English-speaking companies in Berlin

Berlin is located at the center of Europe. The German capital is just a two-hour flight from London, three hours from Madrid, an hour and a half from Stockholm and around two and a half hours from Sofia. Just one of many reasons why Berlin is becoming increasingly popular as a place of work. More and more companies of all sizes are being founded in Berlin or are expanding and moving here. They all want to gain a foothold in the creative and technological stronghold and are on the hunt for qualified specialists at all career levels.

Fair set-up costs for companies, an excellent work-life balance for employees, excellent educational opportunities, good family and social policies as well as the city’s strong international character entice entrepreneurs and skilled workers here from all over the world. More than 170 nationalities live in Berlin. They all communicate every day both professionally and privately with each other. The English language is not only the common denominator but also perceived as the city’s second mother tongue.

That is why so many Berlin companies have chosen English as their corporate language. This applies to global players such as  Zalando, Amazon, Google and Netflix and small start-ups alike – including in science and research. The city has the most English-speaking companies in all of Germany. And this is only set to increase.

English is spoken exclusively in some companies, while in others just in certain departments such as IT or Software Development. On the other hand, some companies only have a small English-speaking branch in Berlin, in order to make best use of the international talent pool. In these cases there is a bilingual corporate culture – English is spoken in the Berlin branch, whilst German is spoken in the headquarters in another German city. The possibilities are endless and ready to be explored!

There are many great opportunities for you to tap into as an English-speaking employee or freelancer if you are willing to move and looking for a job. You can get off to a flying start in Berlin even without any German. And even your English does not have to be flawless. Usually teams in English-speaking companies are a real mix of different nationalities. Accents are diverse and are irrelevant when the main thing is sharing ideas and growth. Things are not always absolutely perfect, but many professional backgrounds and career paths also mean a great deal of experience and knowledge that you can benefit from. Begin your job search now! It will be worth your while.

Finally, we would like to say that it is, of course, always a good idea to learn German – especially if you intend to stay here for a long time. In Berlin you will find lots of good and reasonably priced language courses – some of them are even free. Here is a summary we have put together for you.