The corporations of Germany across all states and districts

Nationwide, 1,031,188 companies are active. By industry, financial and insurance services form the largest group at 20.4 percent, followed by professional, scientific and technical services and by trade. The median share capital of a GmbH is EUR 25,000; 7.9 percent of companies have a six figure share capital. 16.1 percent are registered as holding companies. Interconnection is concentrated in Bremen, Hamburg and Bavaria and less pronounced in Saxony Anhalt and Saarland.

A succession case here is a company in which nobody in management is younger than 65. Nationwide this applies to 104,144 active companies and thus to 10.6 percent of the population. Adding the companies in which at least one member of management has reached this age gives 16.8 percent. The highest shares are found in Saarland, Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland Palatinate, the lowest in Berlin and Hamburg, where management is younger on average.

Between July 2025 and June 2026, 9,288 insolvencies of corporations were counted nationwide. Relative to the population, this corresponds to 8.6 cases per 1,000 companies. Compared with the previous year, the number rose by 23.4 percent, and even more markedly in Saxony Anhalt, Saarland and Baden-Württemberg. Thuringia departs from this pattern; there, the number of proceedings fell. Berlin and Hesse carry the highest incidence per 1,000 companies, Hamburg the lowest.

Of the companies existing today, 67,372 date from the year of incorporation 2025. Compared with 2021, the number of incorporations has risen by 5.3 percent. In the first half of 2026, 34,800 companies were added. Of the incorporations of 2024 and 2025, 24.6 percent are entrepreneurial companies (UG). Incorporation activity is unevenly distributed in space: relative to population, Hamburg and Berlin reach the highest values and Mecklenburg Western Pomerania the lowest, and in Saarland and Mecklenburg Western Pomerania fewer companies are being formed today than at the beginning of the period.

The data records where the managing directors or management board of an active company live. Nationwide, at least one member of management of 5.1 percent of companies is resident abroad, more often in Saarland and Hesse, less often in Brandenburg and Schleswig Holstein. Management exclusively from outside the state means that no managing director or board member lives in the state itself. In Brandenburg this applies to 32.5 percent of companies, in North Rhine Westphalia and Bavaria to far fewer. In 23.5 percent of companies, the entire management is younger than 40.

Of the three sectors shown here, real estate is the largest. It comprises 116,157 companies, 100.4 per 1,000 companies of the population, most of them renting and managing their own real estate. Healthcare accounts for 24,120 companies, the energy transition for 23,233. Photovoltaics is the largest segment there, ahead of wind energy. Regionally, the focal points diverge: the energy transition shapes Mecklenburg Western Pomerania and Schleswig Holstein, healthcare Saxony Anhalt and Thuringia, real estate Brandenburg, Saxony and Berlin.

The population of 1,157,108 corporations is unevenly distributed across the states: Hamburg and Berlin lead in density, Schleswig Holstein and Mecklenburg Western Pomerania remain far below.

Nationwide, 1,157,108 corporations are registered, and 1,031,188 of them conduct business. The others are registered without currently trading. Density relates this population to the number of inhabitants and makes areas of different size comparable. On this basis, Bavaria reaches the highest value among the territorial states with 13.6 companies per 1,000 inhabitants. Schleswig Holstein, at 7.3, and Mecklenburg Western Pomerania show the lowest density.

By industry, financial and insurance services lead with 20.4 percent of the population, ahead of professional, scientific and technical services with 15.2 percent. Trade follows as the third large sector. The median share capital of limited liability companies is EUR 25,000. Capital of EUR 100,000 or more is found in 7.9 percent of the population.

Nationwide, 104,144 companies are entirely under older management; in Saarland, Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland Palatinate this part of the population is larger than in the city states.

The threshold of 65 years marks the point at which a handover becomes foreseeable. Counted are active companies whose managing directors or management board consist entirely of people of this age. Nationwide, these are 104,144 companies or 10.6 percent of the active population. In 16.8 percent, at least one person aged 65 or over belongs to management, while the other members may be younger.

The picture shifts noticeably between the states. Saarland shows the highest share at 13.1 percent, followed by Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland Palatinate. Berlin reaches 8.2 percent, and Hamburg and Bremen also remain below the national value. On the other side stands a young part of the population: in 23.5 percent of companies, the entire management is under 40.

Level and development of insolvencies follow different lines across the states: Berlin and Hesse carry the highest incidence, Saxony Anhalt and Saarland record the strongest increase.

The number of proceedings is related to the population so that states of different size remain comparable. From July 2025 to June 2026 there were 8.6 insolvencies per 1,000 corporations nationwide. Hesse exceeds this value with 9.8 proceedings per 1,000 companies, and Berlin is higher still. Hamburg and Baden-Württemberg record the lowest incidence, the latter with 7.3 proceedings.

The increases differ widely. In Saxony Anhalt the number of proceedings rose by 33.6 percent, in Baden-Württemberg by 30.8 percent. Bremen records the smallest increase at 5.7 percent, and in Thuringia the number fell by 5.6 percent. In Baden-Württemberg, a low level coincides with a strong increase. Hamburg also shows one of the lowest values for growth.

The number of incorporations has increased again, but the growth is unevenly distributed: Bremen and Hamburg gain markedly, while it is falling in Saarland and Mecklenburg Western Pomerania.

The companies existing today are counted by their year of incorporation, so dissolutions of earlier years are not taken into account. 67,372 of them date from 2025, which is 8.1 incorporations per 10,000 inhabitants. The 2023 cohort was smaller at 60,363 incorporations. In the first half of 2026, 34,800 registrations were added.

The density of incorporation clearly separates the states. Hamburg and Berlin lead, Hesse follows with 9.6 incorporations per 10,000 inhabitants, and Saxony Anhalt reaches 4.1. The ranking of the states resembles the density of the population. The direction of development also diverges: Bremen has gained 15.2 percent since 2021, while in Saarland the number fell by 6.7 percent. Entrepreneurial companies (UG) account for 24.6 percent of the two most recent cohorts and thus shape the picture of newly registered companies.

The place of residence of management reorders the states: in Brandenburg and Bremen, management particularly often lives beyond the state border, in North Rhine Westphalia, Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg rarely.

The data records the place of residence of the managing directors and management board of active companies. Management exclusively from outside means that none of these people lives in the area considered. The value therefore depends on the size of the area and becomes meaningful only in the comparison of states and districts. Brandenburg reaches 32.5 percent, Bremen 30.1 percent.

The large territorial states in the west form the opposite pole. In North Rhine Westphalia, the management of 8.5 percent of companies lives entirely outside the state, followed by Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. Looking abroad, the order shifts: nationwide, at least one person resident abroad belongs to the management of 5.1 percent of companies, in Saarland of 8.9 percent. Brandenburg shows the lowest value of all states here.

Shareholding structures concentrate in the city states and in the south, while Saxony Anhalt and Saarland show the lowest shares of holding companies; group agreements are most frequent in Hamburg and Thuringia.

A holding company holds shares in other companies and steers them. The share of holding companies shows how strongly ownership and operations are separated in an area. Nationwide, 16.1 percent of the population belong to this group. Bremen leads with 19.8 percent, followed by Hamburg and Bavaria. In Saarland the figure is 9.9 percent, and Saxony Anhalt and Saxony also remain below the national value.

Group agreements bind one company legally to another and assign it to a group. Nationwide there are 25.9 such agreements per 1,000 companies, in Hamburg 39.7. Thuringia follows Hamburg; Schleswig Holstein records the lowest value. In addition, there are general partner companies that bear liability in a limited partnership: 8.2 percent of the population belong to this group. Group affiliation and the holding function thus describe two sides of the same interconnection.

The energy transition forms a sector of its own within the corporate population, whose weight is greatest in Mecklenburg Western Pomerania and Schleswig Holstein and smallest in Berlin.

Photovoltaics, wind energy and biogas together form the energy transition sector. Nationwide it comprises 23,233 companies, 20.1 per 1,000 of the population. Photovoltaics is the largest segment with 13,896 companies, followed by wind energy with 4,778. Biogas production remains behind both in the number of companies.

The sector carries very different weight across the states. Mecklenburg Western Pomerania leads with 47.6 energy transition companies per 1,000 companies, Schleswig Holstein reaches 39.1, and Bremen lies between the two. Berlin, at 12.4, marks the other end of the range, and Hamburg and Hesse also remain below. This sector thus orders the states differently from the population itself, which is concentrated in the cities. What matters are the places where installations are built and operated.

Outpatient care forms the largest segment of healthcare; in the eastern states the sector carries more weight than in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.

Healthcare here comprises companies in care, support and therapeutic services. Nationwide, 24,120 companies are assigned to this sector, 20.8 per 1,000 of the population. Outpatient care and support account for 9,240 companies, diagnostics, therapy and other health professions for 4,755. In this sector, corporations operate alongside facilities of other legal forms, which are not considered here.

On this indicator, the eastern states jointly lead. Saxony Anhalt reaches 29.4 healthcare companies per 1,000 companies, followed by Thuringia and Saxony. Bavaria records the lowest value at 15.6, and Baden-Württemberg and Hamburg are also below the national value. A high share describes the weight of the sector within the population and says nothing about the number of facilities per inhabitant.

116,157 companies hold, manage or trade in real estate; their share of the population is highest in Brandenburg, Saxony and Berlin and lowest in Hamburg.

Real estate comprises companies that hold, manage, buy or sell their own properties. Nationwide these are 116,157 companies, 100.4 per 1,000 of the population. Renting and managing own real estate accounts for 44,960 companies, buying and selling for 31,032. Companies are counted by their business purpose; the number of properties managed is not taken into account.

Among the states, Brandenburg reaches furthest at 127.2, followed by Saxony and Berlin. Hamburg records the lowest share at 90.6, although the state leads in companies per inhabitant. North Rhine Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg also remain below the national value. The eastern states and Berlin together reach the highest shares here. A high share describes how strongly real estate assets in an area are held in corporate form.