Official figures show that German unemployment edged higher to 8.7% of the workforce in February, with a total of 3.64 million people without jobs.
In January, unemployment in Europe's biggest economy had been 8.6%, according to unadjusted data from the Federal Labour Agency.
Economists had expected the number of unemployed adjusted for seasonal factors to climb by 5,000 this month, but that figure rose by a slightly stronger 7,000.
Germany has managed to limit the increase in unemployment despite suffering its worst post-war recession last year, with state subsidies that allowed for shorter working hours at a little below normal pay levels.
Changes in the way of calculating the number of unemployed have also helped to limit increases but the effect of those changes will soon disappear from comparisons.
