Overview - Mittelstand
Small and medium-sized enterprises are the engine of the German economy. This is illustrated by statistical data on the macro-economic significance of SMEs and by SME key indicators for Germany and North Rhine-Westphalia (cf. the table below). The following data are based on SME definition by the European Commission.
Please note that we currently provide only a selection of the most important statistics on our English website.
For further statistics, please refer to our German section.
| Total1 | SMEs1 | SME-Share1 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of enterprises | |||
| Enterprises according to business register 20232 | 3 469 918 | 3 443 033 | 99.2% |
| Enterprises liable to VAT 20233 | 3 124 585 | 3 108 135 | 99.5% |
| Enterprise turnover | |||
| Turnover of enterprises according to business register 20232 (in €) | 10 023.20 bn | 2 802.85 bn | 28.0% |
| Turnover of enterprises liable to VAT 20233 (in €) | 9 049.03 bn | 2 791.20 bn | 30.8% |
| Employees/Apprentices in enterprises and companies | |||
| Employees in enterprises according to business register 20232 | 35.90 m | 19.08 m | 53.1% |
| Employees subject to social insurance contributions in enterprises according to business register 20232 | 32.12 m | 16.08 m | 50.1% |
| Apprentices in local establishments (31.12.2023)4,5 | 1.50 m | 1.04 m | 69.4% |
| Self-employed | |||
| Self-employed total 20236 | 3.60 m | ||
| thereof: Self-employed in liberal professions (01.01.2024)7 | 1.49 m | ||
| Self-employment rate 20236, 8 | 8.5% | ||
| reporting: Self-employed except agriculture 20239 | 3.43 m | ||
| Self-employment rate except agriculture 20238, 9 | 8.2% | ||
| Research and Development | |||
| R&D-expenses of the companies 2023 (in €) 10 | 90.41 bn | 10.23 bn | 8.4% |
| © IfM Bonn |
Sources: Federal Statistical Office; Federal Employment Agency; Institute for Liberal Professions Nuremberg; Science statistics of the Stifterverband; Calculations by IfM Bonn, 09/2025..