German industrial robot installations fall to 24,800 as production and exports weaken
Germany installed 24,800 industrial robots in 2025, accounting for 41% of all new installations in the EU. However, domestic robot production fell 24% and exports dropped 37%, highlighting weaker demand and Germany’s diminishing role as an export base.
Germany retains its leading position in the EU
German manufacturers installed 24,800 industrial robots in 2025, representing 41% of all new installations in the European Union, according to the International Federation of Robotics figures reported by BigData-Insider. Germany remained the EU’s largest automation market by a wide margin and ranked fifth worldwide for annual installations, behind China, Japan, the United States and South Korea.
The installation total nevertheless showed a weakening domestic market. New deployments fell 8% from 2024 and remained below the 2023 peak of 28,000 units. Across all industries, installations increased by an average of only 2% per year between 2020 and 2025. The latest result therefore reflects the scale of Germany’s manufacturing base more than strong market momentum.
Automotive demand loses share
The automotive industry remained the largest buyer, installing 5,800 robots, or 23% of the German total. Its share has fallen substantially from 40% in 2020. The IFR linked weaker demand partly to slower electric-vehicle sales, political uncertainty and delayed investment as manufacturers reassessed capacity requirements.
Demand also declined in other core industrial segments. Metalworking companies installed 5,300 robots, 13% fewer than a year earlier. The chemical and plastics industry deployed 3,000 units, a decline of 5%. Together with automotive manufacturing, these sectors accounted for more than half of Germany’s new installations, leaving the overall market highly exposed to investment decisions in a small group of capital-intensive industries.
Production and exports contract sharply
The deterioration was more pronounced among robot manufacturers. German industrial robot production fell 24% in 2025 to 23,700 units, while exports dropped 37% to 15,100 units. The steeper fall in exports indicates that weakness extended beyond investment conditions in Germany to demand and supply-chain changes across international markets.
According to the IFR, robot suppliers are increasingly manufacturing close to their principal sales markets. This shift is reducing Germany’s role as an export production base. International suppliers also frequently use Germany as a European sales hub, meaning weak demand elsewhere in Europe affects imports into these hubs as well as subsequent re-exports.
The figures reveal a divide between Germany’s importance as a user of automation and the performance of its domestic robotics industry. A 41% share of EU installations confirms the country’s central place in European manufacturing, but it does not signal equivalent strength in local output or foreign sales. Producers serving the German market must contend with restrained capital expenditure at home and a manufacturing footprint that is becoming more regional internationally.
The IFR sees potential among small and medium-sized manufacturers for automation systems that are cheaper, more flexible and easier to program. Collaborative robots and Robot-as-a-Service models could lower the financial and technical barriers to adoption beyond traditional high-volume production. The report does not establish whether these products can offset weaker investment by the automotive, metalworking, chemical and plastics industries, which continue to determine the direction of Germany’s robot market.