Bus and train in Berlin: tickets, Deutschlandticket, and Berlin-Ticket S
The German version of this page has been changed, this translation has not. Please rely on the German page.
In Berlin, bus, U-Bahn, S-Bahn, tram, and ferry run on the joint fare of the Verkehrsverbund Berlin-Brandenburg (VBB, Berlin-Brandenburg Transport Association). For the city, fare zone AB generally applies.
If you have little money, there is the Berlin-Ticket S. It is a monthly pass for fare zone AB and has cost 27.50 euros a month since 1 January 2026.
You can use the ticket if you live in Berlin and receive certain benefits. These include, for example, Grundsicherungsgeld (formerly Bürgergeld), Sozialhilfe (social assistance), Grundsicherung im Alter (basic old-age security), and Wohngeld (housing benefit). You need a valid benefits decision notice and an official photo ID. You have not needed a separate entitlement card since 2025.
The Deutschlandticket is valid throughout Germany's local and regional transport and has cost 63 euros a month since January 2026. A special “Deutschlandticket Sozial” (social-rate Deutschlandticket) for Berlin is not named in the available sources.
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- Choose a ticketSingle ticket AB: 4.00 euros. Short-distance AB: 2.80 euros. 4-trip ticket AB: 12.40 euros (3.10 euros per trip). 24-hour ticket AB: 11.20 euros (prices per VBB from 1 January 2026, excerpt). For regular travel, check the Berlin-Ticket S (if eligible) or the Deutschlandticket.
- Check eligibility for the Berlin-Ticket SYou need a residence in Berlin (or no fixed residence) and must receive benefits such as Grundsicherungsgeld, Sozialhilfe, Grundsicherung im Alter, Wohngeld, or SED-Unrechtsbereinigungsleistungen (compensation payments for SED injustice). Family members within the same benefit unit (Bedarfsgemeinschaft) and household members of Wohngeld recipients are also eligible if they are accounted for in the benefit calculation.
- Have your proof readyYou need the valid benefits decision notice (or, if no Berlin notice is available, a valid proof of benefits) and an official photo ID. The name on the ticket must match the name on the decision notice: enter your full first and last name on the ticket. For children under 16, a school ID is sufficient as identification.
- Buy the ticketPer the VBB, the Berlin-Ticket S is available at all ticket machines, in the BVG apps, in the DB Navigator, and at private sales points. It is a monthly pass, not a subscription, and not transferable.
- Old VBB customer card Berlin S: valid only until 1 October 2026Anyone who still has a valid VBB customer card Berlin S can, per the Senatsverwaltung (Senate Department), use it as proof only until 1 October 2026. After that: benefits decision notice or proof of benefits plus photo ID.
- Order the Deutschlandticket if neededWith the BVG: online order by the 20th of the previous month, or at a BVG customer center. Per the BVG, it can be cancelled at any time, effective end of month.
- The price of the Berlin-Ticket S was previously lower: per press and administrative sources, it was raised to 27.50 euros on 1 January 2026. Older pages citing 9 or 19 euros are outdated.
- The Berlin-Ticket S is valid only in fare zone AB. Trips to Brandenburg or into fare zone C require additional tickets. Prices for these: no confirmed information is available for this (the VBB excerpt names 5.00 euros for a single ABC ticket).
- Bicycle: bicycle transport is not included in the monthly pass. For a one-time trip, a separate bicycle ticket is required (VBB).
- The transitional rule for the VBB customer card Berlin S ends on 1 October 2026, meaning only a few days after the retrieval date. Whether a new rule applies afterward should be checked with the VBB or BVG.
- For children and young people: per the Senatsverwaltung's FAQ, pupils with a Schülerausweis I (pupil ID) receive a free pupil ticket; others can have travel costs (including for the Berlin-Ticket S) reimbursed via the Bildungs- und Teilhabepaket (education and participation package). Details on the procedure: no confirmed information is available for this.
- A Deutschlandticket at a social rate does not exist in the Berlin sources. The Federal Government states that the federal states can offer further discounts at their own cost, for example apprentice, pupil, or social tickets. For Berlin, only the Berlin-Ticket S is documented as a social offer.
- The decision notice is decisive. Individual cases: no confirmed information is available for this.
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Fares and prices (VBB, from 1 January 2026)
Per the VBB, the following have applied in Berlin since 1 January 2026, among others: single ticket AB 4.00 euros, short-distance AB 2.80 euros, 4-trip ticket AB 12.40 euros (3.10 euros per trip), 24-hour ticket AB 11.20 euros, single ticket ABC 5.00 euros. Per information on the pricing round, some products were discontinued (7-day tickets, annual tickets, 10am tickets). The VBB excerpt names no prices for the discount fare, the Berlin-Ticket S, or the Deutschlandticket; these are in the sources below. A complete discount fare schedule (e.g. for children, seniors) was not evaluated: no confirmed information is available for this.
Deutschlandticket
Per information from the Federal Government (page dated 1 May 2026), the Deutschlandticket has cost “63 euros a month since January 2026” and is valid nationwide in local and regional transport. Per the BVG, it is personal and not transferable, applies for the current calendar month, is not valid on IC/EC/ICE trains, does not include bicycle transport, and can be cancelled at any time effective end of month; within the VBB area, dogs may travel free of charge. A further component in Berlin: the “Deutschlandticket Zuschuss Ausbildung” (Deutschlandticket training subsidy) for eligible trainees costs, per the BVG, 37.80 euros a month (orderable from 1 June 2026, valid from 1 July 2026); those eligible include, among others, full-time pupils in vocational training programs located in Berlin, people doing a voluntary service, and career-entry civil servants of career group 1 in Berlin; a requirement is training of at least 12 months with 20 hours per week; a certificate of eligibility from the training provider, no older than 30 days, is required. On the price index from 2027, the Federal Government page contains no information; a press source names a price index planned from 2027 (not confirmed).
Berlin-Ticket S
On 30 September 2025, the Senate decided to offer the Berlin-Ticket S from 1 January 2026 at a price of 27.50 euros per month in fare zone AB; this price corresponds to the level before the price reduction of 1 January 2023 (Senate press release). The Senatsverwaltung writes: “From 1 January 2026, the original price of 27.50 euros per month applies again.” Eligible are people with residence in Berlin (or no fixed residence) who receive Grundsicherungsgeld, Sozialhilfe, Grundsicherung im Alter, Wohngeld, or SED-Unrechtsbereinigungsleistungen; also family members within the same benefit unit and household members of Wohngeld recipients. Eligibility itself is free of charge. Since 1 January 2025, the interim procedure with a separate entitlement card ended: a valid benefits decision notice from a Berlin benefits authority, or a valid proof of benefits plus official photo ID, is required. Still-valid VBB customer cards Berlin S can be used as proof until 1 October 2026. The ticket is a monthly value voucher (not rolling), not available as a subscription or annual ticket, and not transferable; per the VBB, the following may be carried free of charge: one dog, one stroller, and luggage, as well as children up to their completed 6th year; no bicycle.
Name entry
Per the Senatsverwaltung's FAQ, the name entered on the ticket must match the name on the benefits decision notice. Berlin-Service additionally states that the ticket is valid only with the full first and last name entered.
Responsibility for special cases
Per Service Berlin, standard cases receive automatic delivery of the entitlement; special groups need an informal inquiry or a written application to the responsible office. Named are the Amt für Soziales Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg (social welfare office), the Landesamt für Gesundheit und Soziales (LAGeSo, State Office for Health and Social Affairs), and the Justizvollzugsanstalt (prison, for detainees). Details on the special groups: no confirmed information is available for this.
Further discounts
The Senatsverwaltung refers to the “Fairgnügen” portal with “over 400” discounted or free offers in culture, sport, education, and leisure (as stated on the page at retrieval).
Gaps
Not evaluated: VBB discount fares, details on fare zone C/Brandenburg, ticket inspections and the increased fare for fare evasion (erhöhtes Beförderungsentgelt), the rule after 1 October 2026.
- What is “Bus and train in Berlin” about?
- What bus and train cost in Berlin, who can use the discounted Berlin-Ticket S (27.50 euros a month), and what you need to show for it.
- Which deadlines and figures matter?
- 1. Oktober 2026: Until then, the old VBB customer card Berlin S may still be used as proof of eligibility (transitional rule) (Senatsverwaltung für Arbeit, Soziales, Gleichstellung, Integration, Vielfalt und Antidiskriminierung, Seite zum Berlin-Ticket S; Service Berlin)
- 20. des Vormonats: Online order of the Deutschlandticket with the BVG, for it to start the following month (BVG, Deutschlandticket-FAQ)
- What should I do first?
- Choose a ticket: Single ticket AB: 4.00 euros. Short-distance AB: 2.80 euros. 4-trip ticket AB: 12.40 euros (3.10 euros per trip). 24-hour ticket AB: 11.20 euros (prices per VBB from 1 January 2026, excerpt). For regular travel, check the Berlin-Ticket S (if eligible) or the Deutschlandticket.
- Check eligibility for the Berlin-Ticket S: You need a residence in Berlin (or no fixed residence) and must receive benefits such as Grundsicherungsgeld, Sozialhilfe, Grundsicherung im Alter, Wohngeld, or SED-Unrechtsbereinigungsleistungen (compensation payments for SED injustice). Family members within the same benefit unit (Bedarfsgemeinschaft) and household members of Wohngeld recipients are also eligible if they are accounted for in the benefit calculation.
- Have your proof ready: You need the valid benefits decision notice (or, if no Berlin notice is available, a valid proof of benefits) and an official photo ID. The name on the ticket must match the name on the decision notice: enter your full first and last name on the ticket. For children under 16, a school ID is sufficient as identification.
- What should I watch out for?
- The price of the Berlin-Ticket S was previously lower: per press and administrative sources, it was raised to 27.50 euros on 1 January 2026. Older pages citing 9 or 19 euros are outdated.
- The Berlin-Ticket S is valid only in fare zone AB. Trips to Brandenburg or into fare zone C require additional tickets. Prices for these: no confirmed information is available for this (the VBB excerpt names 5.00 euros for a single ABC ticket).
- Bicycle: bicycle transport is not included in the monthly pass. For a one-time trip, a separate bicycle ticket is required (VBB).
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