After price increase in January: Deutschlandticket loses one million users

The results of market research conducted by the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV) and Deutsche Bahn, which are available to F.A.Z., paint a clear picture: the price increase of the Deutschlandticket at the beginning of the year has significantly reduced the number of subscribers.

Turnaround for the Deutschlandticket?

According to the market researchers' data, users of the Deutschlandticket had been steadily increasing since its introduction in May 2023. In December 2024, the number was 14.5 million. With the price increase to 58 euros in January 2025, the numbers fell to 13.4 million season ticket holders.

According to the report, a seasonal slump in numbers is not unusual, for example when people increasingly switch from public transport to bicycles in spring or summer. However, the quarterly figures could indicate a trend reversal. After 14.2 million users in the fourth quarter of 2024, the number of subscribers fell to 13.5 million in the first quarter of 2025, of which the market researchers attribute more than half – around 430,000 – to the price increase.

Interestingly, the market researchers forecast an even sharper decline in subscription figures: Instead of the expected nine percent, the number of subscribers “only” fell by six percent.

Effects on job tickets and young people

The market researchers also show that the increased prices are having a particularly noticeable effect on job tickets: The number fell by around 16 percent to 2.2 million. The industry had hoped for a more significant boost from companies that cover part of the costs for their employees. The number of subscriptions among young people aged between 14 and 29 also fell massively by more than 36%.

To ensure that this does not happen again, the industry is calling for price hikes to be avoided in future and for “moderate, comprehensible price increases” to be implemented instead. In addition, funding from the federal and state governments must be secured in the long term. As the budget negotiations have not yet been concluded, this is only the case until the end of 2025.

“If we want to make the Deutschlandticket a success in terms of transport policy, it must now be permanently anchored – in terms of funding, design and also with a nationwide application,” VDV Managing Director for Public Transport, Alexander Möller, told F.A.Z.

The federal and state governments are compensating for the loss of revenue caused by the Deutschlandticket with three billion euros a year, as the Deutschlandticket is still cheaper than many regional season tickets at 58 euros. However, according to the VDV, this sum is not enough. According to estimates, 400 million euros are still missing. “The federal government and the federal states must decide to dynamize the compensation payments of three billion euros, considering the cost increases in the industry,” said Möller.

In the coalition agreement, the CDU/CSU and SPD had agreed to continue the Deutschlandticket “beyond 2025” and to maintain the price of 58 euros until 2026. Prices may not rise until 2029 – then “the proportion of user funding will be increased gradually and in a socially responsible manner”, according to the coalition agreement.

(afl)