FM shutdown in Germany: What you need to know

• There is currently no uniform plan for switching off FM radio across Germany.
• Since broadcasting is a matter for the federal states, each state must decide for itself when it wants to switch to DAB+.
• You can continue listening to the radio if you have a DAB+ capable receiver. This includes most of the radios available today.

People all over the world have been able to enjoy FM radio since the 1940s. For years, the ultra-short wave (FM) broadcasting system was considered the industry standard for mass broadcasting – the broadcast quality was high, and the receivers were becoming increasingly cheaper. But there is now a better alternative: DAB+. The switch to the digital radio format is in full swing, and FM networks are being switched off in parallel. You can find out exactly when this will happen and what you need to know about the switch-off here.

The switch-off of FM is by no means a new topic. Back in the mid-2000s, the EU Commission proposed switching off analogue broadcasting by 2010 and switching to DAB, the predecessor format to DAB+. The deadline passed, a replacement was not determined and since then, switch-off dates for FM have repeatedly not been met at European, federal and state level.

What are the benefits of switching from FM to DAB+ and how can I continue listening to the radio?

The ever-increasing popularity of DAB+ since then is also due to the fact that since December 2020, all radio stations in Germany have been obliged to offer their programs via DAB+ in addition to FM. So it has been broadcast twice for several years now – fatal for cost and environmental reasons, since broadcasting via FM is expensive and power-intensive compared to digital formats.

In comparison to FM radio, DAB+ has many other advantages aside from the cost: Due to the larger number of frequencies, more programs can be broadcast in parallel – the broadcast slots on FM frequencies have been fully occupied in Germany for decades. Digital radio also offers higher sound quality and support for broadcasting systems, which can be used to distribute traffic reports more easily, among other things.

Anyone who wants to access their favorite radio program after the final switch from FM to DAB+ – whenever that may happen, more on that below – will then have to get a receiver that supports the transmission standard. Many of the radios that have been available for years are already equipped with DAB+, so it’s worth taking a look at the instructions before you buy a new radio unnecessarily. Many audio radios also support DAB+, even those from older models.

When will the FM radio be switched off?

Anyone hoping to find out a specific date for the shutdown of ultra-shortwave broadcasting in Germany is unfortunately confronted with the federalist reality. Broadcasting in Germany is a matter for the states, and the federal government can only dictate to a very limited extent which transmission formats the states may allow their broadcasting companies and private broadcasters to use.

And so it happens that every federal state is cooking up its own soup. Only a few of them currently have a concrete timetable. Schleswig-Holstein is the first and so far only federal state to have set out a concrete course of action. There, FM radio will be switched off gradually by 2031. Certain private broadcasters such as Antenne Sylt and the Holstein division of RADIO BOB! will switch off FM much earlier – namely in 2025.

In the rest of the republic, the debate about analogue broadcasting continues. In Saxony-Anhalt, the switch-off is off the table for now following an amendment to the state media law – even though Magdeburg wanted to be a national pioneer and completely switch to DAB+ by the end of 2025 according to the state government’s coalition agreement. Saxony has also cancelled the FM switch-off. In Bavaria, several private broadcasters that benefit from the continued operation of analogue radio are fighting against the switch-off.

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