USB flash drives: sales volume in Germany 2022

USB flash drives experienced fluctuating sales numbers in recent years, with about 10.9 million units sold in 2021. This was a decrease compared to the previous year.

Storage media

USB flash drives revolutionized data storage for computer users everywhere when they emerged on the market, joining such well-known storage media as floppy discs, hard drives and optical storage units like CD-R and CD-RW discs. Prices varied in 2019 according to type. The most expensive storage product in this case were hard drives at 93 euros, followed by memory cards and USB flash drives. That year, almost 39 million blank DVDs were sold, making it the most bought storage medium, ahead of memory cards and USBs.

File storage options

The falling number of USB flash drive sales suggests that they are becoming a less popular way for people to back up their data. This may be due to the expansion of cloud data storage options, such as the online services Google Drive and Dropbox, to make just a few examples. Often using a cloud storage option allows you a certain amount of free storage and then you can opt to pay for more, on a monthly subscription.

Number of USB flash drives sold in the consumer market in Germany from 2004 to 2022 (in millions)

Characteristic	Sales volume in millions
2022	10.85
2021	11.61
2020	13.82
2019	14.05
2018	12.88
2017	13.51
2016	16.17
2015	15.94
2014	15.46
2013	13.5
2012	15.85
2011	13.82
2010	11.78
2009	12.99
2008	13
2007	8.18
2006	5
2005	3.2
2004	2.03