Newspapers in Germany - Statistics & Facts

The German newspaper market looks back on a long history of publishing and consumption. Among print media, newspapers are still considered influential, with titles ranging from municipal to national. Some of the best-known national newspapers in Germany are published daily. However, newspapers, as print media in general, are facing falling sales figures year after year.

Are e-papers the future?

The paid circulation of daily and Sunday newspapers in Germany has been decreasing for over twenty years now, amounting to 12.3 million copies sold in 2022. At the same time, e-paper versions have seen increasing sales. This example illustrates a continuous trend in the print media industry, namely a constantly growing preference among consumers for online media consumption. In this case, consumption relates to online or digital versions of newspapers formerly bought and read on paper.

Newspaper circulation

Total figures on daily newspaper circulation in Germany further confirm a decrease in copies printed, with 14.61 million recorded in 2022. For comparison, ten years earlier over 19 million copies were printed, which also already followed annual drops in numbers. Despite this trend, 2022 actually saw an increase in figures. Even the Sunday edition of Germany's best-known tabloid, Bild am Sonntag, was struggling with paid circulation in recent years. Meanwhile, monthly unique user numbers on the Bild website, though fluctuating, recorded periodical growth. This is probably due to digitalization and peoples’ preference to consume their media online.

How are readers getting the news?

The Bild national daily edition recorded the biggest reach by far among German readers, followed by the Süddeutsche Zeitung and the FAZ. The German population still reads newspapers in their free time several times weekly, though these numbers have been decreasing in the last four years. This is perhaps because people are getting their news in different formats as opposed to the traditional newspaper. This could include podcasts or even social media. In 2022, almost 40 percent of people in Germany said that they used social media to read new stories, and although social media platforms have a reputation for spreading fake news this does not appear to be deterring consumers from getting their news there.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Kasia Davies, Dec 21, 2023

Key insights

Paid circulation of daily and Sunday newspapers in Germany
12.3m
Daily newspaper revenue from ads and supplements in Germany
1.68bn EUR
Total e-paper paid circulation in Germany
2.58m
Get more insights

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National daily newspaper reach in Germany 2023

Most quoted regional media ranked by number of quotations in Germany in of 2023

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E-paper circulation of national daily newspapers in Germany in 4th quarter 2023

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E-paper circulation of national daily newspapers in Germany Q4 2023

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