Bruchsal 13.02.2019
Regensburg remains top spot for single households in Germany
GfK Demographics 2018
Germany’s highest share of single-person households is in the urban district of Regensburg, while the highest share of households with children is in the rural district of Cloppenburg. These are some of the results of the latest GfK study on the regional distribution of Germany’s demographic traits, such as family type, age range, and income level.
Germany’s share of single-person households is 38.1 percent, while the nationwide share of multiple-person households with children is 32 percent. Multiple-person households without children comprise 29.9 percent of the country’s population.
Share of household types
| Germany – total | highest share | lowest share | |
|---|---|---|---|
| single-person households | 38.1% | Regensburg UD (56.5%) | Cloppenburg RD (23.0%) |
| multiple-person households without children | 29.9% | Barnim RD (36.7%) | Regensburg RD (24.2%) |
| multiple-person households with children | 32.0% | Cloppenburg RD (49.1%) | Würzburg UD (17.6%) |
source: GfK Demographics Germany 2018; UD = urban district; RD = rural district
With a 56.5 percent share of single-person households, the urban district of Regensburg leads the way among Germany's districts. At 54 percent, the urban district of Würzburg comes in at second place, followed by the urban districts of Flensburg (52.5 percent) and Passau (52.2 percent). Berlin’s 2018 share of single-person households was 48.5 percent. This puts the capital in twenty-fourth place, behind other large cities such as Munich (50.6 percent) and Cologne (49.7 percent).
Top 10 districts – 2018 share of single-person households
| ranking | district | inhabitants | share of single-person households as a % | single-person household index (100 = national average) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Regensburg UD | 148,638 | 56.5 | 148.3 |
| 2 | Würzburg UD | 126,010 | 54.0 | 141.8 |
| 3 | Flensburg UD | 87,432 | 52.5 | 137.7 |
| 4 | Passau UD | 51,074 | 52.2 | 137.0 |
| 5 | Erlangen UD | 110,238 | 51.9 | 136.2 |
| 6 | Bayreuth UD | 73,065 | 51.2 | 134.3 |
| 7 | Trier UD | 110,111 | 51.1 | 134.2 |
| 8 | Bamberg UD | 75,743 | 51.1 | 134.2 |
| 9 | Munich UD | 1,464,301 | 50.6 | 132.7 |
| 10 | Leipzig UD | 571,088 | 50.1 | 131.5 |
source: GfK Demographics Germany 2018; UD = urban district; RD = rural district
While single-person households are especially concentrated in cities, households with children are more strongly represented in rural regions. Regarding the latter, the rural district of Cloppenburg takes first place with 49.1 percent. With 48.6 percent, the rural district of Straubing-Bogen comes in at second place, followed by the rural district of Vechta (48 percent). At the other end of the spectrum are the urban districts of Regensburg (19.3 percent) and Würzburg (17.6 percent).
Top 10 districts – 2018 share of multiple-person households with children
| ranking | district | inhabitants | share of multiple-person households with children as a % | index (100 = national average) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cloppenburg RD | 165,930 | 49.1 | 153.3 |
| 2 | Straubing-Bogen RD | 99,221 | 48.6 | 151.8 |
| 3 | Vechta RD | 139,671 | 48.0 | 149.9 |
| 4 | Eichstätt RD | 130,808 | 47.7 | 148.9 |
| 5 | Emsland RD | 321,391 | 46.0 | 143.7 |
| 6 | Landshut RD | 155,442 | 45.6 | 142.4 |
| 7 | Dingolfing-Landau RD | 95,035 | 45.0 | 140.5 |
| 8 | Freyung-Grafenau RD | 78,180 | 44.9 | 140.5 |
| 9 | Pfaffenhofen a.d.Ilm RD | 125,085 | 44.8 | 140.0 |
| 10 | Rottal-Inn RD | 119,617 | 44.7 | 139.5 |
source: GfK Demographics Germany 2018; UD = urban district; RD = rural district
With 2.12 people per household, Baden-Württemberg has the highest average household size among Germany’s federal states, followed by Rhineland-Palatinate at 2.10 people per household. With 1.78 people per household, Berlin has the smallest average household size. The national average is 2.02 people per household.
About the study
GfK Demographics offers demographic insights for various regional levels. The dataset provides information on Germany's population and households according to household type (single- and multiple-person with or without children, as well as immigrant households), age range (i.e., age of household head), income level (divided into seven brackets), as well as the architectural profile of the residence (single-, dual- or multiple-family house, etc.).
Marketing and sales divisions use these insights to locate their target groups and concentrate campaigns in regions with the highest affinity for certain products. GfK Demographics is available for all of Germany's urban and rural districts, municipalities, postcodes, streets and 2.8 million street segments from GfK's Geomarketing solution area.
Additional information on GfK’s regional market data can be found here.
Print-quality illustrations can be found here.
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