• Share of business founders under the age of 30 stands at 40 per cent
• Number of newly founded businesses grew again overall in 2025, part-time businesses increased sharply
• Women are less likely to start a full-time business than before
• People with a migration history are more inclined than average to start a business

Germany’s entrepreneurial landscape is undergoing a continuing rejuvenation. The average age of entrepreneurs was 34.2 years overall in Germany, down again from 34.4 years the year before. The share of business founders under the age of 30 was 40 per cent last year, matching the record level of 2024. For comparison: In 2002, only 30 per cent of business founders were younger than 30; in 2020 it was 32 per cent. In 2025, more than one fifth of young entrepreneurs even launched their business while they were still studying.

These are among the findings of the KfW Entrepreneurship Monitor, which Dr Dirk Schumacher, Chief Economist of KfW, presented at a press briefing in Frankfurt on Tuesday. In 2025, 50,000 representative telephone and online interviews were conducted for the survey. The term business founder is defined broadly to include individuals who have become self-employed on a full-time or part-time basis as freelancers or business owners or by founding, participating in or taking over a business.

Young people also have the strongest entrepreneurial spirit. Asked whether they would prefer to be employed or self-employed, irrespective of their personal situation, 36 per cent of respondents under the age of 30 stated that they would prefer self-employment. That was more than in any other age cohort. On average across all age groups, only 26 per cent of the population prefer self-employment.

The number of young entrepreneurs appears high at first glance but cannot mask the fact that their preference for self-employment was once higher. At the beginning of the 2000s, half the people under the age of 30 still preferred self-employment over salaried employment. Entrepreneurial spirit - the theoretical preference for being one’s own boss - has trended downward Germany in recent years.

“We are seeing two opposing trends. On the one hand, many young people in particular become aware of successful entrepreneurs through the media, whether they be start-ups or influencers who act as role models for self-employment. On the other hand, far fewer businesses are being established in Germany than before. As a result, people are less likely to interact with self-employed people and have no role models in their immediate vicinity,”

said Dr Dirk Schumacher, Chief Economist of KfW.

Entrepreneurial activity increased overall last year. There were around 690,000 entrepreneurs, after 585,000 the year before. The positive development was significantly driven by newly founded part-time businesses. 483,000 part-time businesses were founded, after 382,000 in 2024. At the same time, the number of full-time start-ups hardly changed and stood at 206,000.

Since the turn of the millennium, however, the number of newly founded businesses has dropped sharply in Germany. Around 1.5 million businesses were still founded in 2002. “The weaker entrepreneurial activity is surely also a result of the labour market, which has performed well for over a decade and offered many people attractive jobs,” said Schumacher.

Other key findings of the KfW Entrepreneurship Monitor:

• Female business founders: The number of female business founders was 35 per cent in 2025, one percentage point lower than in 2024 and below the long-term average of 39 per cent. The decrease was primarily driven by full-time businesses, in which the share of female entrepreneurs slumped from 33 per cent to 27 per cent. At 38 per cent, the share of female part-time entrepreneurs remained steady on the previous year.
• People with a migration background: In 2025, 34 per cent of business founders had a migration history. That means people who themselves migrated or both of whose parents migrated to Germany since 1950. People with a history of migration were over-represented as business founders in relation to their share of the population.
• Digitalisation: In the year 2025, 44 per cent of newly founded businesses were based on digital offerings – a new record. In other words, customers must use digital technologies to be able to use their products and services. In the previous year that figure was 36 per cent. The trend towards digital offerings has been rising continuously for years.
• Type of establishment: Eighty-six per cent of start-ups were newly established businesses. Accordingly, derivative start-ups, that is, newly founded businesses that build on existing enterprises, were less common, at 14 per cent.

“What is pleasing is that more people in Germany are founding businesses from the ground up again and as such may be putting into practice an innovative business idea. As a business location, Germany needs creative and bold entrepreneurs,”

said Schumacher.

“But the fact remains that there are many very good companies that need a new management. The average age of business owners in Germany is more than 54 years. Many of them are desperately searching for a suitable successor. A rethink is urgently required. Not only should more people Germany consider starting a business. Even more should also think about taking over an existing business.“

The KfW Entrepreneurship Monitor can be downloaded from KfW Entrepreneurship Monitor | KfW.

You can find a graph showing the age of male and female entrepreneurs in Germany at Graphic: Age of Entrepreneurs | KfW(JPG, 185 KB) (only available in German).