Care homes in Bremen: Germany’s highest co-payment
No state costs as much in the first year of a care home as Bremen. Is it worth looking across the border, and what is left after four years?
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Monthly co-payment, Bremen
€3,761
in month 1, supplement 15 %
| Care (EEE) after supplement | €1,952 |
|---|---|
| Board and lodging | €1,179 |
| Investment costs | €630 |
| Fund pays the home | €1,663 |
| Monthly gap after pension | €2,161 |
| Savings last until the protected amount | 15 months |
| Co-payments over the next 36 months | €121,606 |
| Year 1 (15 %) | €3,761 |
|---|---|
| Year 2 (30 %) | €3,416 |
| Year 3 (50 %) | €2,957 |
| Year 4 (75 %) | €2,383 |
Step-by-step calculation
- vdek average for Bremen on 1 July 2026: EEE €2,296 (incl. training levy €179), board and lodging €1,179, investment costs €630.
- Month 1 in the home: supplement 15 % of the EEE = €344.40 (section 43c).
- Co-payment = €1,951.60 + €1,179 + €630 = €3,760.60.
Estimate using the 2026 amounts in Book XI of the Social Code. Only the decision letter from your Pflegekasse is binding. How we calculate
At an average of €3,761 a month, Bremen had the highest first-year care home co-payment of all German states on 1 July 2026, according to the vdek, the association of substitute health funds. That is €397 above the national average. Almost every component is expensive: the care co-payment (EEE) is €2,296, board and lodging €1,179 and investment costs €630, second only to North Rhine-Westphalia. As the care fund’s supplement rises, the burden falls to €3,416 in year two, €2,957 in year three and €2,383 from year four. Over the first four years a resident pays about €150,202 in total. In neighbouring Lower Saxony the first-year co-payment is €3,008, €753 lower. Since January 2026 the Bremen figure has risen by €124.
Bremen against its surroundings
| Bremen | Lower Saxony | Germany | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Care co-payment (EEE) | €2,296 | €1,862 | €2,088 |
| Board and lodging | €1,179 | €857 | €1,068 |
| Investment costs | €630 | €568 | €521 |
| Year 1 | €3,761 | €3,008 | €3,364 |
| From year 4 | €2,383 | €1,891 | €2,111 |
The gap to the cheapest state, Saxony-Anhalt, is €870 a month in year one; over four years that adds up to the price of a small car. Part of it disappears with the supplement, because Bremen’s high care part is three-quarters covered from year four, but investment costs of €630 stay the same every month.
Year by year
Residents in Bremen pay €45,127 in the first year, €40,994 in the second, €35,484 in the third and €28,596 in the fourth. If your relative has already lived in the home for a while, enter the months in the calculator; part months count in full. See the care home supplement. There is no supplement at care grade 1; the home then charges its own price for that grade.