How do you say “Have your cake and eat it too” in German?
The closest natural German equivalent is alles auf einmal haben wollen, which literally means “to want to have everything at once”. English speakers use have your cake and eat it too to mean to enjoy two benefits that normally cannot be had together. A broader complaint about wanting everything; name the benefits that cannot go together. Register: neutral. Usage frequency: common.
Closest natural German
alles auf einmal haben wollen
/ˈaləs aʊf ˈaɪnmaːl ˈhaːbn̩ ˈvɔlən/
- Literal meaning
- “to want to have everything at once”
- Register
- neutral
- How often it's used
- common
- Equivalence
Close equivalent
87 out of 100
What a native German speaker would actually say
“Alles auf einmal haben wollen” suggests asking for too much. Name the conflicting benefits so it is clear why the demand is unreasonable.
For “you can’t have your cake and eat it too,” “Man kann nicht alles haben” is a useful reply. Both German versions are broader than the English image.
How close is the meaning?
- Meaning4 out of 5
- Tone4 out of 5
- Context4 out of 5
- Literal similarity1 out of 5
These ratings are editorial approximations, not measurements.
What are other ways to say it in German?
Man kann nicht alles haben.
Literally: “You cannot have everything.”
A familiar reply when someone has to accept a trade-off.
In context
English
You want to spend your savings and keep the money: you can't have your cake and eat it too.
German
Du willst deine Ersparnisse ausgeben und das Geld behalten: Man kann nicht alles haben.
English
She wants to have her cake and eat it too: a bigger flat for the same low rent.
German
Sie will alles auf einmal haben: eine größere Wohnung und die gleiche niedrige Miete.
Related expressions
Last updated 2026-09-19