Summer is winding down, but the deals are just heating up. In this post: tips for spending less on books without sacrificing quality, Deutsche Bahn’s trial BahnCards at a bargain price, language course discounts and a solid €100 banking bonus for a current account – plus, a few freebies to add to your shopping list.
📚 Read More, Spend Less
Books have quietly become a luxury item: hardcovers easily cost €25+, and even paperbacks creep into the €12–15 range. If you’re a fast reader, that adds up quickly. My personal rule: I almost never buy new books unless I want to support the author or a particular indie bookstore.
Most of the time, I buy second-hand copies for €2–5. My go-to is Medimops, but I’ve also seen a lot of good offers on World of Books and Bookbot. Delivery takes a couple of days, and the books are in perfectly readable condition. You can check the book condition before buying — choose “very good condition” if you don't want it to look visibly used.
If you want to pay even less, libraries are where it’s at. Berlin’s VÖBB libraries, especially the Amerikagedenkbibliothek, have a very decent selection of books in English and other languages. Membership is just €10 a year, and it includes e-books and audiobooks through the Libby app — often with better availability than the physical copies. In Munich, you can sign up at the Münchner Stadtbibliothek for €20 per year, or €7 for three months if you just want to test it out. If you’re a reader, this is easily some of the best money you will spend all year.
Prices on Medimops are great — it quickly became my #1 book shopping destination.
🔥 This Week’s Top Deals
🚆 Up to 50% off on BahnCard 25 or 50
Deutsche Bahn is running a special promo on 3-month BahnCards until September 30: €9.90 instead of €19.90 for the 2nd-class BahnCard 25, and €39.90 instead of €76.90 for the 2nd-class BahnCard 50. With the BahnCard 25, you save 25 percent on Super Sparpreis, Sparpreis, and Flexpreis tickets. The BahnCard 50 doubles that discount on Flexpreis fares, while still giving you 25 percent off saver and super saver fares. The Probe BahnCard is valid for three months and automatically converts into a regular BahnCard after, but you can cancel at least four weeks before the end of trial period.
Pro tip because we love discount stacking around here: you can get also 2.5% cashback on your BahnCard purchase with Shoop cashback browser extension. If you’re not using Shoop yet, you can sign up here with a €10 welcome bonus or read more about how it works in my full Shoop guide. If you’re planning even a single long-distance trip this autumn, a BahnCard will likely pay for itself. Get yours here.
🎓 Back-to-School Deal on Lingoda Language Courses
September has that back-to-school feeling — except this time you can freely choose what you want to study. If for you it’s a language (German, French, Spanish or Italian), Lingoda is running a promo with up to 30% off the first month on their Flex plans.
The Flex plan lets you choose how many classes to take every four weeks and book them whenever it’s convenient for you. Lessons are live on Zoom, taught by certified teachers in small groups of 3–5 people, and each one runs for 60 minutes. One-on-one lessons are also available, but cost more — you can compare prices here.
With the code KEEPLEARNING, you get up to 30% off the first month on the 12-, 20-, or 40-class plans (the 5-class plan is excluded from the promotion). Here’s the discounted pricing with the code:
12 classes: €125.99 (€10.50 per class)
20 classes: €159.99 (€8 per class)
40 classes: €233.99 (€5.85 per class)
Lingoda also offers a 7-day free trial where you can take up to three group classes or one private class before your subscription kicks in. You can cancel anytime during the trial without being charged, so there’s no risk if you just want to test the waters. For live small-group lessons, Lingoda offers good value, especially with this deal. Sign up here.
💶 €100 Bonus with a Free DKB Account
DKB has long been one of the most popular checking accounts (Girokontos) in Germany, and right now new customers can grab a €100 bonus if they open an account by September 15. To qualify for the bonus, you need to receive three monthly incoming payments (salary, pension, or student aid) of at least €700 each, and give marketing communications consent.
The account is free with active use, meaning that you receive €700 or more per month (after the initial three months, it doesn't have to be a salary anymore – any transfer will do). If you’re under 28, the account is free without conditions. A Visa debit card is included, and you can add a Girocard for €0.99/month. Opening the account is quick: the online application takes around five minutes, and identification is done via video call. With the €100 bonus, it’s worth a look even if you’re not actively shopping for a new bank. Open your account here.
DKB is one of the best checking accounts in Germany — and a €100 bonus makes it even better.
💰 More Deals
AmEx Gold: Sign up for the American Express Gold card by November 10 and get 50,000 Membership Rewards points if you spend €4,500 within six months. That’s €500–1000 in travel value, depending on how you redeem them. The card costs €20/month, but if you want to collect air miles, it's well worth it. Sign up here.
Podimo: Looking for something new to listen to? The podcast and audiobook app Podimo is offering a 60-day free trial until September 15. Most audiobooks are in German, but their podcast library includes all the popular English-language podcasts; there are also many podcasts for German language learners. If you usually use Spotify for podcasts, this can save you a couple of months’ fees. Sign up here.
Qonto: Solopreneurs and freelancers can currently get a Solo Basic business bank account with invoicing capabilities completely free for a full 12 months, no strings attached. If you’re creating a GmbH or UG, you can get a company creation package with a consultant support for €99, with the same 12-month account included. The offer runs until September 26, and can be a big saving if you’re starting out. Sign up here.
Rewe: New customers get €15 off their first grocery delivery order of €60+ plus free delivery until September 11 with code LIEFERN15. Valid in Bochum, Dortmund, Duisburg, Essen, Köln, Düsseldorf, Hannover, Stuttgart, Nürnberg & Leipzig. In other areas, use code NEU6 for €6 off (this code has no expiration date announced). Order here.
Podimo’s sleek app, huge podcast library and a generous free trial make it a worthy contender in the podcast app space.
🎁 Freebies
Coca-Cola: New Coke flavors are out, and you can test them for free. Buy one of the promotional varieties of regular or zero-sugar Coke (Vanilla, Lemon or Cherry), and upload your receipt here by October 31. You’ll get 100% cashback on single bottles or cans, or €2 back on a multipack. Up to two redemptions per person are possible – either two items on one receipt or two separate receipts.
Arla Skyr: For those forever chasing extra protein, myself included – buy one of the participating Arla Skyr flavors (Natural, Strawberry, Peach-Passion Fruit, Raspberry-Cranberry, or Vanilla), keep the receipt, and upload it here until October 26 to get up to €1.99 refunded.
Griesson Soft Cake: Buy a 300 g pack with the “Gratis Testen” label, photograph it with your receipt, and get your money back. Flavors include orange, milk chocolate, strawberry, cherry and passion fruit. Upload your receipt here until November 30.
Smol laundry capsules: Try 9 laundry detergent capsules for free — you only pay €1 shipping. You have to create a recurring delivery to get this offer, but you can cancel right after your free trial pack is shipped (which is what I did). Get it here.
Money-back promos are one of the most underrated ways to save money on shopping in Germany. Some offers from previous issues — like August 22, August 14, July 31, July 22, July 8 and June 3) — are still running too, so make sure to check them out before they expire. For more free grocery products, Rewe product tests are worth a look as well.
You can test two of the new Coke flavors for free with their cashback promo.
That wraps up this week’s round-up of ways to save money in Germany. If you’d like this kind of content delivered straight to your inbox, you can subscribe to my newsletter here. It’s free, and every week I send practical deals and tips that make life here a little easier and cheaper.
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