Pharmaceutical industry in Germany - statistics & facts

The pharmaceutical market is lucrative as medicines are essential to daily life and something that almost everyone will need at some point. Furthermore, it is an industry heavily dependent on research and the creation of new medicines and products. Thus, there is often a lot of money invested in R&D (research and development). The German pharmaceutical market has the fourth-highest revenue in the world behind the United States, China, and Japan.

Companies and R&D

The German market has seen constant growth over the last 15 years, but the increase was larger in 2021 and 2022, due, in part, to the pandemic, which highlighted the importance of the pharma industry. A German company that became very famous during the pandemic was BioNTech. They discovered the COVID-19 vaccine that went on to be developed with the U.S. company Pfizer. The market leader in Germany is, however, Bayer AG, who have a revenue of almost 55 billion U.S. dollars. They produce not just pharmaceuticals but also healthcare products, chemicals used in the agricultural industry, and biotechnology products. When it comes to how much money is being invested in R&D by major pharmaceutical companies, Bayer AG spent around 6.6 million euros, but not far behind was another industry heavyweight, Boehringer Sohn. They invested almost 5.1 million euros in 2022. The importance of R&D was highlighted during the pandemic, when without a vaccine and drugs to treat more severe symptoms, people would have been in a constant cycle of lockdowns and social distancing. However, it is not just for pandemics that new medications must be developed. There are many other illnesses for which there is no cure, and the research and development of new drugs is life-saving for many people.

Over-the-counter market

Germany has the third largest over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceutical market in the world at 9.5 billion U.S. dollars. The OTC market refers to medications that are bought at pharmacies, whilst in some countries it is possible to buy certain medications such as paracetamol or allergy tablets in drugstores or supermarkets. In Germany, medications are exclusively sold in pharmacies. Some drugs such as aspirin or ibuprofen can just be purchased as and when needed. Other medicines, often stronger ones, require a prescription before they can be sold. The majority of revenue made by German pharmacies comes from prescription-only medication. The health insurance system in Germany is structured so that on average people pay between five and ten euros for their prescriptions. The United States has a reputation for high drug prices, this is because the companies producing the medications are allowed to set the price. England, on the other hand, has a more similar approach to Germany, where each item is 9.65 British pounds, and the rest of the price is subsidized by the National Health Service (NHS). In Germany, the best-selling types of over-the-counter medications prescribed by a doctor were mineral nutrients, stomach and digestive medicine, and laxatives.
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 Statista Research Department, Feb 27, 2024

Key insights

Share of gross domestic product spent on health
12.7%
Revenue change of pharmaceutical market
5.4%
Value of pharmaceutical imports
83.4bn EUR
Get more insights

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Revenue of the total pharmaceutical market¹ in Germany from 2006 to Q3 2023 (in billion euros)

Industry & Market

Revenue of the pharmaceutical market in Germany 2006-2023

Value of pharmaceutical production in Germany from 1995 to 2022 (in billion euros)

Industry & Market

Value of pharmaceutical production in Germany 1995-2022

Number of patents from Germany granted by the European patent office in pharmaceuticals from 2009 to 2023

Industry & Market

Germany: granted patents in pharmaceuticals 2009-2023

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