What roadside assistance costs in Germany: the dues ADAC, ACE, AvD and ARCD actually publish
One club posts its full schedule of dues as a PDF, one names a single flat figure, one advertises half price for the first year — and the largest gives only "from" prices and has just voted an increase without saying how much.
Meridians Technik-Redaktion
Published 24 August 2026 · Updated 24 August 2026 · 7 min read
AutomotiveThe short answer
- Four German automobile clubs publish their annual dues online — but at very different depths and with very different degrees of commitment.
- The AvD posts a complete schedule of dues dated March 2026 as a PDF, the ARCD names one flat figure, the ACE states regular dues in its published rules, and the ADAC gives only from-prices on its membership page.
- The ACE headline price applies to the first year only: Classic costs twice as much from year two.
- The ADAC general assembly voted an increase for 2027 on 23 May 2026 — its own notice names no future figures.
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Club membership is one of the few motoring costs entirely within the provider's control, and yet it is rarely presented in a form that allows a clean comparison. So we looked at what the four best-known German automobile clubs published about their own dues on 24 August 2026 — and at what they leave out. The result is a price list with conspicuous gaps, and the gaps say more than some of the figures.
Regular annual dues, as the clubs state them
Every figure below is the annual amount for a private individual member as it appears on the clubs' own pages or in their published schedules of dues. Discounted introductory offers for new members are listed separately rather than mixed into the main list.
- AvD HELP — 49 euros — breakdown and accident assistance across Germany, around the clock, with towing and rental-car cover inside Germany
- AvD HELP EUROPA — 69 euros — Europe-wide cover
- AvD HELP PLUS — 92 euros — worldwide breakdown and accident assistance, including medical repatriation
- AvD HELP PLUS Familie — 129 euros — the same worldwide scope for the family
- ARCD full membership — 89.90 euros — breakdown, accident and towing assistance across Europe, rental car up to 7 days and 60 euros per day, accommodation up to 3 nights and 90 euros per person per day, medical repatriation, bicycle cover included
- ARCD full membership, reduced — 84.90 euros — for civil servants and public-sector employees
- ACE Classic — 82 euros — Europe-wide breakdown assistance, bicycles and e-bikes included
- ACE Comfort — 105 euros — adds a contribution towards worldwide breakdowns, rental car from 30 km from home, choice of workshop up to 30 km
- ACE Comfort+ — 140 euros — choice of workshop up to 50 km, rental car from your door, HomeAssist including lock-out help up to 500 euros
- ACE Privat — 59 euros — per the published schedule of dues
- ACE Business — 72 euros — for one company vehicle
- ADAC Basis — from 54 euros — breakdown assistance in Germany, initial legal advice, bicycle breakdown assistance nationwide
- ADAC Plus — from 94 euros — breakdown and accident assistance across Europe, medical and vehicle repatriation, replacement vehicle
- ADAC Premium — from 139 euros — worldwide breakdown and accident assistance, worldwide health cover abroad, towing to a workshop of your choice, lock-out service
The most striking finding is not the level but the format
The AvD is the only one of the four that publishes a complete schedule of dues as a standalone document — dated March 2026, listing every partner rate and even the joining fees. Those come to 5 euros per contributor for the HELP tariffs and are waived if you set up a SEPA direct debit. Partners pay 22 euros on HELP, 32 euros on HELP PLUS and 42 euros on HELP EUROPA. Anyone who wants to compare finds everything in one place at the AvD.
The ADAC sits at the other end. Its Become a member page shows from-prices only: from 54, from 94, from 139 euros. That is structure rather than concealment — the ADAC is a federation of regional clubs that set their own dues, so a single nationwide figure does not exist. For comparison purposes it still means this: you learn what you will pay only after entering your postcode.
At the ACE the advertised price is the half price
The ACE currently advertises 41 euros for Classic, 52 for Comfort and 70 for Comfort+. Those apply to new members in the first membership year; from the second, the regular club dues of 82, 105 and 140 euros apply. The tariff page carries this in the small print, and the schedule of benefits and dues in force from 1 January 2025 spells it out. Setting the promotional prices against other clubs' flat rates compares one year with every year.
For drivers between 18 and 25 the ACE publishes separate figures at a 40 percent discount: 49.20 euros for Classic, 63 for Comfort and 84 for Comfort+. The AvD lists 31 euros on HELP and 69 euros on HELP PLUS for young people and for members with a severe disability.
The ADAC increase for 2027 is certain; the amount is not
On 23 May 2026 the ADAC general assembly voted an adjustment of dues for 2027. In its own notice the club attributes the step to a 24.4 percent rise in the cost of living since 2020, to an average 27 percent increase in what each individual breakdown call costs the club, and to an expanded set of services including a lock-out service and bicycle breakdown assistance. The notice names no specific future figures for Basis, Plus or Premium. Anyone weighing a multi-year membership with the ADAC is working with a known direction and an unknown number.
Where the comparison lands
- The cheapest published entry into full membership including cover abroad is AvD HELP EUROPA at 69 euros; for Germany only, the AvD starts at 49 euros
- If you want one clearly stated all-in rate with no tariff ladder, the ARCD offers it at 89.90 euros
- The ACE is worth the look mainly in year one; the question is whether you still want the regular rate from year two
- ADAC pricing can only be established regionally, and it will rise in 2027
- Before signing anything, check whether your motor insurance already includes a Schutzbrief — its benefits overlap substantially with the clubs'
Sources
Every factual claim above is traceable to these documents. Check them — that is why they are here.
- Schedule of dues of the Automobilclub von Deutschland e. V. (PDF, dated March 2026)AvD
- Compare memberships — tariffs and benefitsAvD
- ARCD full membership — dues and scope of benefitsARCD — Auto- und Reiseclub Deutschland
- ACE schedule of benefits and dues, in force from 1 January 2025 (PDF)ACE Auto Club Europa
- Tariffs — promotional prices and regular club duesACE Auto Club Europa
- Become an ADAC member — Basis, Plus and Premium tariffsADAC
- Adjustment of ADAC membership dues — notice of 23 May 2026ADAC
About this byline
Meridians Technik-Redaktion is an editorial desk at Meridians, not an individual. A desk byline means the article was produced and fact-checked to that desk's published standards. Read our editorial standards and corrections policy.
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