health - Fewer pharmacies for more people
Supply with pharmacies is getting worse. On average, there were 4,819 people per pharmacy in Germany at the end of 2023. Ten years ago, according to the Statistical Federal Office, it was still an average of 3,909 inhabitants and inhabitants.
The number of people a pharmacy serves varies by federal state: In the city-states of Bremen (5,321), Berlin (5,290), and Hamburg (5,177), there were above-average many. It looked different in Saarland: Here, on average, 3,781 people went to a pharmacy. In Saxony-Anhalt, there were 3,894, and in Thuringia 4,288.
In 2023, according to the results of the Microcensus, around 214,000 people worked in pharmacies in this country. Pharmacists and pharmacists made up 27.9% of the staff, 31.5% were pharmaceutical-technical assistants and assistants. Saleswomen and salesmen accounted for 16.8%, and there were also 6% drivers.
Revenue decline in 2023 after several good years
The revenue of pharmacies has increased in real terms by more than one third from 2013 to 2023. This was much stronger than the revenue growth in the retail trade as a whole (9.1% more), as the statisticians from Wiesbaden reported.
Sales grew particularly strongly during the Corona pandemic, when pharmacies, in contrast to the rest of retail trade, never closed. However, sales went back in the previous year: In Germany, pharmacies set 3% less revenue in 2023 than in the previous year.
Source: Destatis on pharmacies
- The Federal Statistical Office, headquartered in Wiesbaden, provided data on the average population per pharmacy in Germany from 2013 to 2023.
- In contrast to Saarland, which had an average of 3,781 people per pharmacy, the city-state of Berlin, located in Germany, had a higher number with 5,290 individuals per pharmacy.
- According to the Microcensus, in 2023, 214,000 people were employed in pharmacies across Germany, with roles such as pharmacists, pharmaceutical-technical assistants, and sales staff being the most common.
- Despite the revenue growth in real terms by more than one third from 2013 to 2023, pharmacies in Germany saw a 3% decrease in revenue in 2023 compared to the previous year.
- The Federal Statistical Office in Berlin also reported that Hamburg, another city-state in Germany, had an average of 5,177 people per pharmacy, while Bremen had an even higher population density of 5,321 individuals per pharmacy.
