# Guides: online slots, sports betting and prediction markets in Germany

- URL: https://safebet.ai/de/guides/
- Markdown version: https://safebet.ai/de/guides/index.html.md
- Last updated: 2026-10-22 (re-checked when an operator changes its terms or a regulator or court acts)
- Author: SafeBet.ai Research Team (SafeBet.ai)
- Editorial policy and advertiser disclosure: https://safebet.ai/editorial-policy/

## Online slots

- [Are online casinos legal in Germany? Slots, table games and the rules](https://safebet.ai/de/online-casinos/are-online-casinos-legal/): Partly. Under the Glücksspielstaatsvertrag 2021, online slots ("virtual slot machines") are legal across Germany at operators licensed by the GGL, 36 of them as of October 2, 2026, for players 18 and over. Online table and live games such as roulette and blackjack are left to the states, and only Schleswig-Holstein and Bavaria license them, for players in those states. Every licensed site applies the same limits: €1 per spin as a rule, spins of at least 5 seconds, no autoplay and a €1,000 monthly deposit limit across all sites.
- [How we rank online slot sites in Germany](https://safebet.ai/de/online-casinos/how-we-rank/): We only rank slot sites on the GGL whitelist. Each is scored from 0 to 10 on six weighted criteria, licensing and safety, games, payments and payouts, app and experience, responsible gambling, and support, and the ranking follows the overall scores. We don't list or score bonuses, which need the GGL's approval to be advertised, and our links to slot sites only work from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., as German law requires.

## Sports betting

- [Is sports betting legal in Germany? Licences, the 5.3% tax and the rules](https://safebet.ai/de/sports-betting/is-sports-betting-legal/): Yes. Sports betting is legal across Germany with operators licensed by the Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL): 27 held a licence on October 2, 2026, for adults 18 and over. Every bet is taxed at 5.3% of the stake, paid by the operator, which may pass it on to you or absorb it. In-play betting is limited to the final result and the next goal, set or similar, and bets on cards, penalties as sanctions or youth and amateur games aren't allowed.
- [How we rank sports betting sites in Germany](https://safebet.ai/de/sports-betting/how-we-rank/): We only rank sportsbooks licensed by the GGL, and only those whose way of charging the 5.3% betting tax we could verify. Each is scored from 0 to 10 on six weighted criteria, licensing and safety, markets and features, odds, tax and limits, payments and payouts, app and experience, and support and responsible gambling, and the ranking follows the overall scores. We don't collect odds automatically or score bonuses.

## Taxes, safety & more

- [Are prediction markets legal in Germany? Polymarket, Kalshi and the law](https://safebet.ai/de/guides/are-prediction-markets-legal-in-germany/): No. Bets on elections, politics, the economy or entertainment, which is what prediction markets offer, can't be licensed in Germany: only bets on sports and horse races can. The gambling regulator, the GGL, says taking part from Germany isn't allowed and can be a criminal offence, and it named Polymarket as illegal in September 2025. As of October 2, 2026, no prediction market or betting exchange was on its whitelist of licensed operators.
- [Is Polymarket legal in Germany?](https://safebet.ai/de/guides/is-polymarket-legal-in-germany/): No. The GGL, Germany's gambling regulator, named Polymarket in September 2025 as an example of bets that can't be licensed in Germany and are therefore illegal. Polymarket's own terms of use, effective August 11, 2026, bar anyone in Germany from trading and forbid getting around that with a VPN, and the GGL says taking part from Germany can be a criminal offence.
- [Are gambling winnings taxed in Germany?](https://safebet.ai/de/guides/gambling-taxes-germany/): No, not for private players: winnings from games of chance such as slots, lotteries and sports bets aren't one of the types of income German income tax applies to, as the Federal Fiscal Court has long held. Instead, the state taxes the stakes: 5.3% on sports bets, virtual slot machines and online poker, owed by the operator, which may pass the betting tax on to you. Professional poker players can owe tax on their winnings as business income.
- [Where to get help for gambling problems in Germany](https://safebet.ai/de/guides/gambling-help-germany/): Call the BIÖG gambling helpline on 0800 1 37 27 00: it's free and anonymous, Monday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday to Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. To stop gambling everywhere at once, register with OASIS, Germany's national self-exclusion system, for at least three months; it blocks you from every licensed betting, slot and casino offer. In a crisis, the TelefonSeelsorge answers day and night on 0800 111 0 111, 0800 111 0 222 or 116 123.