Best-selling over the counter medicine Germany 2023, by type

Cold and flu medicine had the highest revenue out of all over-the-counter medications in German pharmacies in 2022. It made 897 million euros that year. The next two most popular categories were basic painkillers and cough medicine, with revenues of 655 million euros and 522 million euros respectively.

The pharmaceutical market

Medication is something that will always be lucrative, as people will always need it for various types of illnesses, whether it be a cold during the winter or something more serious, like a chronic disease. The chemical/ pharmaceutical industry was ranked as the third most important industry in Germany. This is perhaps not surprising, given the country’s history and the many leading pharmaceutical companies that were founded there. Germany has the third-largest OTC market in the world, after the United States and China. Pharmacies are often quite profitable in Germany, because unlike in some other countries, it is only possible to buy medication in pharmacies. In 2022, pharmacies in Germany generated a revenue of almost 43 billion euros, and since 2010 there has been a steady increase in revenue each year.

What medications are people taking?

Most of the revenue made by pharmacies in Germany came from medicine that was prescribed by a doctor, amounting to around 37 billion euros. By contrast, the general sale medicines only made about 200 million euros. When it comes to the types of medicines that doctors prescribe to patients, the most popular type was stomach and digestive aids. These would be typically prescribed to people who have stomach problems.