ETF savings plan calculator

How it calculates

The calculator follows the plan month by month, the way a broker executes it:

1. The lump sum is invested at the start. Each monthly saving is invested at the end of the month and, if you set an increase, rises once a year.
2. Every purchase pays the order cost you enter: a fixed amount, a percentage or both. The cost stays part of what you paid in.
3. The fund grows at your expected return before costs. The TER is taken from the fund’s value continuously, so a fund with 7 % before costs and a 0.2 % TER returns 6.79% a year.
4. Under German rules, each year you hold the fund over New Year, the bank works out the Vorabpauschale and debits the tax in January. Then, at the end, the whole fund is sold and the gain is taxed.

The result is three numbers you can compare: the value before tax, the tax on a sale at the end, and what is left. The Vorabpauschale tax paid along the way is shown separately, because it comes from your current account, not from the fund.

How German tax on an ETF works

Germany taxes investment income at a flat 25 % plus 5.5 % solidarity surcharge, together 26.375%, plus church tax if you pay it. Three rules shape the bill for a fund:

• Teilfreistellung. For an equity fund (more than half in shares), 30% of every gain is tax-free, because the fund has already paid tax on dividends. Mixed funds get half of that, other funds nothing. For an equity ETF the effective rate is about 18.5%.
• Vorabpauschale. An accumulating ETF pays nothing out, so the law taxes a minimum each year in advance: the value on 1 January × Basiszins × 70 %, but never more than the fund actually gained. For 2026 the Basiszins is 3.2%; the calculator uses it for every future year, because later rates are not known yet.
• Sparer-Pauschbetrag. The first €1,000 of capital income a year is tax-free (€2,000 for married couples). The calculator sets it against the Vorabpauschale every year and against the gain in the year you sell.

When you sell, the gain is reduced by every Vorabpauschale already taxed, so nothing is taxed twice. This calculator covers accumulating funds; for a distributing fund, the payouts would be taxed as they arrive.

Example: €1,250 a month for 21 years

Take €24,000 to start, €1,250 a month, 21 years, 7% before costs and a 0.2% TER, German rules for a couple. You pay in €339,000 and the fund grows to €771,979.

A sale at the end costs €56,416 in tax, so €715,563 is left. Along the way the Vorabpauschale cost €14,193, debited in January from your account. The TER costs €21,700 by the end: €13,240 taken directly plus the growth that money would have earned.

The same plan in an actively managed fund at 1.5 % TER ends at €610,605 after tax, €104,958 less. Costs are one of the few things you control; check yours on the fund’s key information document.

Why the Vorabpauschale is small

People are often surprised by the January debit, but it is mostly a timing effect. In the example, the Vorabpauschalen add up to €127,406 over the years and cost €14,193 in tax. The same €127,406 is then deducted from the gain at the sale, which lowers the sale tax by about €23,522. You pay part of the tax earlier, not more of it; and while the allowance covers the Vorabpauschale, nothing is debited at all.

Outside Germany

Choose “Flat tax on gains” under “Tax” and enter your rate. With 15 % on the gain and the same plan, €707,032 is left. This is a simplification: many countries tax dividends every year or have their own allowances and holding periods.

What it can’t see

The return here is fixed, and real markets deliver it unevenly; a crash just before you need the money matters most. It sells everything at once, while selling in slices over several years uses the allowance each year and usually costs less tax. It also assumes today’s tax rules and Basiszins stay as they are. A full Zenarios plan puts the savings plan next to your income, pension and plans, and runs it through good and bad markets.

Common questions

How is an ETF savings plan taxed in Germany?

Gains are taxed at 25 % plus 5.5 % solidarity surcharge (26.375 %), plus church tax if you pay it. For equity ETFs 30 % of every gain is tax-free (Teilfreistellung), so the effective rate is about 18.5 %. Accumulating ETFs are also taxed a little each January through the Vorabpauschale; the €1,000 Sparer-Pauschbetrag (€2,000 for married couples) is used first.

What does 100 a month in an ETF bring after 30 years?

At 7 % a year before costs and a 0.2 % TER, €36,000 paid in grows to about €112,400. Under German rules for a single person (equity ETF, €1,000 allowance) about €102,600 is left after the tax on a sale, and about €400 of Vorabpauschale tax is paid along the way. Returns are an assumption, not a promise.

How much do fund costs matter?

A lot over decades. In the example on this page (€24,000 plus €1,250 a month for 21 years at 7 %), a 0.2 % TER costs about €21,700 by the end, growth included. An active fund at 1.5 % costs about €147,500 and leaves about €105,000 less after tax.

Do I pay tax twice on the Vorabpauschale?

No. Every Vorabpauschale taxed while you hold the fund is deducted from the gain when you sell (§ 19 InvStG). It only brings part of the tax forward.

Can I use it for other countries?

Yes, roughly. Under “Tax” choose “Flat tax on gains” and enter the rate that applies to you. The calculator then taxes the whole gain once, at the sale, and ignores German rules.

Sources

• § 18 InvStG: Vorabpauschale
• § 19 InvStG: gains on the sale of fund units
• § 20 InvStG: Teilfreistellung
• § 32d EStG: flat tax on capital income
• BMF letter of 13 January 2026: Basiszins for the 2026 Vorabpauschale (3.20 %)

By Constantin Metz, the maker of Zenarios · Reviewed 25 October 2026. Results are estimates from your inputs and simplified rules, not financial, tax or legal advice. How Zenarios calculates