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 20242 | 3 543 865 | 3 515 796 | 99.2 % |
| Enterprises liable to VAT 20243 | 3 131 417 | 3 114 977 | 99.5 % |
| Enterprise turnover | |||
| Turnover of enterprises according to business register 20242 (in €) | 9 821.22 bn | 2 804.05 bn | 28,6 % |
| Turnover of enterprises liable to VAT 20243 (in €) | 8 776.91 bn | 2 793.13 bn | 31.8 % |
| Employees/Apprentices in enterprises and companies | |||
| Employees in enterprises according to business register 20242 | 40.08 m | 21.80 m | 54.4 % |
| Employees subject to social insurance contributions in enterprises according to business register 20242 | 32.73 m | 16.07 m | 49.1 % |
| Apprentices in local establishments (31.12.2024)4,5 | 1.52 m | 1.04 m | 68.4 % |
| Self-employed | |||
| Self-employed total 20246 | 3.57 m | ||
| thereof: Self-employed in liberal professions (01.01.2025)7 | 1.49 m | ||
| Self-employment rate 20246, 8 | 8.4 % | ||
| reporting: Self-employed except agriculture 20249 | 3.41 m | ||
| Self-employment rate except agriculture 20248, 9 | 8.1 % | ||
| Research and Development | |||
| R&D-expenses of the companies 2024 (in €) 10 | 92.51 bn | 10.05 bn | 10,9 % |
| © IfM Bonn |
Sources: Federal Statistical Office; Federal Employment Agency; Institute for Liberal Professions Nuremberg; Science statistics of the Stifterverband; Calculations by IfM Bonn, 59/2026.