The Anmeldung is Germany's address registration, and it is the keystone of your entire setup: your tax ID, residence permit, bank options and even your gym contract hang off it.

The rule: register within two weeks of moving into your long-term accommodation. In practice, appointment scarcity means many people register late — offices know this; keep proof that you tried (booking screenshots, emails). Don't panic, but don't postpone either.

What you need everywhere in Germany:

Your passport (with visa)
The registration form (Anmeldeformular) — usually downloadable, sometimes filled at the counter
The Wohnungsgeberbestätigung — the landlord confirmation you secured when booking your room. Without it, no Anmeldung. A rental contract alone is not enough.

What it costs: nothing. The Anmeldung is free everywhere in Germany.

What you get: the Anmeldebestätigung (registration certificate) — guard it like treasure; you'll show it everywhere. Your tax ID then arrives by post automatically within ~2 weeks.

How you actually get a slot differs completely by city — a quick appointment in one city, weeks-ahead booking in the next, and the walk-in era is ending even in the big ones. Select your city to see exactly how it works where you live.

Moving later? Same process again, called Ummeldung, in your new city.

Red flags:

"Anmeldung services" selling an address you don't live at. Registering where you don't live (Scheinanmeldung) is an offence that can cost you the residence permit built on it.
A landlord who "will send" the Wohnungsgeberbestätigung but never does — no signed form, no registration. Insist before you hand over the deposit.
Waiting "until I find something permanent" while months pass — your tax ID, bank account and permit all queue behind this step. A legal temporary registration beats none.
Anyone charging a fee "for the registration itself" — the Amt charges nothing.