KfW Research: Public support for the energy transition has stabilised on a high level

• Energy transition is seen as important or very important by 83 per cent of German households
• One or more energy transition technologies are being used by 13.5 million households, 800,000 more than in the previous year
• Photovoltaic systems top the list, while the uptake of home batteries and electric vehicles is growing at a rapid pace

In many countries, stronger climate action is becoming less of a priority. It is therefore all the more pleasing that in Germany, support for the energy transition has risen again slightly, after falling sharply last year. In a survey, 83 per cent of German households responded that the energy transition was important or very important. Last year it was 82 per cent, and in 2023 as high as 88 per cent. This appears to show a stabilisation.

These are the findings of the KfW Energy Transition Barometer, for which KfW Research commissioned a representative survey of around 5,000 households in Germany between December 2024 and the end of March 2025.

At the same time, fewer households are willing to facilitate the energy transition with actions of their own. Only 59 per cent expressed a strong willingness to take action, the lowest rate since surveys began in 2018. While the fundamental support for the energy transition hardly differs between high-income and low-income households, there is a distinction in their level of readiness to contribute. Among households with the lowest incomes, that readiness has decreased very significantly in recent years.

“Many low-income households are under intense cost pressure. They have little scope for investing in the energy transition. We must take this group of the population into account as well if we want the broad support for the energy transition and private commitment to continue”,

said Dr Dirk Schumacher, Chief Economist of KfW.

Overall, 13.5 million households in Germany – 33 per cent – are using at least one energy transition technology. That is an increase of 800,000 households or two percentage points on the previous year. Energy transition technologies include heat pumps, rooftop photovoltaic systems, solar thermal systems, home batteries, combined heat and power systems, wood pellet heaters and electric vehicles.

The undisputed number one is the rooftop photovoltaic system. Sixteen per cent of German households have such a system – two percentage points more than in the previous year. In second place are solar thermal systems, which are being used by 11 per cent of respondents. The uptake of home batteries and electric vehicles was particularly strong. Within just two years, the use of home batteries tripled from three per cent to now nine per cent of households. Nine per cent of households also have an electric vehicle, compared to six per cent two years ago. Heat pumps can be found in eight per cent of households, two percentage points more than in the previous year.

There is a clear income disparity in the use of energy transition technologies. The wealthiest households in the country are more than three times as likely to use the technologies as the lowest-income households (50 per cent vs. 16 per cent). In the previous year that share was only 2.5 times as high.

The federal state with the highest number of households using energy transition technologies is Baden-Wuerttemberg. Here, 46 per cent of households are using at least one of the technologies, followed by Bavaria with 42 per cent. At the bottom of the list are the city states of Bremen and Hamburg, with 12 and 15 per cent, after Saxony Anhalt and Thuringia with 20 per cent each.

“Climate change appears to be slipping down the list of topics in the public policy conversation. Still, the population continues to hold the general view that it is a very important issue. This sentiment should be harnessed to continue driving the energy transition forward. This requires smart technical solutions that can also benefit Germany as a business location”,

said Dr Dirk Schumacher.

You can download the current KfW Energy Transition Barometer from KfW Energy Transition Barometer | KfW