I started my life as freiberufler, freelancer, selbständig, in June 2023 and have come across many resources since then. I find myself constantly giving advice to other freelancers in Germany and hence thought of compiling all the info I have in a github repo, so that its easily discovered by others as well.
Feel free to contribute to this repo with resources you are aware of via a pull request and I will merge it if appropriate.
When you start out as a freelancer, freiberufler the toughest part is to find new work. Its very important to diversify and keep networking, in order to have a steady flow of projects.
Here some ways to find work:-
| Portal | URL | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Freelancer Map | freelancermap.de | #1 recommended portal with the most amount of projects & freelance opportunities in Germany and EU |
| Freelance DE | freelance.de | #2 recommended portal with the most amount of projects & freelance opportunities in Germany |
| Darwin Recruitment | darwinrecruitment.com | Job search portal of Darwin Recruitment who also offer freelance and contract opportunities |
| Avant Garde | avantgarde-experts.de | Avant Garde offers freelance and permanent positions and even allows you to set alerts |
| GULP | gulp.de | A subsidiary of Randstad Group, GULP is open to hiring freelancers and allows user to set one alert for free |
| MALT | malt.de | One can register as an expert on Malt and be contacted by businesses who need experts on demand |
| Outvise | outvise.com | Mostly projects in middle east and Spain but sometimes also from Germany |
| Linkedin Alerts | How to setup Linkedin job alerts | Search for keywords such as "contract", "freelance developer" etc. to get emails when the keyword is matched |
| Google Jobs Alerts | Google Jobs Search Link | I have still not understood how to consistently reach this link, however if you click the link -> Change the search term -> Click the follow button -> You will get daily alerts for job matches to your gmail |
| Bosch Legends Lab | Bosch Legends Lab | Freelance projects inside Bosch - the German conglomerate which also famous for its home appliances |
| C4 Group | C4 Group | C4 Group focusses on providing interim talent for the energy and life sciences industry |
| Hibernian Recruitment | Hibernian Recruitment | Specialists in freelance recruitment in Germany |
| Michael Page Recruitment | Michael Page Recruitment | Freelance page for Michael Page Recruitment agency |
| Digital Associates Recruitment | Digital Associates | Freelance page for Digital Associates Recruitment agency |
| Krongaard Recruitment Project Mart | Krongaard Project Mart | Freelance page for Krongaard Recruitment agency |
| 9AM | 9AM | Aggregator for freelance opportunities in the DACH region |
| Mund Consulting | Mund Consulting | Recruiter with freelance focus across Germany |
Here are some resources on FREE advice for freelancers.
| Resource | URL | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Melisa Liberman | Melisa's website | Melisa Liberman is well known coach for independent consultants and has ton's of free resources on her portal with a lot of useful advice |
| Verband der Gründer und Selbstständigen Deutschland e.V | VGSD website | The association for founders and self employed organizes in person events and has a lot of useful blog articles in German |
| Alex Allan's blog post on Medium | Alex Allan's post | Detailed blog post by Alex on Freelancing in Germany |
| Jonathan Stark | Free Resources | Free advice for freelance software developers |
- You might need a A1 Certificate if your client is outside of Germany. It was struggle for me to find the right way to order this certificate. One needs to access the SV Meldeportal https://app.sv-meldeportal.de/de/login, and click on the link which is at the very bottom of the page. "Für einen Login oder eine Registrierung mit der BundID klicken Sie bitte hier."