A method for determining a distance of a sample reference plane of a sample carrier from a reference plane of a microscope, the microscope including a sample stage for the sample carrier and a camera, comprises the following steps: taking an overview image of the sample carrier by means of the camera; evaluating the overview image and thus detecting at least one characteristic of the sample carrier; ascertaining contextual data of the characteristic from a data set; and determining the distance of the sample reference plane from the reference plane based on the characteristic and the contextual data of the sample carrier. A microscope configured to determine the distance of the sample reference plane of the sample carrier from the reference plane is also described.