According to an evaluation released by the German Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) on Monday regarding EU and EFTA states, Germany remains the most popular destination for Germans living abroad in Europe. The data for early 2025 shows that approximately 329,900 German citizens were registered residents in Switzerland. This makes the German community the second-largest foreign nationality group in the country, trailing only the Italians. The resident population is continually increasing, seeing a rise of 1.9 percent, representing an addition of roughly 6,300 people compared to the previous year. Furthermore, over the past decade, the number of Germans in Switzerland has grown by 10.7 percent, amounting to an increase of approximately 32,000 people.
Austria followed in the country ranking, housing over 239,500 German citizens in early 2025, establishing itself as the largest foreign nationality group in the Alpine republic. The growth rate here is noted as being faster than in Switzerland. Compared to 2024, the increase reached 2.9 percent, or about 6,700 individuals. Looking back ten years, the number of German residents in Austria increased by an impressive 40.5 percent, adding about 69,000 people. The convenience of both countries is highlighted, as Switzerland and Austria both border Germany, and German is an official language, eliminating language barriers.
Another substantial concentration of German citizens was tracked in Spain, where approximately 131,800 people resided in early 2025. Historically, the number of Germans in Spain had been declining for many years; however, a recovery trend has been observed since 2022. In 2025, the German presence rose by 3.0 percent year-over-year, adding roughly 3,800 people. Despite this growth, the number of Germans in Spain in 2025 was still about 3,000 fewer than it was ten years earlier (-2.4 percent overall).
While the source provides no data regarding the reasons for living abroad-such as academic pursuits, work, or climate-a comparative analysis of the age structure for 2025 suggests differences in the expat population. For example, the residents in Austria tended to belong to younger age groups, while those in Spain were represented by generally older groups. In Austria, 13.3 percent of the German community were aged 65 and over, compared to Spain’s rate of 26.8 percent, which is double the percentage observed in Austria.