What does a child change financially?

The first year is rarely the most expensive. How parental leave, Elterngeld, part-time after returning to work, and pension points play out for two very different households.

The first year after the birth is the most visible change. Income drops, Elterngeld cushions part of it, and then life carries on. What most people underestimate: the bigger gap comes afterwards. Part-time after returning to work often costs more over five years than the entire income drop in the first year.

The figures below are model calculations. They show what the Miravel model works out for specific inputs. No two households are the same. Your numbers will differ.

What Miravel shows, and what it doesn't

Miravel shows what different decisions around parental leave mean financially: how income, Elterngeld, part-time work, pension, and the household buffer develop over the years ahead. For your household, based on your own inputs.

Miravel doesn't say whether you should have a child. That decision stays with you.

The same decision, two very different outcomes

Picture two couples. Both are expecting a child. Both have around €5,200 net a month between them. In both, the person with the higher income takes parental leave.

The difference: Jana and Tobias live in München. Jonas lives with Selin in a smaller city in Nordrhein-Westfalen. Jana earns €3,400 net, Tobias €1,800. Selin earns €3,200 net, Jonas €2,000.

Jana, München. Basic Elterngeld, 12 months.

Jana earns €5,493 gross a month, which is around €3,400 net. She takes 12 months of parental leave. Basic Elterngeld: 65% of the flat-rate net, capped at €1,800 a month. Jana is above that and gets the maximum of €1,800.

What the Miravel model works out for the parental-leave period:

Household income during parental leave: €1,800 (Elterngeld) + €1,800 (Tobias) + €259 (Kindergeld) = €3,859
Gap compared with before: around €1,340 a month
Household buffer after 12 months: around €14,000 used up

After parental leave, Jana goes back at 30 hours, so 75% of her former full-time income. What the Miravel model works out for the following five years:

Less net pay each month (from part-time alone): around €713
Over 5 years: around €42,800 less household income than without part-time
Fewer pension points after 5 years: around 1.59 points
From that: around €67 less monthly gross pension, permanently

The household buffer only recovers slowly. München is expensive. Even with two incomes, daycare, rent, and the cost of living eat up a large part of the monthly room to breathe.

Selin, Nordrhein-Westfalen. ElterngeldPlus, 24 months.

Selin earns €5,098 gross a month, which is around €3,200 net. She and Jonas go for ElterngeldPlus: a lower payout, but twice the period. ElterngeldPlus is half of the basic Elterngeld, for Selin around €900 a month, for 24 months.

Selin works part-time while receiving ElterngeldPlus. That's the idea behind it: Elterngeld and reduced income at the same time, without fully stepping out of work.

What the Miravel model works out for this phase:

Income during ElterngeldPlus (part-time 50%): around €1,808 net. Half the hours doesn't mean half the net: because of tax progression, more is left over than half of €3,200.
Elterngeld: €900
Together: €2,708 from Selin, plus Jonas's €2,000, plus €259 Kindergeld = €4,967
Gap compared with before: around €233 a month. Considerably less than with basic Elterngeld.

After the Elterngeld, Selin goes up to 80%. The pension calculation:

Fewer pension points over 5 years (50% then 80%): around 1.88 points
From that: around €80 less monthly gross pension, permanently
Household buffer: barely drops in the first years, recovers faster than Jana's

Selin's household has fewer swings. The income gap is smaller, because ElterngeldPlus and part-time are combined. In return, the part-time phase is longer, which overall costs more pension points than Jana's shorter, deeper gap.

Elterngeld: what you really get

Basic Elterngeld is 65 percent of the flat-rate net income of the last 12 months before the birth. The range runs from €300 to €1,800 a month. People who earn very little get up to 67 percent. People above the cap get a maximum of €1,800.

What matters is the flat-rate net: the Finanzamt doesn't simply take your bank statement, but calculates an amount by a fixed formula. Changing your tax class shortly before the birth can pay off, but it has to be applied for in good time.

Basic Elterngeld: 65% (up to 67%) of the flat-rate net, max. €1,800, up to 14 months.
ElterngeldPlus: 50% of the basic amount, for twice as long. Combinable with part-time up to 32 hours.
Partnership bonus: up to 4 extra ElterngeldPlus months if both partners work 24 to 32 hours at the same time.
Sibling bonus: a 10% top-up (at least €75) if another child under 3, or under 6, lives in the household.

What parental-leave months do to your pension

For a child's first three years of life, child-raising periods are credited to your pension account: one pension point per year. That cushions part of the gap created by lower contributions during parental leave.

These points are credited to the person who mainly raises the child. If both partners take parental leave, the months can be split. But the points for the same year go to only one person.

What the child-raising periods don't cover: the pension effect of a lasting part-time phase after returning to work. Those are two separate calculations. Miravel shows both.

Frequently asked questions

Do parental-leave months count toward the pension? Yes, indirectly. The state credits you with child-raising periods for the first three years after the birth: one pension point per year. In 2026 that's worth around €42.52 of monthly gross pension per year of child-raising.

How much Elterngeld will I get in my case? That depends on your net income in the last 12 months before the birth. Miravel calculates an estimate based on your details. The Elterngeld office gives the exact figure.

What's the difference between basic Elterngeld and ElterngeldPlus? Basic Elterngeld runs a maximum of 14 months, of which at least 2 months are for the other parent. ElterngeldPlus pays half, but for twice as long. If you want to work part-time, you're often better off with ElterngeldPlus.

How long can I take parental leave? Up to 36 months, split between both parents. But Elterngeld is only paid for a maximum of 14 months (basic) or 28 months (Plus). The rest of the parental leave is unpaid, while the employment relationship stays in place.

Why isn't a normal Elterngeld calculator enough? An Elterngeld calculator shows you the payout in the first year. It doesn't show how your household income develops over five years if you go part-time afterwards. And it doesn't show what that means for your pension. Miravel works out both together.

Miravel simulates parental leave and part-time together, for your household. Income, Elterngeld, pension entitlements, household buffer: all in one calculation, locally in your browser.