TVöD and TV-L Salary 2026: Pay Groups, Steps and Net Pay Explained

Public sector pay in Germany: why a table decides everything

If you work for a municipality, the federal government or one of the German federal states, you usually do not negotiate your salary yourself. It is set out in a table. Which row and which column apply depends on two things: the pay group (Entgeltgruppe), which follows from your job, and the step (Stufe), which grows with experience. That sounds rigid, but it has an advantage: anyone can work out what a position pays and how the salary will develop over the years.

This guide explains how the TVöD and TV-L tables are structured, which values apply since the 2026 pay rises, how step progression works and how much of the gross salary is left net. You can recalculate every example with your own details in the public sector salary calculator.

Three agreements, three tables

There is not just one collective agreement in the German public sector. Employees of the federal government and of municipalities are covered by the TVöD (Tarifvertrag für den öffentlichen Dienst). It has two tables: one for the federal government and one for municipal employers organised in the association of municipal employers (VKA). Anyone working for a city, a district, a municipal hospital or a municipal utility is usually covered by the TVöD VKA.

The federal states have their own agreement, the TV-L. It applies to employees of state administrations, universities, university hospitals and to salaried teachers. Hesse is the exception: it does not apply the TV-L but its own state agreement with different values.

Besides these general tables there are special tables, for example for nursing staff, for social and education services or for doctors. This guide and our calculator refer to the general tables with pay groups 1 to 15.

The 2026 pay rises

For federal and municipal employees, the agreement of 6 April 2025 applies. Table pay rose by 3.0% on 1 April 2025, by at least €110 a month. A second step of a further 2.8% followed on 1 May 2026. This table applies until the agreement expires on 31 March 2027.

For the federal states, the parties reached agreement on 14 February 2026. TV-L table pay rose by 2.8% on 1 April 2026, by at least €100. A further 2.0% on 1 March 2027 and 1.0% on 1 January 2028 have also been agreed. The minimum amount mainly helps the lower pay groups, where 2.8% would be less than €100.

The overview below shows some typical values from the tables currently in force, as monthly gross pay for full-time work:

Notably, the federal government and municipalities pay identical amounts in most pay groups. Differences exist in E 1 and in groups 9a to 9c. The TV-L is slightly lower in almost every cell, in the upper groups sometimes by several hundred euros.

The pay group: what you do determines what you earn

The pay group follows from the job, not from the qualification alone. The decisive factor is the classification scheme (Entgeltordnung) of the respective agreement. It describes job characteristics, and a position is assigned to the group whose characteristics the job predominantly meets. As a rough guide:

E 1 to E 4: simple tasks, often without or with short training.

E 5 to E 9a: tasks requiring completed vocational training.

E 9b to E 12: tasks requiring a bachelor's or university of applied sciences degree.

E 13 to E 15: tasks requiring a master's or university degree, and management roles.

If you are given a higher-value job, you are promoted to a higher pay group. Here the agreements differ: under the TVöD you keep your step (step-equal promotion). Under the TV-L you are placed in the step where you receive at least your previous table pay, but at least step 2. If the increase is too small, a guaranteed amount of €100 (E 2 to 8) or €180 (E 9a to 15) is paid. In both cases the step duration starts again in the new group.

The step: experience pays

Each pay group has six steps. Steps 1 and 2 are the basic pay, steps 3 to 6 are development steps. If you are hired without relevant professional experience, you start at step 1. With at least one year of relevant experience you start at step 2, with at least three years usually at step 3. Employers can also credit other useful experience to attract skilled staff.

After that you move up after fixed periods. These are regulated identically in § 16 of the TVöD and TV-L:

You therefore reach the final step after 15 years of uninterrupted work in the same pay group. For considerably above- or below-average performance, the employer can shorten or extend the periods from step 3 onwards. Part-time work does not extend the step duration. Pay group 1 has a special rule: it always starts at step 2, and each further step follows after four years.

How much a step brings varies a lot. In E 9b of the TVöD VKA, step 3 to step 4 is worth almost €487 gross, while in E 3 step 2 to step 3 is worth only just over €50. Our calculator shows the full step progression for your group as a chart.

Annual bonus: the public sector Christmas pay

Once a year, with the November salary, the annual bonus (Jahressonderzahlung) is paid. It is calculated as a percentage of one month's pay. The basis is the average pay for July, August and September. Since 2026 considerably higher rates apply in the TVöD:

For E 9b, step 3 under the TVöD VKA this means 85% of €4,203.56, i.e. about €3,573 gross. Because the payment comes on top of the regular salary, it is taxed at a higher rate. By our calculation about €1,915 is left net in tax class I. Read more in our article on the annual bonus 2026.

From gross to net

Income tax, where applicable solidarity surcharge and church tax, as well as contributions to health, care, pension and unemployment insurance are deducted from table pay. In the public sector there is often also an employee contribution to the supplementary pension scheme, which varies by fund. Our calculator does not include it because it differs a lot by region.

An example: E 9b, step 3 under the TVöD VKA, full-time, tax class I, no children, no church tax, 2.9% health insurance add-on rate. €4,203.56 gross becomes about €2,735 net per month. Married employees in tax class III get just over €3,064 from the same gross pay. Including the annual bonus, annual net pay in tax class I is about €34,740.

Part-time: pro rata, but not quite proportional

Part-time employees receive table pay pro rata. At 50% that is €2,101.78 gross in our example. About €1,545 is left net, i.e. more than half of the full-time net pay. The reason is tax progression: lower income is taxed at a lower rate. The annual bonus is also paid pro rata, while the step duration continues unchanged.

How to use the calculator

First choose your collective agreement, then pay group and step. If you work part-time, set your working time. Tax class, children, church tax, federal state and your health insurer's add-on rate make the net result more precise. The calculator also shows what the next step and a promotion would bring, gross and net, and when you will reach each step.

Please note: allowances, surcharges for night or weekend work, overtime and performance pay are not included. The result is a non-binding guide. Your payslip is what counts.

Conclusion

Public sector pay in Germany is transparent: agreement, pay group and step determine it. The 2026 rises lifted the tables by 2.8%, and the annual bonus in the TVöD has risen considerably. If you want to know what actually lands in your account, calculate with your own details. You will find the salary calculator at the top of this page. For a detailed calculation with allowances, the gross-net calculator also helps.