How many companies were closed in Germany last year?

187,744 companies were closed, the most in nearly 20 years.

Which sectors were hit hardest?

The most closures were in hospitality and tourism, with significant increases also in healthcare and industry.

What did Patrik-Ludwig Hantzsch say about the crisis?

He said the crisis is spreading through nearly the entire economy and that even companies that were actually healthy are now being affected.

When was the last time there were more company closures?

There were more closures only in 2007, when almost 208,000 companies shut down.

Economy

Germany Shut Down 187,744 Companies Last Year, the Most in 20 Years

E.K. · Prije 8h | 2 min

Creditreform and ZEW warn that the crisis has spread to nearly all sectors of the German economy, with closures rising for the second consecutive year.

Summary

Germany closed 187,744 companies in 2025, the most since 2007.
The rise in closures continued for the second consecutive year, with a jump of nearly 10 percent.
The hospitality, tourism, healthcare, and industrial sectors were hit hardest.

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Last year, 187,744 companies in Germany ceased operations, the highest number in nearly two decades. This figure comes from a joint annual analysis by the credit agency Creditreform and the Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW), presented on Tuesday, August 18, 2026.

Compared to the previous year, the number of closed companies was nearly ten percent higher. Only in 2007 was an even larger wave of closures recorded, when almost 208,000 companies shut down. This marks the second consecutive year of rising closure numbers.

Hantzsch: Even healthy companies are affected

Patrik-Ludwig Hantzsch, head of economic research at Creditreform, warns that the crisis has spread to nearly the entire economy. He also highlighted a worrying shift compared to previous years: now, even companies that were actually healthy are ceasing operations.

The number of closures increased across almost all sectors during the year. The hospitality and tourism sector was hit hardest, with around 15,000 restaurants and accommodation facilities closing in 2025. That is a 15 percent jump compared to the previous year.

Healthcare in a decade-long decline

The negative trend in the healthcare sector has been ongoing for about ten years. The number of closed companies reached nearly 11,000, roughly double the figure from 2008.

Additionally, nearly 5,500 medical practices closed last year, 23 percent more than in 2024. The most common reason was doctors retiring without finding successors to take over their practices.

Industry is also under pressure: about 11,000 companies closed, 10 percent more than the year before.