How much does an educator earn?
Educators (Erzieher) support children and young people in daycare centres, after-school care, residential settings and youth services – from educational activities and observation to parental work and teamwork. Training is usually a three-year school-based programme with intensive practical phases; in many places a training allowance is paid. Gross pay depends on region, collective agreements (e.g. TVöD SuE), employer, experience and additional qualifications. As a guide, qualified educators in Germany in 2026 often earn about €3,400–€4,000 gross per month; in training around €1,050–€1,350 is typical.
Salary by region (gross/month)
Guide figures as of 2026. Actual pay depends on employer, region, collective agreement (e.g. TVöD SuE, AVR), experience, additional qualifications and working-time model and is not a guarantee. The training column refers to typical training allowances or paid practical phases – a training allowance is not paid everywhere.
Further training options
Job and everyday work
Educators mainly work in daycare centres, after-school care, residential homes and open youth work. Everyday work combines educational activities, observation and documentation with parental work, team coordination and child protection – focused on education, care and upbringing.
- Plan and deliver educational and care activities: play, language, movement, creativity and everyday-integrated support.
- Observe children and young people, document developmental stages and agree support goals with the team and parents.
- Build relationships, accompany conflicts and enable participation and inclusion in group life.
- Work with parents and carers: parent talks, settling-in, transparency about daily routines and development.
- Work in a multiprofessional team, follow duty schedules and handovers, and fulfil the child-protection mandate.
- Shape rooms, materials and daily structure so that education, care and upbringing work reliably.
