You can keep your home mobile number for as long as you want after moving to Germany — you do not have to give it up to get German data. The trick is running two lines on one phone: your home number stays active for calls, texts and bank verification codes, while a second line handles everything data-hungry.
That second line can be a travel eSIM (embedded SIM, the digital SIM built into most modern phones) on day one, and a German prepaid or contract SIM once you have an address and a bank account. This guide covers the networks, realistic data needs for your first months, what to set up before you fly, and when a German SIM genuinely beats the alternatives.
Quick answer: the standard expat Germany phone number setup is dual SIM — keep your home SIM or eSIM active with data roaming switched off, and add a second line for data. Your home number keeps receiving SMS and calls; your German or travel line carries the internet.
Why your home number is worth keeping
Most people underestimate how much is anchored to their old number. Your bank sends one-time codes there. Your tax authority, your former employer’s HR portal, your investment platform, your airline loyalty account and your two-factor authentication apps may all be tied to it.
Changing that number is not a single afternoon’s work. Some banks require you to visit a branch in your home country to update a registered mobile number, which is awkward once you live in Hamburg or Stuttgart.
There is also the human side. Family and old colleagues have your number saved. Keeping it live for the first six to twelve months means nothing falls through the cracks while you deal with the Bürgeramt, a flat search and a new job.
Keep your home line on the cheapest possible tariff — most home carriers have a low-cost SIM-only or "keep the number" plan — and treat it purely as a receiving line. Turn data roaming off for that line so it never quietly runs up charges. If you have never compared the numbers, our breakdown of roaming charges versus a travel data plan shows how quickly a forgotten setting adds up.
How dual SIM works when moving to Germany
Almost every flagship phone released since 2018 supports at least one eSIM alongside a physical SIM slot, and recent iPhones sold in the United States are eSIM-only with room for multiple profiles. That gives you three practical configurations.
- Home physical SIM + travel or German eSIM. The simplest setup. Your old SIM stays in the tray, your new data line is downloaded as a QR code (Quick Response code) scan.
- Home eSIM + German physical SIM. Useful if your home carrier supports converting your number to an eSIM before you leave, freeing the tray for a German prepaid card bought in a shop.
- Two eSIMs. On iPhone XS and later, and most Pixel, Samsung Galaxy S and recent Android flagships, you can store several eSIM profiles and switch which is active.
Whichever you choose, the settings that matter are the same. On iPhone, go to Settings → Mobile Service (or Cellular), open each line and set Mobile Data to your new line, Default Voice Line to your home number, and switch Data Roaming off for the home line. On Android, the path is usually Settings → Network & internet → SIMs, then set the preferred SIM for calls, SMS and mobile data separately.
A dual SIM expat Germany setup also lets you send SMS from the right number. Set your home line as the default for messages until German contacts start texting you, then switch. Before you fly, it is worth confirming which phones support eSIM for your exact model and region, since carrier-locked handsets sometimes behave differently.
Set your home voicemail greeting before you leave to say you now live in Germany and to reach you on WhatsApp or email. Callers who hear a normal greeting will keep leaving voicemails you never check.
Germany’s mobile networks and where coverage actually drops
Germany has three companies that own physical networks: Deutsche Telekom (the D1 network), Vodafone Germany (D2) and Telefónica O2. A fourth operator, 1&1, has been building its own network and relies on national roaming for the areas it has not yet covered.
Everything else you will see advertised is a virtual operator riding on one of those three. Congstar and fraenk run on Telekom. Otelo, Lidl Connect and Lebara run on Vodafone. Aldi Talk and Blau run on O2.
That matters because the retail brand determines the price, but the underlying network determines whether you have signal in a Brandenburg village or on a regional train through the Black Forest.
What to expect in practice
In Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Cologne, Hamburg and Düsseldorf, all three networks perform well, including on the U-Bahn and S-Bahn in most central sections. 5G is widely available in city centres and along major motorways.
Outside the cities, the gap widens. Telekom generally has the broadest rural footprint, particularly in Bavaria, Thuringia and parts of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Vodafone is close behind. O2 has improved a great deal but is still the one most likely to drop to slow data in forested or hilly areas.
Long-distance trains are their own problem. Deutsche Bahn ICE routes pass through cuttings and tunnels where every network fades, regardless of who you are with. Download anything you need for a Berlin–Munich journey before you board.
The Bundesnetzagentur, Germany’s federal network regulator, publishes independent coverage and quality reporting for all three networks at bundesnetzagentur.de — a more reliable reference than any carrier’s own map.
How much data you actually need in your first months
Your first three months in Germany will be your heaviest data months, and most people plan for far too little.
Here is why. German home internet installation is slow. Booking a Telekom or Vodafone appointment, waiting for a technician and getting a router activated can take three to eight weeks in a new-build or an older Altbau. Many furnished sublets and WG rooms include Wi-Fi, but many do not.
Until your line is live, your phone is your household internet. Add video calls to family, apartment hunting on ImmobilienScout24, Google Maps in an unfamiliar city and streaming in the evening, and consumption climbs fast.
Rough monthly guidance for a new arrival:
- Light use with reliable Wi-Fi at home and work: 5–10 GB.
- Typical use, some hotspotting, daily navigation and video calls: 15–25 GB.
- No home broadband yet, or remote work off a hotspot: 50 GB or more, or an unlimited plan.
If you are arriving for a job rather than a permanent move, our guide to working trips in Germany covers the shorter end of that range.
Comparing your options for a German line
| Option | Ready when | ID and address needed | Typical commitment | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travel eSIM | Before you board the plane | None | Days to a few weeks | Arrival, first weeks, short assignments |
| German prepaid SIM | After ID verification (same day in store, 1–2 days online) | Passport; address usually not required | None, top up as you go | Months two onwards, no credit check |
| German mobile contract | 1–4 weeks after Anmeldung | Registration certificate, German bank account, SCHUFA check | Usually 24 months | Settled residents wanting a permanent number |
| Home carrier roaming | Immediately | None | None | EU-based movers with roam-like-at-home terms only |
The pattern most people follow is simple: eSIM to land and get through the first weeks, prepaid once you have verified your ID, contract once you have an Anmeldung and a bank account and are sure you are staying.
Before departure versus after you land
Setting up in advance costs you ten minutes and removes the worst hour of the trip.
Set up before you fly:
- Confirm your phone supports eSIM and is carrier-unlocked.
- Buy and install a Germany or Europe data plan while you are still on home Wi-Fi. Installation and activation are separate — install now, activate on arrival. Our installation walkthrough covers the exact menu path on both iPhone and Android.
- Downgrade your home plan to a cheap SIM-only tariff and turn data roaming off for that line.
- Download offline maps for your destination city.
- Screenshot your accommodation address, landlord contact and flight details.
Do after you land:
Switch data roaming on for your travel line only, and check that the German network name appears in the status bar. At Frankfurt (FRA), Munich (MUC) and Berlin Brandenburg (BER), signal reaches the jet bridge, so you should be connected before immigration.
Buying a SIM at the airport is possible but rarely ideal. The mobile shops at Frankfurt and Munich keep normal retail hours, so a late arrival finds them shut, and German law requires identity verification before a prepaid SIM is activated. That means queueing with your passport rather than tapping a card and walking away.
Waiting also leaves you offline exactly when you need a ride, a translation or a message to your landlord. For anyone arriving on a Sunday — when almost every shop in Germany is closed — having data already working is the difference between a smooth arrival and an expensive taxi guess.
Getting a German number once you are settled
Once you have found somewhere to live, a German number is worth having. Delivery drivers, doctors’ surgeries, landlords and job applications all expect one, and some German services will not accept a foreign number in their forms.
Prepaid: the easy route
Prepaid is the practical first step because it needs no proof of address, no credit history and no German bank account in most cases. Aldi Talk, Lidl Connect, congstar and the carriers’ own prepaid brands are widely available in supermarkets and electronics shops such as MediaMarkt and Saturn.
You will need to complete identity verification — either in the shop with your passport, or online by video call or PostIdent at a Deutsche Post branch. Budget a day for this rather than expecting instant activation. Not every prepaid brand offers eSIM, so check before you buy if you want to avoid a physical card.
Contracts and the SCHUFA question
A 24-month contract usually requires an Anmeldebestätigung (your registration certificate from the local Bürgeramt), a German bank account for direct debit and a SCHUFA credit check. New arrivals have no SCHUFA record, which sometimes results in refusal or a deposit request.
This is why the sequence matters: get an appointment at the Bürgeramt as early as you can — in Berlin and Munich the wait can run several weeks — then open a bank account, then consider a contract. The official Make it in Germany portal, run by the federal government, explains the registration process in English.
When a German SIM is not the answer yet
Be honest about your timeline. If you are in Germany for a three-month project, an eight-week language course, or a trial period before deciding whether to stay, a travel data plan plus your home number covers everything without ID appointments or contract terms.
Equally, if your employer provides a German work phone, you may only need a modest personal data line rather than a full plan. And if you are moving from another EU country, check your home tariff first — roam-like-at-home rules mean many EU plans work in Germany at domestic rates, though carriers apply fair-use limits on long stays, and permanent residence abroad falls outside what those rules were designed for.
Arrival checklist
- [ ] Phone confirmed eSIM-capable and unlocked
- [ ] Home plan downgraded, data roaming switched off on that line
- [ ] Data plan installed while still on Wi-Fi at home
- [ ] Default voice and SMS lines set to your home number
- [ ] Offline maps downloaded for your arrival city
- [ ] Passport ready for German prepaid ID verification later
- [ ] Bürgeramt appointment booked or on your to-do list for week one
FAQ
Can I keep my home number and use German data on the same phone?
Yes, on any dual SIM phone. Keep your home SIM or eSIM active for calls and texts with data roaming disabled, and set a second line as your mobile data line. Both numbers stay reachable at the same time.
Do I need an Anmeldung to buy a prepaid SIM in Germany?
Usually not. German prepaid SIMs require identity verification with a passport or ID card, but most providers do not require a registered German address. Anmeldung and a German bank account become necessary for 24-month contracts.
Will my bank’s verification codes still reach me in Germany?
Yes, as long as your home line is active and has signal. Incoming SMS is free on almost every plan, so leaving that line switched on costs you little. Check with your bank whether it blocks codes to numbers roaming outside your home country, as a small number do.
How long can I use a travel eSIM in Germany?
Travel data plans are designed for stays measured in days and weeks, and can be topped up or replaced as needed. If you are staying for years, a German prepaid or contract line is the better long-term home for your data, with your travel plan reserved for trips elsewhere in Europe.
Do German networks support eSIM?
Telekom, Vodafone and O2 all support eSIM on their main tariffs, and several virtual operators do too. Support varies by brand and by whether the plan is prepaid, so confirm before choosing. Older or entry-level handsets may not support it at all.
Before you go
Sort your home line first: cheapest possible tariff, data roaming off, voicemail greeting updated. That single step protects your bank codes and your contacts list for the whole move.
Book your Bürgeramt appointment before you arrive if your city’s system allows it, because the registration certificate gates almost everything else — bank account, contract, sometimes even a gym membership.
And have data working before you land. Atlas eSIM plans cover Germany from short arrival-week durations up to larger monthly allowances for the weeks before your home broadband goes live, and you can install one now and activate it when you touch down. If you want the network and speed detail for the country itself, our Germany connectivity guide goes deeper.