enough to pay their rent in full. Four requirements must be met.
Learn moreHousing benefit or citizen's allowance?
Both benefits support people on low incomes – but they work in completely different ways. In short: housing benefit (Wohngeld) tops up your own income towards housing costs. Citizen's allowance (Bürgergeld) covers your entire living costs when your income is not enough to do so.
Learn moreHousing benefit for pensioners
If your pension is not enough to pay the rent, housing benefit (Wohngeld) can help – even in old age. In Hamburg, pensioners are one of the largest groups of housing benefit recipients.
Learn moreHousing benefit for students
Students and trainees generally cannot get housing benefit (Wohngeld) if they receive BAföG or vocational training allowance (Berufsausbildungsbeihilfe) – these benefits already cover their living costs. Those who receive no such funding, however, may well be entitled.
Learn moreHousing benefit for EU & non-EU citizens
You do not need a German passport for housing benefit (Wohngeld). What matters is your habitual residence in Germany, your income – and, for non-EU citizens, a valid residence permit.
Learn moreHousing benefit in a shared flat
You can get housing benefit (Wohngeld) even if you live in a shared flat (WG). The key question is whether you share finances with your flatmates – in most shared flats this is not the case, and each member forms their own household.
Learn moreFrequently asked questions
Do I have to pay housing benefit back?
No. Housing benefit is a subsidy, not a loan. Only if you received housing benefit wrongly – for example because income was not declared – can the housing benefit office reclaim the overpayment.
Is housing benefit the same across Hamburg?
Yes. All of Hamburg – all seven districts and every neighbourhood – is uniformly in rent level 6. There are no different rent levels within the city.
Is housing benefit paid retroactively?
No. Housing benefit is paid from the month in which the application reaches the housing benefit office. So apply as early as possible – retroactive payments do not exist.