Life science patents granted, by filing office in Germany
Germany: Life science patents granted, by filing office was 553 patents in 2023. ▼ Falling
Life science patents granted, by filing office in Germany, 1980–2023
Source: World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in patents.
Analysis
Germany recorded 553 patents for life science patents granted, by filing office in 2023.
That represents a change of up 3.2% on the previous year and down 11.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life science patents granted, by filing office in Germany peaked at 1,051 patents in 1982 and was at its lowest, 340 patents, in 2020.
Germany ranks 12th of 70 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 44 years of available data.
Life science patents granted, by filing office in Germany, year by year
| Year | patents | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 792 patents | — |
| 1981 | 591 patents | -25.4% |
| 1982 | 1,051 patents | +77.8% |
| 1983 | 739 patents | -29.7% |
| 1984 | 722 patents | -2.3% |
| 1985 | 772 patents | +6.9% |
| 1986 | 870 patents | +12.7% |
| 1987 | 888 patents | +2.1% |
| 1988 | 831 patents | -6.4% |
| 1989 | 807 patents | -2.9% |
| 1990 | 704 patents | -12.8% |
| 1991 | 588 patents | -16.5% |
| 1992 | 593 patents | +0.9% |
| 1993 | 554 patents | -6.6% |
| 1994 | 535 patents | -3.4% |
| 1995 | 544 patents | +1.7% |
| 1996 | 538 patents | -1.1% |
| 1997 | 542 patents | +0.7% |
| 1998 | 516 patents | -4.8% |
| 1999 | 547 patents | +6.0% |
| 2000 | 460 patents | -15.9% |
| 2001 | 470 patents | +2.2% |
| 2002 | 561 patents | +19.4% |
| 2003 | 618 patents | +10.2% |
| 2004 | 747 patents | +20.9% |
| 2005 | 919 patents | +23.0% |
| 2006 | 983 patents | +7.0% |
| 2007 | 892 patents | -9.3% |
| 2008 | 679 patents | -23.9% |
| 2009 | 600 patents | -11.6% |
| 2010 | 553 patents | -7.8% |
| 2011 | 436 patents | -21.2% |
| 2012 | 602 patents | +38.1% |
| 2013 | 621 patents | +3.2% |
| 2014 | 595 patents | -4.2% |
| 2015 | 665 patents | +11.8% |
| 2016 | 692 patents | +4.1% |
| 2017 | 673 patents | -2.7% |
| 2018 | 636 patents | -5.5% |
| 2019 | 691 patents | +8.6% |
| 2020 | 340 patents | -50.8% |
| 2021 | 495 patents | +45.6% |
| 2022 | 536 patents | +8.3% |
| 2023 | 553 patents | +3.2% |
Germany compared with similar countries
- Germany's 553 patents is above the median for high income countries, which is 28 patents, 19.8× the median. (43 countries reporting)
- Germany's 553 patents is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 25.5 patents, 21.7× the median. (40 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Life science patents granted, by filing office in Germany changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | +77.8% | 591 patents | 1,051 patents |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 806.3 patents | 591 patents | 1,051 patents | 10 |
| 1990s | 566.1 patents | 516 patents | 704 patents | 10 |
| 2000s | 692.9 patents | 460 patents | 983 patents | 10 |
| 2010s | 616.4 patents | 436 patents | 692 patents | 10 |
| 2020s | 481 patents | 340 patents | 553 patents | 4 |
Countries ranked near Germany
- 9 United Kingdom 749 patents compare
- 10 Malaysia 642 patents compare
- 11 France 572 patents compare
- 13 Serbia 404 patents compare
- 14 Netherlands 398 patents compare
- 15 Luxembourg 271 patents compare
More science & technology data for Germany
- Mobile landline subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, gaps filled 129.15 (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per capita 1.31 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, gaps filled 109.20 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per square kilometre 301.63 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, annual growth rate 3.6 % change on previous year (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, annual growth rate 3.61 % change on previous year (2024)
- Patent applications, nonresidents, gaps filled 19,177 (2024)
- Patent applications, nonresidents 19,177 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life science patents granted, by filing office in Germany?
- Life science patents granted, by filing office in Germany was 553 patents in 2023, according to World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest life science patents granted, by filing office recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 1,051 patents in 1982.
- What is the lowest life science patents granted, by filing office recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 340 patents in 2020.
- How does Germany rank for life science patents granted, by filing office?
- Germany ranks 12th out of 70 countries with data for 2023.
- Is life science patents granted, by filing office rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Germany data come from?
- The figures come from World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Life science patents granted, by filing office. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 44 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Patents granted within the fields of medical technology, biotechnology, and pharmaceuticals by filing office. These patents cover a wide range of innovations, such as medical devices, diagnostic methods, genetic engineering techniques, biotechnological processes and new drugs.