Real interest rate

Sparenab 13 J.

The interest rate AFTER deducting inflation. With 3% interest on savings and 2% inflation, your real rate is only 1%. A negative real rate means your money loses purchasing power.

The real interest rate shows how much your money REALLY gains in value – after taking inflation into account.

Calculation: nominal interest rate − inflation = real interest rate

Examples (2026):

• Overnight money 2.5% − inflation 2.0% = +0.5% real interest (slight gain)
• Savings book 0.1% − inflation 2.0% = −1.9% real interest (LOSS of purchasing power!)
• ETF 7.0% − inflation 2.0% = +5.0% real interest (solid gain)

Why this matters so much: if you leave money in a savings book (0.1% interest) and inflation is 2%, you lose almost 2% of purchasing power every year. In 10 years, €10,000 is really only worth approx. €8,200. Saving without a return is silently burning money.

Did you know? From 2010 to 2022 the real interest rate for savers in Germany was almost always negative – anyone saving in a passbook account lost purchasing power every year. Only since the 2023 interest rate turnaround has the real rate on savings accounts been slightly positive again.

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