The class 88 of the kkStB designated small tank locomotives intended for traffic on branch lines. They drew their inspiration from five 0-4-0T locomotives built for the Kaiserin-Elisabeth-Bahn in 1880, which were also called class 88 at the beginning and were renumbered to class 188 in 1905. The new class 88 was built 47 times by Krauss in Linz between 1882 and 1885.
The last five were built for the Österreichische Lokaleisenbahngesellschaft (ÖLEG) and were slightly heavier than the 42 of the kkStB. Starting in 1892, they got new boilers. After World War I, they came to the state railways of Czechoslovakia, Italy, Poland, Romania and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. 