The Netherlands limits cars to 50 km/h in built-up areas and 80 km/h on ordinary roads outside them. Almost all motorways have a limit of 100 km/h between 06:00 and 19:00, and 100, 120 or 130 km/h in the evening and at night, as signed. The country had 520 fixed cameras in 2024, according to the Public Prosecution Service.
| Road type | Cars |
|---|---|
| Built-up areas | 50 km/h |
| Other roads outside built-up areas | 80 km/h |
| Autowegen | 100 km/h |
| Motorways, 06:00 to 19:00 | 100 km/h on almost all, as signed |
| Motorways, 19:00 to 06:00 | 100, 120 or 130 km/h, as signed |
What are the speed limits in the Netherlands?
Articles 20 and 21 of the Dutch traffic rules (RVV 1990) set the general limits, and signs can change them.
- Built-up areas: 50 km/h. The Public Prosecution Service describes a transition to 30 km/h inside built-up areas, so watch for lower signs.
- Outside built-up areas: 80 km/h on ordinary roads and 100 km/h on autowegen.
- Motorways: the standard is 130 km/h, but the signs decide. The Dutch government says almost all motorways are 100 km/h from 06:00 to 19:00, with 80 km/h on some sections.
- Trailers: a car towing a trailer of up to 3,500 kg may not exceed 90 km/h.
The hours are the detail visiting drivers most often need, because the same motorway can have one limit by day and another in the evening. Since 14 April 2025, 130 km/h has also applied by day on three sections, where signed: the A7 over the Afsluitdijk, the A7 from Winschoten to the German border, and the A6 from Lelystad-Noord to the Ketelbrug.
What kinds of speed cameras does the Netherlands use?
The Public Prosecution Service (OM) runs fixed cameras, movable cameras and average-speed systems, and the police run their own equipment. The OM’s 2026 to 2030 vision and its news reports give these numbers:
- Fixed cameras: 520 in 2024, with 750 planned by 2029. They measure speed and red-light offences.
- Flexflitsers: 75 in 2024, with 125 planned. These movable cameras rotate between locations, staying about two months at each.
- Average-speed systems: 64 systems at 31 locations in June 2026. A pilot inside a built-up area was planned for later in 2026.
- Enforcement locations: about 650, growing to about 1,450.
Police also measure with mobile radar. Separate focus cameras, 40 in 2024, are there for phone use at the wheel, not speed.
Are speed camera apps legal in the Netherlands?
Yes, warning apps are permitted according to ADAC’s country table (May 2025), and we found no Dutch rule against them. Articles 2 and 3 of the Dutch vehicle decree (Besluit voertuigen) do ban radar receivers able to show the presence of a speed-measuring device: they may not be imported, offered for sale, stocked or supplied, and a vehicle with one on board may not be driven. The Public Prosecution Service states in its 2026 to 2030 vision that it does not favour making the use of warning apps punishable, while it keeps the subject under review. Article 61a RVV separately bans holding a phone while driving (checked on 30 October 2026).
