Bochum, Kreisfreie Stadt: population, economy and official figures

Bochum, Kreisfreie Stadt is a district (Kreis) in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Bochum, Kreisfreie Stadt had 358,676 residents on 1 January 2025, 2.0% of North Rhine-Westphalia and 0.43% of Germany; 36th largest of 400 districts in Germany.

In depth

• Economy, jobs and prices in Bochum, Kreisfreie Stadt: GDP per person was 39,900 purchasing power standards (PPS) in 2023, 104% of the EU average (117% for Germany); 162nd highest of 400 districts in Germany.
• Health in Bochum, Kreisfreie Stadt: In 2024, the city of Bochum had 16.0 doctors per 10,000 residents, compared with 13.1 in the median German district, which ranks it 103rd highest of 400 districts. It was 14.5 in 2019.
• Education in Bochum, Kreisfreie Stadt: In 2023, the city of Bochum recorded a share of school leavers without even a lower secondary certificate (Hauptschulabschluss) of 6.4%, compared with 7.0% in the median German district, which ranks it 154th lowest of 400 districts. That is down from 7.8% in 2019.
• Poverty and living standards in Bochum, Kreisfreie Stadt: The share of residents under 65 living on basic income support (Bürgergeld, formerly Hartz IV) in the city of Bochum was 14.4% in 2023, 23rd highest of 400 districts in Germany; the median district stood at 6.5%. In 2019 the figure was 14.9%.
• Government budget and revenue in Bochum, Kreisfreie Stadt: At €1,598 in 2023, the tax revenue of its municipalities per resident in the city of Bochum ranked 122nd highest of 400 German districts (district median €1,446). It was €1,260 in 2019.

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 North Rhine-Westphalia

• Köln, Kreisfreie Stadt 1,024,621
• Recklinghausen 621,305
• Düsseldorf, Kreisfreie Stadt 618,685
• Rhein-Sieg-Kreis 605,441
• Dortmund, Kreisfreie Stadt 603,462
• Städteregion Aachen 582,410
• Essen, Kreisfreie Stadt 574,682
• Duisburg, Kreisfreie Stadt 502,270
• Mettmann 490,910
• Rhein-Erft-Kreis 477,988
• Wesel 457,918
• Rhein-Kreis Neuss 457,077
• Steinfurt 451,712
• Märkischer Kreis 408,046
• Unna 393,784
• Borken 380,796
• Gütersloh 363,982
• Wuppertal, Kreisfreie Stadt 358,193
• Lippe 347,149
• Bielefeld, Kreisfreie Stadt 331,605
• Bonn, Kreisfreie Stadt 323,336
• Kleve 322,018
• Minden-Lübbecke 320,557
• Paderborn 315,912
• Ennepe-Ruhr-Kreis 314,167
• Münster, Kreisfreie Stadt 308,258
• Soest 300,297
• Viersen 297,857
• Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis 284,273
• Warendorf 282,639
• Düren 279,285
• Siegen-Wittgenstein 274,074
• Oberbergischer Kreis 274,057
• Gelsenkirchen, Kreisfreie Stadt 267,930
• Mönchengladbach, Kreisfreie Stadt 267,213
• Heinsberg 263,681
• Hochsauerlandkreis 260,843
• Herford 254,404
• Krefeld, Kreisfreie Stadt 231,406
• Coesfeld 227,859
• Oberhausen, Kreisfreie Stadt 213,646
• Euskirchen 202,609
• Hagen, Kreisfreie Stadt 190,384
• Hamm, Kreisfreie Stadt 179,968
• Mülheim an der Ruhr, Kreisfreie Stadt 173,050
• Leverkusen, Kreisfreie Stadt 168,581
• Solingen, Kreisfreie Stadt 165,626
• Herne, Kreisfreie Stadt 155,851
• Höxter 139,252
• Olpe 132,346
• Bottrop, Kreisfreie Stadt 118,535
• Remscheid, Kreisfreie Stadt 113,828

Up a level: North Rhine-Westphalia · 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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