Suicide Hotlines and Crisis Lines in Germany

A helpline is a place to talk to someone when you are struggling, before or instead of a crisis. The lines on this page are answered by trained volunteers, counsellors or medical staff, depending on the service. If you are not in Germany, the worldwide list is organised by country.

What you share is kept private in almost all cases; if a counsellor believes a life is in immediate danger, they may arrange urgent help. What each service costs is set out beside it below. Most of the lines here are free to call. The Guttempler addiction line is the only one that publishes a price, 9 cents a minute, and that is said next to the number rather than in a footnote. Telefon Doweria and MuTeS publish no cost at all, and both are ordinary Berlin landline numbers, so a call to either is charged at your normal rate.

Germany's national emotional-support line answers only in German. If you cannot hold a conversation in German, read the two entries after it first. They are the round-the-clock foreign-language crisis lines Germany runs, and the worldwide list above is organised by country if neither of them fits.

TherapyRoute is a directory. We do not answer calls or messages ourselves, so please use the numbers below rather than contacting us if you need someone now.

CRISIS LINES, SUICIDE HOTLINES, AND HELPLINES IN GERMANY

Each number below was checked in September 2026 at the operating organisation's own website, at a German federal or Land government page, or at the Bundesnetzagentur, the telecoms regulator that allocates the numbers.

Notice an error or a missing service? Please tell us so we can correct it.

112, 110 and 116 117, Germany's emergency numbers

TelefonSeelsorge, the national line, in German only

Telefon Doweria, in Russian

MuTeS, in Turkish, Arabic and Urdu

Nummer gegen Kummer, 116 111, for children and young people

Elterntelefon, 0800 111 0 550, for parents

krisenchat, by chat, for under-25s

Hilfetelefon Gewalt gegen Frauen, 116 016

Hilfe-Telefon Sexueller Missbrauch, 0800 22 55 530

Weisser Ring Opfer-Telefon, 116 006

Silbernetz, 0800 4 70 80 90, for older people

Guttempler Nottelefon Sucht, 0180 365 24 07

Info-Telefon Depression, an information line

Berliner Krisendienst, the nine district numbers

Krisendienste Bayern, 0800 655 3000

While you are waiting to be answered

If you are worried about someone else

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112, 110 and 116 117, Germany's emergency numbers

Germany runs two emergency numbers, and one further number for an urgent medical problem that is not an emergency. None of the three appeared anywhere on the previous version of this page.

112, the fire brigade and the ambulance service. The Baden-Württemberg interior ministry puts it plainly on its own emergency-numbers page: "Bei Bränden, Unglücksfällen oder bei lebensbedrohlichen Unfällen und bei medizinischen Notfällen wenden Sie sich an die Feuerwehr bzw. den Rettungsdienst. Beide erreichen Sie unter derselben Nummer." For fires, accidents, life-threatening accidents and medical emergencies you reach the fire brigade or the ambulance service on the same number. It works without a dialling code and routes you to the control centre responsible for your area.

Tel: 112

Hours: the federal health ministry's national health portal states that the emergency control centre is reachable "rund um die Uhr", around the clock.

Cost: free. Both government pages say so in those words, and the Baden-Württemberg page adds that it is free whether you call from home or from a mobile.

If you cannot speak, or cannot hear: 112 accepts a fax, and nora, which the same page calls the Bundesländer's official emergency app, lets you reach the control centre in writing. The app is free.

110, the police. The Bundesnetzagentur, the regulator that allocates Germany's numbers, describes 110 as "die bundesweit einheitliche kurzstellige Rufnummer der Polizei", the nationwide uniform short number of the police. The Baden-Württemberg ministry adds that it works the same from a landline and from a mobile.

Tel: 110

Hours: the federal family ministry's portal states that the police emergency number 110 is reachable around the clock.

Cost: not published for 110 on any page we checked, so we do not state one.

116 117, der ärztliche Bereitschaftsdienst, the out-of-hours medical service. This is the number for an urgent medical problem outside surgery hours that is not life-threatening but cannot wait until the next day. Its own site is explicit about what it is not: "keine lebensbedrohlichen Fälle/Notfälle", no life-threatening cases or emergencies, for which it names 112. Medically trained staff assess how urgent the problem is, name an out-of-hours practice, can arrange a home visit, and pass the call straight to the emergency control centre if it turns out to be an emergency. The same service runs the appointment line that books psychotherapy places for people with statutory health insurance. It is run by the Kassenärztliche Bundesvereinigung, the national association of statutory health insurance physicians.

Tel: 116 117

Tel: 0049 116 117, the form published for callers from outside Germany

Fax: 0800 – 58 95 210

Hours: "24 Stunden, 7 Tage die Woche", 24 hours, 7 days a week, in the service's own words.

Cost: the service's own site says "kostenlos mit deutschem Telefonvertrag", free with a German phone contract. The Baden-Württemberg interior ministry states it more broadly, that the number applies throughout Germany and is free whether you call from home or from a mobile. The two pages are not identical and we have not resolved them, so both readings are given.

TelefonSeelsorge, the national line, in German only

TelefonSeelsorge is Germany's national emotional-support and crisis line, run jointly by the Protestant and Catholic churches. Suicide prevention is core work, in the organisation's own words: "Suizidprävention ist ein Kernthema unserer Arbeit." Callers stay anonymous, need give no name, and their number is not displayed. Everyone who answers is bound by Schweigepflicht, professional confidentiality.

The organisation is also clear about what it does not do: "Unsere Beraterinnen und Seelsorger geben keine Ratschläge. Sie sagen Ihnen nicht, was Sie tun sollen." Its counsellors do not give advice and will not tell you what to do. They listen.

It answers only in German. On its own international page: "Die TelefonSeelsorge® in Deutschland bietet Gespräche nur in deutscher Sprache an." The federal health ministry's portal says the same: "Die Beratung findet ausschließlich auf Deutsch statt." If you cannot hold a conversation in German, the two entries below this one are the lines that answer in other languages.

Tel: 0800 111 0 111

Tel: 0800 111 0 222

Tel: 116 123

Chat: online.telefonseelsorge.de. Chat needs a free registration, an email address and a username, and no real name or address. It is normally by appointment, though unbooked slots can be taken on the spot, and the organisation limits use to one chat a day.

E-Mail: telefonseelsorge.de/mail

Hours: "Sie können uns Tag und Nacht anrufen", you can call us day and night. The federal health portal says it is reachable seven days a week at any hour.

Cost: "Das Telefonat ist gebührenfrei", the call is free of charge.

Languages: German only.

Telefon Doweria, in Russian

Telefon Doweria Berlin, Телефон Доверия, is Berlin's Russian-language crisis and pastoral telephone line. It was founded in 1999 by Russian-speaking psychology students and runs under the Diakonisches Werk Berlin-Brandenburg-schlesische Oberlausitz. About 90 volunteers answer it, each after a year of training, alongside a small paid team. In its own words: "Das Telefon Doweria hört sich verständnisvoll Ihr Problem an und unterstützt Sie bei der Suche nach einem individuellen Ausweg. Sie bleiben dabei völlig anonym und Ihr Problem bleibt vertraulich." It listens to your problem with understanding and helps you look for your own way out; you stay completely anonymous, and what you say stays confidential.

The line is based in Berlin. The federal health ministry's national portal names it as one of two foreign-language options for the whole country, and anyone who can dial a Berlin number can reach it.

Tel: 030 440 308 454

Hours: the phone is staffed day and night, in the organisation's own words. The federal health portal states that it offers counselling in Russian 24 hours a day.

Cost: not published. It is an ordinary Berlin landline number, so a call is charged at your normal rate.

Languages: Russian.

MuTeS, in Turkish, Arabic and Urdu

MuTeS, the Muslimisches SeelsorgeTelefon, is a pastoral and crisis line answered by trained Muslim volunteers. Its own page describes it as "Ein Notruf für die Seele", an emergency call for the soul, and says: "Die Ehrenamtlichen des Muslimischen SeelsorgeTelefons hören sich verständnisvoll Dein Problem an und unterstützen Dich bei der Suche nach einem individuellen Ausweg. Seien es Eheprobleme, Trauer, Gewalterfahrungen, Sucht oder andere Themen." It names marriage difficulties, grief, experiences of violence and addiction among the reasons people call, and adds that you stay completely anonymous and the conversation stays confidential.

It is based in Berlin and publishes no national claim of its own. The federal health ministry's portal lists it as one of Germany's foreign-language Seelsorge lines.

Tel: 030 443 509 821

Hours: "Wir sind rund um die Uhr für Dich erreichbar", we are reachable for you around the clock. The federal health portal states that it offers counselling in Turkish, Arabic and Urdu around the clock.

Cost: not published. It is an ordinary Berlin landline number.

Languages: Turkish, Arabic and Urdu, per the federal health portal. The organisation's own page does not itemise them.

Nummer gegen Kummer, 116 111, for children and young people

The Kinder- und Jugendtelefon is Germany's national line for children, young people and young adults. The federal family ministry calls Nummer gegen Kummer the largest telephone counselling service for children, young people and parents in the country. Its own page: "Am Kinder- und Jugendtelefon kannst du dich zu allen Sorgen beraten lassen." Any worry counts. The ones it names are trouble with friends, family or school, psychological strain, fears, heartbreak, bullying, or simply not feeling well, and it also takes calls from someone worried about a friend.

The people who answer are trained volunteers, adults and young people, and the organisation is explicit that no machine is involved: "Alle Beratungen erfolgen durch echte Menschen und nicht durch Künstliche Intelligenz oder Chat-Bots." On Saturdays the line is answered by young counsellors aged between 16 and 27. The service cannot ring you back and cannot meet you in person.

Tel: 116 111

Chat: nummergegenkummer.de/onlineberatung

Hours: Monday to Saturday, 14:00 to 20:00 on the telephone, in the organisation's own words, and Monday to Thursday, 14:00 to 20:00 in the chat. This line does not answer overnight. Outside those hours, TelefonSeelsorge above takes calls at any age and at any hour, in German.

Cost: "Anonym & kostenlos", anonymous and free. The organisation adds that the call does not show up on your parents' phone bill.

Languages: not published on the pages we checked.

Elterntelefon, 0800 111 0 550, for parents

The Elterntelefon is the line for parents and carers, run by the same organisation. In its own words: "Wenn Sie sich Sorgen um Ihr Kind machen, sich überfordert oder manchmal hilflos fühlen, dann sind wir für Sie da." If you are worried about your child, or feel overwhelmed, or sometimes helpless, they are there for you. It covers difficulties with parenting, school, family crises, addiction and the pressure of being online, and describes its stance as looking for a way through together with you, anonymously and as equals.

Tel: 0800 111 0 550

Hours: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 09:00 to 17:00, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 09:00 to 19:00, in the organisation's own words.

Cost: "Anonym & kostenlos", anonymous and free.

Languages: not published.

krisenchat, by chat, for under-25s

krisenchat is a written crisis-counselling service with no telephone number. Its own page: "Unsere Expert:innen für Krisenberatung sind per Chat für dich da. Einfach, sicher und kostenlos für alle unter 25 Jahren." Its crisis counsellors are there for you by chat, simply, securely, and free for everyone under 25. A new chat is given an automatic estimate of the wait before a counsellor replies. The same start button also opens a conversation on WhatsApp.

Chat: chat.krisenchat.de

Hours: not published on the page we checked. We do not say it answers at any hour, because the service does not say so where we read.

Cost: free for everyone under 25, in the service's own words.

Languages: German, with a separate Ukrainian-language offer signposted on the same page.

Hilfetelefon Gewalt gegen Frauen, 116 016

The Hilfetelefon "Gewalt gegen Frauen" is Germany's national counselling service for women who have experienced or are experiencing violence, and for the people around them. It is run by the Bundesamt für Familie und zivilgesellschaftliche Aufgaben and has been open since March 2013. In its own words: "Unter der Nummer 116 016 und via Online-Beratung unterstützen wir Betroffene aller Nationalitäten, mit und ohne Behinderung." It also counsels relatives, friends and professionals, anonymously and free of charge. The counsellors are qualified specialists who give first psychosocial counselling and crisis intervention, and refer on to a local service or a women's refuge.

The number only works inside Germany. The organisation says so itself: "Bitte beachten Sie: Die Rufnummer des Hilfetelefons 116 016 ist nur innerhalb Deutschlands erreichbar." The previous version of this page did not carry that.

Tel: 116 016

Tel: 08000 116 016, the longer form the federal family ministry prints for the same service

Chat and e-mail: onlineberatung.hilfetelefon.de

Hours: "365 Tage im Jahr, rund um die Uhr", 365 days a year, around the clock. Counselling in German Sign Language is available on the same terms.

Cost: "kostenfrei", free, and the organisation adds that the number does not appear on your phone bill.

Languages: telephone counselling is possible in 18 foreign languages with interpreters, plus German Sign Language. Chat and e-mail counselling are in German only: "Die Beratung erfolgt hier nur auf Deutsch."

Hilfe-Telefon Sexueller Missbrauch, 0800 22 55 530

This is the national line for anyone with a question about sexual abuse: people who are themselves affected, people worried about a child, and people with a suspicion or, in the service's own framing, an uneasy feeling they cannot place. It is run by N.I.N.A. e.V. and funded by the Unabhängige Bundesbeauftragte gegen sexuellen Missbrauch von Kindern und Jugendlichen, the independent federal commissioner on child sexual abuse. The federal family ministry describes it as the nationwide, free and anonymous point of contact. The counsellors are psychologically and pedagogically trained with years of experience, and outside telephone hours the service takes written messages.

Tel: 0800 22 55 530

Chat and mail: schreib-ollie.de

Hours: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 09:00 to 14:00, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 15:00 to 20:00. The service is closed on national public holidays and on 24 and 31 December.

Cost: "anonym, kostenfrei", anonymous and free.

Languages: "mehrsprachig und in Gebärdensprache", multilingual and in sign language.

Weisser Ring Opfer-Telefon, 116 006

The Opfer-Telefon is the national line for people who have been the victim of a crime, and for anyone calling on their behalf. WEISSER RING states its starting point simply: "Wer eine Straftat erlebt hat, hat ein Recht darauf, gehört und ernst genommen zu werden." Anyone who has been through a crime has a right to be heard and taken seriously. Trained volunteer counsellors act as guides through the support that exists, working with the organisation's own local branches and referring on where something else is needed.

Tel: 116 006

Hours: "7 Tage die Woche von 7 bis 22 Uhr", seven days a week from 07:00 to 22:00. It does not answer overnight.

Cost: "Bundesweit. Kostenfrei. Anonym.", nationwide, free and anonymous.

Languages: not published on the page we checked.

Silbernetz, 0800 4 70 80 90, for older people

Silbernetz runs the Silbertelefon under the heading "Einfach mal reden", just talk for a while. It is for older people who are lonely or who simply want a conversation, and its own page is explicit that no crisis is needed: "Finden Sie ein offenes Ohr und Ermutigung auch ohne akute Krise." Volunteers also pass on information about local services for older people anywhere in Germany, and the same number arranges a Silbernetz-Freundschaft, a weekly call from the same volunteer. The federal family ministry describes the service as being for people aged 60 and over; Silbernetz's own page frames it as the network against loneliness in later life, without printing an age limit.

Tel: 0800 4 70 80 90

Tel: 030 544 533 00, the alternative the organisation itself offers, noting that it lowers the telephone costs the charity carries

Tel: 030 544 533 0 533, the Berlin information line

Hours: "Täglich von 8 bis 22 Uhr", daily from 08:00 to 22:00. It does not answer overnight.

Cost: "Anonym, vertraulich und kostenfrei", anonymous, confidential and free.

Languages: German. The organisation notes that telephone friendships are also offered in Japanese.

Guttempler Nottelefon Sucht, 0180 365 24 07

The Nottelefon Sucht is immediate telephone help on addiction, for people affected and for the people close to them. The organisation names alcohol, medicines and drugs, and describes the line as confidential and without obligation, answered by experienced volunteer counsellors. Its Schleswig-Holstein branch adds that the counsellors have been through addiction themselves: "Sie verstehen Dich und wissen wie es Dir geht, denn sie waren selbst mal in Deiner Situation."

Tel: 0180 365 24 07

Hours: "täglich erreichbar", reachable daily, which is all the organisation's own national page for this number publishes. Its Schleswig-Holstein branch page separately claims help around the clock, 365 days a year, for that Land alone. Both are printed here and neither is generalised.

Cost: this is the only line on this page that publishes a price. "Festnetz- und Mobilfunkpreis 9ct/min", 9 cents a minute from a landline and from a mobile, in the organisation's own words. Telefon Doweria and MuTeS publish no cost, and both are ordinary Berlin landline numbers, so a call to either is charged at your normal rate.

Languages: not published.

Info-Telefon Depression, an information line

The Info-Telefon Depression is run by the Stiftung Deutsche Depressionshilfe. It is a national information line about depression, its treatment and where to find care locally, and the foundation is explicit that it is neither a substitute for treatment nor a crisis service. In its own words: "Eine individuelle Beratung oder Behandlung durch einen Arzt oder Psychotherapeuten ersetzt ein Gespräch aber nicht. In akuten Krisen wenden Sie sich bitte an Ihren Arzt, die nächste psychiatrische Klinik oder den Notruf unter der Telefonnummer 112." In an acute crisis it asks you to contact your doctor, the nearest psychiatric hospital, or 112. Callers confirm they are at least 16 years old.

Tel: 0800 3344533

Hours: Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 13:00 to 17:00, Wednesdays and Fridays from 08:30 to 12:30, in the foundation's own words. It does not answer overnight or at weekends.

Cost: free, and the foundation names its funder: the line is free thanks to support from the Deutsche Bahn Stiftung.

Languages: not published.

Berliner Krisendienst, the nine district numbers

The Berliner Krisendienst is Berlin's own crisis service, and it is for Berlin only. Its own page: "Der Berliner Krisendienst hilft schnell und qualifiziert bei psychosozialen Krisen bis hin zu akuten psychiatrischen Notsituationen. Kostenlos. 24 Stunden am Tag. Auf Wunsch anonym." It helps quickly and competently with psychosocial crises through to acute psychiatric emergencies, free, 24 hours a day, and anonymously if you want that. Each of its nine locations offers counselling by telephone and in person, further appointments, and in urgent cases a home visit with a doctor on call. Six organisations run it jointly: Albatros gGmbH, Caritas Berlin, KBS e.V., KUB e.V., neuhland and Platane 19.

Call the number for your district. The service prints the district as an extension after a dash.

Tel: 030 390 63 – 10 for Mitte and Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg

Tel: 030 390 63 – 20 for Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf

Tel: 030 390 63 – 30 for Spandau

Tel: 030 390 63 – 40 for Pankow

Tel: 030 390 63 – 50 for Reinickendorf

Tel: 030 390 63 – 60 for Steglitz-Zehlendorf and Tempelhof-Schöneberg

Tel: 030 390 63 – 70 for Lichtenberg and Marzahn-Hellersdorf

Tel: 030 390 63 – 80 for Treptow-Köpenick

Tel: 030 390 63 – 90 for Neukölln

Video counselling: by appointment.

Hours: "Rund um die Uhr erreichbar", reachable around the clock, and the homepage says 24 hours a day. Separately, a supra-regional on-call service covers the night, from 00:00 to 08:00, and weekends and public holidays from 08:00 to 16:00, on the Mitte number or on your own district's number. That service is what arranges a home visit and the doctor on call.

Cost: "Kostenlos", free.

Languages: not published on the pages we checked.

Krisendienste Bayern, 0800 655 3000

The Krisendienste Bayern are Bavaria's psychosocial crisis service, run by the seven Bavarian Bezirke, and they are for Bavaria only. Its own page: "Die Krisendienste Bayern sind ein psychosoziales Beratungs- und Hilfeangebot für alle Menschen in Bayern." It is for people in psychological crisis, for the people around them and for professionals. Beyond the call it can send a mobile team to where the crisis is, arrange an outpatient crisis appointment, or help secure admission to a psychiatric crisis or acute ward.

You have to be in Bavaria to reach it. The service says so itself: "Der Anruf muss aus dem Mobilfunknetz oder dem Festnetz innerhalb Bayerns erfolgen." The call has to be made from a mobile network or a landline inside Bavaria. If you are elsewhere in Germany, use one of the national lines above.

Tel: 0800 655 3000

Hours: "Wir sind täglich rund um die Uhr für Sie da", we are there for you daily around the clock.

Cost: free, in the service's own words.

Languages: by telephone in over 120 languages through interpreters, plus Deutsche Gebärdensprache and written interpreting.

The same site carried a fault notice dated 4 March 2026 for the Niederbayern district, saying calls can be taken but there may be disruption and longer waits, and directing acute emergencies to 110 and 112. We could not establish whether that notice is still current.

While you are waiting to be answered

A line that is open can still be busy. TelefonSeelsorge says so itself and asks you not to give up: at some times of day you may have to dial more than once before you get through.

If you are waiting, try to stay with someone you trust, or ask someone to sit with you until the call connects.

If you have anything near you that you could use to harm yourself, put it somewhere harder to reach, or ask someone else to hold it for you. Distance and time both help.

If waiting is not possible, dial 112, or go to the emergency department of your nearest hospital. You do not need an appointment and you do not need to explain yourself well.

If you are worried about someone else

Ask them directly. Asking someone whether they are thinking of suicide does not put the idea there, and it often comes as a relief to be asked plainly.

Listen more than you advise. You do not need the right words, and you are not expected to fix anything.

If they are willing, offer to sit with them while they call one of the numbers above, or to make the call together. If they are in immediate danger, treat it as you would any medical emergency.

Supporting someone through this is heavy, and it is reasonable to want support of your own. TelefonSeelsorge answers at any hour and takes calls from people worried about someone else, not only from the person in crisis. So does the Kinder- und Jugendtelefon, if the person you are worried about is a child or a young person.

For services in other countries, see the list of helplines and suicide hotlines worldwide.

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