Germany Low Emission Zones (Umweltzonen) 2026 — Cities, Rules & the €100 Fine
Every German Umweltzone in one place: which cities require a green Umweltplakette, the minimum Euro standard, where to buy the €5 sticker, and the €100 fine for driving without it.
Most large German cities run an Umweltzone (environmental zone) that you can only enter with a green Umweltplakette sticker — and for diesels that means at least Euro 4. The sticker is a one-off €5–15, tied to your plate for the life of the car; drive without it and the fine is a flat €100. Foreign-registered cars are not exempt.
Use the Emission Zone Checker to test your exact vehicle, or browse every in-force German zone below — each links to that city’s full rules.
| City / Zone | Type | Min petrol | Min diesel | Fine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aachen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Aschaffenburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Augsburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Balingen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Bayreuth | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Berlin | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Bielefeld | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Bochum | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Bonn | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Bottrop | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Bottrop | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Braunschweig | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Bremen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Chemnitz | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Cologne | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Darmstadt | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Dessau-Roßlau | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Dinslaken | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Dortmund | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Dresden | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Duisburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Dusseldorf | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Erfurt | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Essen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Flensburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Frankenthal | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Frankfurt | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Freiburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Friedrichshafen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Gelsenkirchen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Gera | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Gießen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Gütersloh | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Hagen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Halle | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Hamburg | Diesel restrictions (2 streets) | — | — | EUR 100 (only on the two restricted streets) |
| Hamm | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Hanover | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Heidelberg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Heidenheim | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Heilbronn | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Herford | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Herrenberg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Hildesheim | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Ilsfeld | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Ingolstadt | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Jena | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Karlsruhe | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Kassel | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Kempten | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Kiel | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Koblenz | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Konstanz | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Krefeld | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Landshut | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Leer | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Leipzig | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Leonberg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Leverkusen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Limburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Lübeck | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Ludwigsburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Magdeburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Mainz | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Mannheim | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Marburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Markgroeningen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Memmingen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Minden | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Moers | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Mönchengladbach | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Muelheim | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Muhlacker | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Munich | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 5 | EUR 100 |
| Munster | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Neu-Ulm | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Neuss | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Nuremberg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Oberhausen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Oberhausen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Offenbach | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Oldenburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Osnabrück | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Osnabrueck | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Overlingen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Paderborn | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Passau | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Pfinztal | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Pforzheim | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Pforzheim | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Pleidelsheim | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Ravensburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Regensburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Remscheid | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Reutlingen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Rostock | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Ruesselsheim | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Saarbrücken | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Schramberg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Schwabisch Gmund | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Schweinfurt | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Siegen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Siegen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Solingen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Stralsund | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Stuttgart | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 5 | EUR 100 |
| Suhl | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Trier | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Tuebingen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Ulm | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Urbach | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Weimar | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Wendlingen | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Wiesbaden | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Wolfsburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Wuppertal | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Wurzburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Würzburg | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
| Zwickau | Umweltzone | Euro 1 | Euro 4 | EUR 100 |
119 zones currently in force · verified against official sources. Click any city for its full rules and the exact sticker or permit.
How the German Umweltzone works
Germany uses a single national sticker scheme. The green Umweltplakette (Schadstoffgruppe 4) is the only colour still valid — yellow and red stickers have not been accepted in any German city for years. Petrol cars generally qualify from Euro 1; diesels need Euro 4 or newer to get the green sticker. A few cities (notably Stuttgart and Hamburg) layer extra diesel restrictions on specific streets on top of the general zone.
You can buy the sticker from TÜV, DEKRA, many garages, city registration offices, or online before you travel. Order it in advance if you are driving in from abroad — postal delivery can take about a week.
Before you drive
- Check your car’s Euro class on its registration document (V5C, Carte Grise, or equivalent).
- Buy the green Umweltplakette if your diesel is Euro 4+ or your petrol car is Euro 1+.
- Remember the zone covers most of the city centre, not just a few streets — Berlin’s Umweltzone spans most of the inner city.
For the rules in neighbouring countries, see our emission zones in France and the full State of Europe’s Emission Zones 2026 report.
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Frequently Asked Questions
In any city with an Umweltzone, yes — you need a green Umweltplakette displayed on the windscreen. It costs €5–15 as a one-off, is tied to your number plate for the life of the car, and foreign vehicles need it too. Most zones require at least a Euro 4 diesel.
A flat €100 across Germany (Nuremberg is a rare exception at a higher rate). There are no longer any licence points, but €100 is a lot to pay for a sticker that costs €5. Enforcement is by camera and police check, and hire cars pass the fine back with an admin fee.
Around 60 cities including Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Stuttgart, Frankfurt and Hamburg. The full, continuously-verified list — with each city's minimum Euro standard and fine — is in the table below.