Pilotprojekt Grundeinkommen
Pilotprojekt Grundeinkommen was Germany's first large-scale scientific study of unconditional basic income, jointly run by the nonprofit Mein Grundeinkommen e.V. and DIW Berlin, with Vienna University of Economics and Business, University of Cologne, IAB, and TH Koln as academic partners. From June 2021 to May 2024, 122 randomly selected adults (ages 21-40, single-person households, moderate income) received EUR 1,200/month unconditionally and tax-free, funded entirely by roughly 140,000-150,000 private donors, and were compared against a control group of 1,380 people from the same eligibility pool who received no payments. Final results, published April 2025, found no significant withdrawal from the labor market but significantly improved mental health and subjective well-being among recipients. A separate 2023 financing analysis by Mein Grundeinkommen argued a tax-funded EUR 1,200/month UBI for all German adults could be financed in a way that leaves 80% of adults financially better off.
Unconditional Basic Income, Crowdfunded, RCT, DIW Berlin, Germany, Academic Study
Headquarters
- Organization Name
- Mein Grundeinkommen e.V.
- City
- Berlin
- State / Province
- Berlin
- Country
- Germany
Contact
- Social media links
Status & Funding
- Organization status
- Active
- Program status
- Inactive
- Number of recipients
- 122
- Funding type
- Nonprofit, Research Pilot
Benefits
- Currency Type
- Fiat
- Currency
- EUR
- Total Amount
- 47,520 EUR (≈ $54,110.99)
- Avg. Per Month
- 1,320 EUR (≈ $1,503.08)
- Payment frequency
- Monthly
- How long the program lasts
- 36 months
- Distribution Type
- Direct Deposit (bank transfer - mechanism not explicitly documented in available sources, inferred as standard practice for German cash transfer studies)
- Benefit details
Recipients received EUR 1,200 per month (tax-free, ~$1,320 USD at contemporaneous exchange rates) for 36 consecutive months (June 2021-May 2024), with no conditions on use, employment, or income. The only requirement to remain in the study was completing seven online research questionnaires over the three-year period. A subset of 14 participants also gave voluntary in-depth interviews and hair samples for stress-hormone (cortisol) analysis. The control group received a smaller compensation for completing a survey every six months and a theoretical chance of being moved into the payment group.
Eligibility
Overview
- Eligibility details
Applications were open in autumn 2020 to any German resident aged 18+ (no proof of need required); about 2.1 million people applied. Researchers cross-referenced applicants against Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) data to build a target pool of roughly 20,000 people who lived alone (single-person households), were aged 21-40, and had monthly net household income in the range of roughly EUR 1,200-2,600 (some sources cite EUR 1,100-2,600). From this pool, 122 people were randomly selected to receive the basic income and 1,380 were randomly assigned to the unpaid comparison group. Selection was completed January 12, 2021.
Demographics
- Minimum age
- 21
- Maximum age
- 40
Family
- Household size (minimum)
- 1
- Household size (maximum)
- 1
Financial
- Income limit (annual household)
- $34,320
Geography
- Countries covered
- Germany
- Residency of Target Geography
- Yes
Participation
- Research / data sharing
- Required
- Research / participation requirements
Basic-income recipients were required to complete seven online research questionnaires over the three-year study period to remain enrolled. The control/comparison group completed a survey every six months in exchange for a small compensation. A voluntary sub-sample of 14 participants also completed in-depth qualitative interviews and provided hair samples for cortisol (stress) analysis. The study was coordinated by DIW Berlin (quantitative socio-economic research), Vienna University of Economics and Business (psychological research), University of Cologne/Frankfurt School of Finance & Management (behavioral economics), University of Oxford (economic research), IAB Nuremberg (labor market data), and TH Koln (qualitative research), with Mein Grundeinkommen e.V. handling project management, donor coordination, and communications.
Application Process
- How to apply
Applications were collected via a public online call (pilotprojekt-grundeinkommen.de) that ran from August 18, 2020 for roughly two to three months, drawing about 2.1 million applicants. Selection was completed January 12, 2021 and applications have been closed since then; the study is not accepting new applicants and enrollment is complete.
- Selection process
From the ~2.1 million applicants, researchers used Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) benchmark data to identify a target-group pool (~20,000 people) of single-person households aged 21-40 with moderate net incomes that would be nationally representative of that demographic segment. From this qualified pool, participants were then randomly assigned via lottery: 122 to the basic-income (treatment) group and 1,380 to the unpaid comparison (control) group, forming a randomized controlled trial (RCT) design.
