How Many People Live in Germany?

Germany has a population of approximately 84.5 million people, making it the most populous country in the European Union and the second most populous in Europe after Russia. It is the economic engine of the EU, responsible for about a quarter of the eurozone's GDP, and its population dynamics are watched closely because they directly affect labor markets, pension systems, and political power across the continent.

Germany has a problem it has been trying to solve for 50 years: not enough babies. The fertility rate has been below replacement level (2.1) since 1970. For decades, the population only grew because of immigration, particularly the guest worker programs of the 1960s-70s (Turkey, Italy, Greece) and the 2015-16 refugee wave when Germany accepted over 1 million asylum seekers, mostly from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Without immigration, Germany's population would have peaked around 1970 and been declining ever since.

The country is also one of the oldest in the world by median age (46.8 years), second only to Japan and Italy in Europe. About 22% of the population is over 65. The ratio of working-age adults to retirees is shrinking every year, putting enormous pressure on the pension system. Germany needs about 400,000 immigrants per year just to keep the workforce stable, according to the Institute for Employment Research.

📊 Key Demographics

🏙️ What Are Germanys Largest Cities?

Germany vs neighbors

East vs West divide

Thirty-five years after reunification, the demographic gap between East and West Germany persists. The former East lost about 2 million people (15% of its population) between 1990 and 2020 as young people moved west for jobs. Cities like Dresden and Leipzig have recovered, but rural eastern Germany is emptying out. The average age in eastern states is 3-4 years higher than in western states. The AfD (far-right) polls highest in exactly these depopulating eastern regions, a pattern seen across Europe where demographic decline feeds political discontent.

🍺 Germany Has 1,500 Breweries, More Than Any Other Country

Germany has over 1,500 active breweries producing roughly 5,000 different beers. The Reinheitsgebot (beer purity law) of 1516, which restricts beer ingredients to water, barley, hops and yeast, is the oldest food quality regulation still in force. Bavaria alone has more breweries than the rest of Europe combined. Beer is so culturally central that the average German drinks about 92 liters per year, though this has been declining among younger generations.