Following a spike to 2.5 children per woman in the mid-1960s (during the second wave of the post-WWII baby boom), Germany's fertility rate then fell sharply to around 1.5 children per woman in the 1970s, and it has fluctuated between 1.2 and 1.6 children per woman ever since. Germany's fertility rate has been below the natural replacement level of roughly 2.1 children per woman since 1970, meaning that long-term natural population growth is unsustainable. In fact, Germany has experienced a natural population decline in every year since 1972, and its population has only grown or been sustained at its current level through high net immigration rates.Find more statistics on other topics about Germany with key insights such as crude birth rate, life expectancy of women at birth, and total life expectancy at birth.

Historical chart and dataset showing Germany birth rate by year from 1950 to 2025.

The fertility rate of a country is the average number of children that women from that country will have throughout their reproductive years. In Germany in 1800, the average woman of childbearing age would have 5.4 children over the course of their lifetime. It remained around this number until the late 1820s, when it then dropped to just under five, which was a long-term effect of the Napoleonic Period in Europe. From this point until the end of the nineteenth century, Germany's fertility rate was rather sporadic, reaching it's lowest point in 1855 with an average of 4.6 births per woman, and it's highest point in 1875 (just after the foundation of the German Empire in 1871), with an average of 5.4 live births per woman. From the beginning of the twentieth century until the end of the Second World War, Germany's fertility rate dropped from around 5 children per woman in 1900, to 1.9 in 1945. The only time where the fertility rate increased was in the inter-war years. Like other countries heavily involved in the Second World War, Germany (both East and West) experienced a Baby Boom from the late 1940s to the late 1960s, however it then dropped to it's lowest point of just 1.3 children per woman by 1995, shortly after the re-unification of Germany. In recent years, Germany's fertility rate has gradually been increasing again, and is expected to reach 1.6 in 2020, its highest rate in over forty years.

In Germany, the crude birth rate in 1800 was 38 live births per thousand people, meaning that 3.8 percent of the population had been born in that year. In the nineteenth century, Germany's crude birth rate fluctuated between 34 and 40 births per thousand people. Since the turn of the twentieth century however, the crude birth rate has been in decline, although there were a few periods where it did increase. These increases took place during periods of economic recovery, after both world wars, and after the Great Depression. The largest period of increase was after the Second World War, and lasted until the late 1960s, before decreasing to 10.3 in 1980, where it then plateaus between eight and eleven, and it is expected to be 9.4 births per thousand people in 2020.

Historical chart and dataset showing Germany fertility rate by year from 1950 to 2025.

Germany DE: Fertility Rate: Total: Births per Woman data was reported at 1.390 Ratio in 2023. This records a decrease from the previous number of 1.455 Ratio for 2022. Germany DE: Fertility Rate: Total: Births per Woman data is updated yearly, averaging 1.425 Ratio from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2023, with 64 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 2.540 Ratio in 1964 and a record low of 1.240 Ratio in 1994. Germany DE: Fertility Rate: Total: Births per Woman data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Germany – Table DE.World Bank.WDI: Social: Health Statistics. Total fertility rate represents the number of children that would be born to a woman if she were to live to the end of her childbearing years and bear children in accordance with age-specific fertility rates of the specified year.;(1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2024 Revision; (2) Statistical databases and publications from national statistical offices; (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics.;Weighted average;Relevance to gender indicator: it can indicate the status of women within households and a woman’s decision about the number and spacing of children.

Graph and download economic data for Crude Birth Rate for Germany (SPDYNCBRTINDEU) from 1960 to 2023 about birth, crude, Germany, and rate.

Germany DE: Birth Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data was reported at 8.300 Ratio in 2023. This records a decrease from the previous number of 8.800 Ratio for 2022. Germany DE: Birth Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data is updated yearly, averaging 9.950 Ratio from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2023, with 64 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 18.100 Ratio in 1963 and a record low of 8.100 Ratio in 2009. Germany DE: Birth Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Germany – Table DE.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Crude birth rate indicates the number of live births occurring during the year, per 1,000 population estimated at midyear. Subtracting the crude death rate from the crude birth rate provides the rate of natural increase, which is equal to the rate of population change in the absence of migration.;(1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2024 Revision; (2) Statistical databases and publications from national statistical offices; (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics; (4) United Nations Statistics Division. Population and Vital Statistics Reprot (various years).;Weighted average;

From 1950 to 2020, fertility patterns in Germany changed drastically, as women gradually had children at later stages in life. The baby boom that followed the Second World War was a unique event, but women in their twenties had the highest birth rates by a significant margin. This remained true until the 1990s, when birth rates among women in their early thirties overtook those of women aged 20-24, before having the highest birth rates in the country from around 2010 onwards. Birth rates among women in their late thirties also fluctuated over the given period, but have generally followed the trajectory of the age group below, and this age group is on course to have the second highest birth rate in Germany in the next decade.

Birth rates among teenagers have also dropped significantly, from a peak of almost 50 births per 1,000 women in 1970, to just eight births in 2020. Throughout the 2010s, birth rates among women in their early forties were actually higher than teen pregnancies; this is not only due to societal trends, but improvements in assisted reproductive technologies have increased conception rates among older age groups.

Graph and download economic data for Adolescent Fertility Rate for Germany (SPADOTFRTDEU) from 1960 to 2023 about 15 to 19 years, fertility, Germany, and rate.

Germany FSO Projection: Population: High Birth Rate Based Trend data was reported at 71,236.000 Person th in 2060. This records a decrease from the previous number of 71,533.000 Person th for 2059. Germany FSO Projection: Population: High Birth Rate Based Trend data is updated yearly, averaging 78,472.000 Person th from Dec 2014 (Median) to 2060, with 47 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 81,691.000 Person th in 2019 and a record low of 71,236.000 Person th in 2060. Germany FSO Projection: Population: High Birth Rate Based Trend data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federal Statistics Office Germany. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Germany – Table DE.G003: Population: Projection: Federal Statistics Office Germany.

In 2024, 8.1 live births per 1,000 inhabitants were recorded in Germany. This was a decrease compared to the previous year, continuing the general trend of declining birth rates. The number of deaths in Germany has been exceeding the number of births in recent years.

Fertility rate, total (births per woman) in Germany was reported at 1.39 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Germany - Fertility rate, total (births per woman) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on June of 2025.

Birth rate, crude (per 1,000 people) in Germany was reported at 8.3 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Germany - Birth rate, crude - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on June of 2025.

Graph and download economic data for Fertility Rate, Total for Germany (SPDYNTFRTINDEU) from 1960 to 2023 about fertility, Germany, and rate.

Germany: Fertility rate, births per woman: The latest value from 2022 is 1.46 births per woman, a decline from 1.58 births per woman in 2021. In comparison, the world average is 2.51 births per woman, based on data from 192 countries. Historically, the average for Germany from 1960 to 2022 is 1.59 births per woman. The minimum value, 1.24 births per woman, was reached in 1994 while the maximum of 2.54 births per woman was recorded in 1964.

In February 2025, there were around 13 percent less births recorded in Germany than the same month a year before. Monthly birth rates were declining year-on-year, except for February and April 2024.

Germany's death rate has exceeded its death rate in every year since 1972, meaning that its population has been in a natural decline for over five decades. However, Germany's population has remained fairly stable at over 80 million during this period, due to the influence of immigration.Find more statistics on other topics about Germany with key insights such as life expectancy of women at birth, total life expectancy at birth, and total fertility rate.

This statistic shows the birth rate in Germany in 2023, by age of mothers. That year, the birth rate for women aged 20 years old was 15.9. The birth rate shows the number of live births per 1,000 women of each age. This means there were 15.9 live births in Germany per 1,000 women aged 20. Women aged 32 have the highest birth rate, with around 102 life births per 1,000 women in that age.

Combined birth rates (per woman): Germany,Years, Ages