Printing costs for a dissertation are often calculated only shortly before the end of a doctorate. They depend on the publication route your doctoral regulations allow, on whether a publisher asks for a subsidy and on whether foundations or your faculty can help. This guide sorts the options and works through an example.
Short answer: For a classic specialist publisher, an information sheet from the University of Hamburg lists a printing cost subsidy (Druckkostenzuschuss) of 1,000 to 3,000 euros. Electronic publication costs about 50 to 100 euros according to the same sheet. Which format is permitted and how many copies you must submit is set out in the doctoral regulations (Promotionsordnung) of your university. Last updated: October 2026, the information sheet is undated.
Key points at a glance
- The doctoral regulations of your faculty set out which publication formats are allowed and how many copies you must submit.
- For a classic specialist or dissertation publisher, the printing cost subsidy is compulsory according to the Hamburg information sheet and ranges from 1,000 to 3,000 euros.
- According to the same sheet, electronic publication costs about 50 to 100 euros.
- Foundations usually grant subsidies only in exceptional cases, often when they have already supported the project.
- Printing costs can be relevant for tax. Our guide on PhD costs and tax explains how to classify them.
Which publication routes are there?
Dissertations are usually published through a publisher, a university library or an open-access platform. The route determines the cost. According to the information sheet of the University of Hamburg, the printing cost subsidy is compulsory with a classic specialist or dissertation publisher. Electronic publication involves considerably lower sums. Open-access platforms such as bonndoc at the University of Bonn form a separate route. Selection publishers such as Hamburg University Press choose works according to their publishing profile and require an adaptation to their design and a proofreading process. The table summarises the information from the sheet:
| Route | Costs according to the source | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Classic specialist or dissertation publisher | 1,000 to 3,000 euros printing cost subsidy | Compulsory according to the sheet, compare offers first |
| Electronic publication | About 50 to 100 euros | Permitted only if your doctoral regulations allow it |
| Selection publisher with open access (example: Hamburg University Press) | No fixed figure given | The publisher selects; design adaptation and proofreading are compulsory |
What do printing costs really add up to?
The figures above come from an undated information sheet, so treat them as a guide. For your case, the publishers’ offers and your faculty’s requirements matter most. A simple example shows how subsidy and own share interact:
Example (assumption): you publish with a specialist publisher that asks for a subsidy of 2,000 euros. A foundation that, according to the sheet, pays up to 1,500 euros for humanities, social science and law dissertations grants you the full amount. Your own share is then 500 euros (2,000 minus 1,500). If the foundation does not fund the project at all, your own share rises to 2,000 euros.
Which subsidies exist and who grants them?
Printing cost subsidies come from faculties, foundations and sometimes funding programmes. According to the Hamburg sheet, the university itself no longer grants printing cost subsidies for dissertations. Foundations often grant them only in exceptional cases, usually when the project has already been funded. Many foundations tie their subsidies to a subject area or to specific requirements. Examples from the sheet include:
- Georg-Strecker-Stiftung (theology): requires above-average performance.
- Stiftung Coloplast: maximum age of 36, only in individual cases.
- Franz-und-Eva-Rutzen-Stiftung: for work in archaeology.
- Johanna und Fritz Buch Gedächtnisstiftung: up to 1,500 euros for dissertations in the humanities, social sciences and law.
Ask your faculty, your funding organisation if you have one, and your supervisors about suitable foundations. Clarify deadlines early before you commit to a publisher.
What do the doctoral regulations require?
The doctoral regulations set out how many copies you must submit, in which form, by when and to which office. The requirements differ widely. The University of Bonn, for example, requires publication within one year of the oral examination and names 15 copies as the standard case. With a publisher that sells only e-books, the number is 10, and with open access from the start it is five. These figures apply to Bonn and rest on its doctoral regulations of 18 June 2024. Read the regulations of your own university in full before you sign a contract, so that deadlines and contract fit together.
How can you keep costs under control?
You influence spending mainly through three levers:
- Publication route: according to the sheet, electronic publication costs much less than a specialist publisher, provided it is allowed.
- Funding: ask your faculty and foundations before you sign a publishing contract.
- Contract: check conditions, the proofreading phase and rights to the text in writing before you agree.
Keep all invoices and contracts. They belong to the evidence you need if you claim the costs for tax, as described in our guide on PhD costs.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to print my dissertation?
The doctoral regulations of your faculty decide this. They state whether a digital publication is enough or whether printed copies are required. That decision determines whether you need a subsidy at all.
What if no subsidy is granted?
Then you must cover the costs yourself or choose another route, such as electronic publication, if your regulations allow it. Clarify this with the doctoral office before you decide.
Can I have the work printed myself?
Whether self-publishing or a print shop is permitted is set out in the doctoral regulations. If it is allowed, check in writing with the doctoral office that the form meets requirements such as format, title page and binding.
How do I recognise a trustworthy offer?
Ask for the offer in writing and check that services, costs, distribution and rights to the text are clearly named. A subsidy that does not appear in the offer should make you cautious. Compare at least two offers before you sign.
Who can help me choose a publisher?
Ask your supervisors and the doctoral office which publishers are common in your field and which funding they know. Your faculty knows the requirements of your regulations best.
Plan the time as well
Schedule time for proofreading, typesetting and print preparation from the start. The deadline in the doctoral regulations keeps running regardless, and a publisher also needs time for its own steps.
What to do now
- Read the doctoral regulations of your faculty and note the form, number and deadline for submission.
- Obtain at least two offers and compare subsidy, conditions and proofreading phase.
- Check foundations and faculty funding before you sign the publishing contract.
- Have the contract explained in writing before you sign and keep all receipts.
Related guides
- PhD in Germany: routes, titles and requirements
- Promotion finanzieren: Stelle, Stipendium oder Eigenmittel im Vergleich (in German)
- Deducting PhD Costs From Tax: Options and Limits
- PhD Scholarship and Tax in Germany: What Is Tax-Free
- Promotionsstipendien 2026: Stiftungen im Vergleich
Sources: University of Hamburg, information sheet on printing cost subsidies for dissertations (undated, accessed October 2026); University of Bonn, required copies of the dissertation (in German, refers to the doctoral regulations of 18 June 2024).
Last updated: October 2026. This guide is general information, not individual advice.
