Germany: Fixed telephone subscriptions

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Germany's fixed telephone subscriptions fell 0.8% on 2023 (from 38.7 million to 38.4 million).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +0.2% and a typical year strayed about 3.9% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 77.2% in 1970 and the biggest yearly fall was 10% in 2019. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is downward, about 907,697 a year. A straight line explains 76% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2024, Germany had the 4th highest value of the 146 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Germany in the 2024 ranking

• China — 1st of 146: 166.51 million
• United States — 2nd of 146: 81.55 million
• India — 3rd of 146: 39.24 million
• Mexico — 5th of 146: 29.52 million
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 6th of 146: 28.23 million
• United Kingdom — 7th of 146: 23.77 million

What this measures

Fixed telephone subscriptions refers to the sum of active number of analogue fixed telephone lines, voice-over-IP (VoIP) subscriptions, fixed wireless local loop (WLL) subscriptions, ISDN voice-channel equivalents and fixed public payphones.

Limitations: Operators have traditionally been the main source of telecommunications data, so information on subscriptions has been widely available for most countries. This gives a general idea of access, but a more precise measure is the penetration rate - the share of households with access to telecommunications. During the past few years more information on information and communication technology use has become available from household and business surveys. Also important are data on actual use of telecommunications services. Ideally, statistics on telecommunications (and other information and communications technologies) should be compiled for all three measures: subscriptions, access, and use.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.

All 65 values

Fixed telephone subscriptions in nearby economies

• Albania — 165,380 (2024)
• Andorra — 53,215 (2024)
• Armenia — 297,328 (2024)
• Austria — 3.48 million (2024)
• Azerbaijan — 1.33 million (2024)
• Belarus — 4.14 million (2024)
• Belgium — 2.49 million (2024)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 583,045 (2024)
• Bulgaria — 551,943 (2024)
• Croatia — 1.1 million (2024)
• Cyprus — 245,464 (2024)

More infrastructure data for Germany

• Fixed telephone subscriptions (per 100 people) — 45.42 (2024)
• Air transport, registered carrier departures worldwide — 655,842 (2023)
• Air transport, freight (million ton-km) — 12,767 (2023)
• Air transport, passengers carried — 80.2 million (2023)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions — 109.2 million (2024)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions (per 100 people) — 129.15 (2024)
• Patent applications, nonresidents — 19,177 (2024)
• Patent applications, residents — 40,085 (2024)
• ICT service exports (BoP, current US$) — US$59.44 billion (2025)
• ICT service exports (% of service exports, BoP)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Germany's fixed telephone subscriptions?

38.4 million in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1960?

It is up 1,092% from 3.22 million in 1960 (3.95% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 54.79 million in 2005 and the lowest 3.22 million in 1960.

How does Germany rank?

4th highest of 146 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in fixed telephone subscriptions unusual for Germany?

In 2024, Germany's fixed telephone subscriptions fell 0.8% on 2023 (from 38.7 million to 38.4 million). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +0.2% and a typical year strayed about 3.9% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator IT.MLT.MAIN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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