Darmstadt, Kreisfreie Stadt: population, economy and official figures

Darmstadt, Kreisfreie Stadt is a district (Kreis) in Hesse, Germany. Darmstadt, Kreisfreie Stadt had 167,029 residents on 1 January 2025, 2.7% of Hesse and 0.20% of Germany; 186th largest of 400 districts in Germany.

In depth

• Economy, jobs and prices in Darmstadt, Kreisfreie Stadt: GDP per person was 84,000 purchasing power standards (PPS) in 2023, 219% of the EU average (117% for Germany); 13th highest of 400 districts in Germany.
• Health in Darmstadt, Kreisfreie Stadt: In 2024, the city of Darmstadt had 19.5 doctors per 10,000 residents, compared with 13.1 in the median German district, which ranks it 47th highest of 400 districts. In 2019 the figure was 21.0.
• Education in Darmstadt, Kreisfreie Stadt: In 2023, the city of Darmstadt recorded a share of school leavers without even a lower secondary certificate (Hauptschulabschluss) of 6.0%, compared with 7.0% in the median German district, which ranks it 124th lowest of 400 districts. It was 4.4% in 2019.
• Poverty and living standards in Darmstadt, Kreisfreie Stadt: In 2023, the city of Darmstadt recorded a share of residents under 65 living on basic income support (Bürgergeld, formerly Hartz IV) of 9.9%, compared with 6.5% in the median German district, which ranks it 86th highest of 400 districts. That is down from 10.0% in 2019.
• Government budget and revenue in Darmstadt, Kreisfreie Stadt: In 2023, the city of Darmstadt recorded a tax revenue of its municipalities per resident of €1,983, compared with €1,446 in the median German district, which ranks it 40th highest of 400 districts. In 2019 the figure was €1,955.

Figures come from Germany's own official statistics and from Eurostat's regional statistics for NUTS 3 areas. Comparisons with the EU average use purchasing power standards (PPS), which adjust for price differences.

Other districts in Hesse

• Frankfurt am Main, Kreisfreie Stadt 756,021
• Main-Kinzig-Kreis 420,914
• Offenbach, Landkreis 358,022
• Wetteraukreis 311,593
• Darmstadt-Dieburg 302,021
• Wiesbaden, Kreisfreie Stadt 288,850
• Bergstraße 274,169
• Gießen, Landkreis 268,418
• Groß-Gerau 268,310
• Lahn-Dill-Kreis 254,074
• Marburg-Biedenkopf 242,805
• Hochtaunuskreis 241,664
• Main-Taunus-Kreis 238,775
• Kassel, Landkreis 231,073
• Fulda 222,283
• Kassel, Kreisfreie Stadt 197,230
• Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis 185,651
• Schwalm-Eder-Kreis 180,071
• Limburg-Weilburg 173,830
• Waldeck-Frankenberg 155,126
• Offenbach am Main, Kreisfreie Stadt 132,746
• Hersfeld-Rotenburg 117,414
• Vogelsbergkreis 101,163
• Werra-Meißner-Kreis 97,695
• Odenwaldkreis 93,846

Up a level: Hesse · all regions of Germany · how local power works in Germany

Sources

• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset demo_r_pjangrp3: Population on 1 January (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 4c748d3cba3a…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset demo_r_d3dens: Population density, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f4b59fe9d121…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3gdp: GDP per person, PPS (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3bf0fc662f56…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3gdp: GDP, million euros (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 096e15e5fdb3…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3empers: Employment, thousand people (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 664e4e3a6dc0…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset demo_r_pjanind3: Median age of the population (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 7bf6ade55a0d…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset demo_r_pjanind3: Share of people aged 65 or over (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 17aa0d08ab9c…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset demo_r_fagec3: Live births (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 cfda9b5f4ebd…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset reg_area3: Area, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 75302b0aafe9…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3empers: Employment (thousand persons) by NUTS 3 region and industry, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 222a97c302d3…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3gva: Gross value added at basic prices by NUTS 3 region and industry, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 c656e8563bdf…)
• Eurostat: Eurostat dataset demo_r_gind3: Population change: demographic balance and crude rates by NUTS 3 region, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 7548e948e15c…)
• Bundesinstitut für Bau-, Stadt- und Raumforschung (BBSR) im Bundesamt für Bauwesen und Raumordnung: INKAR – Indikatoren und Karten zur Raum- und Stadtentwicklung: 43 district (Kreise) indicators, 2012-2024 (table service extract), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0c743f54caf6…)

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