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Museums and exhibition centres in Germany enjoyed a 1.3 percent increase in visits in 2024 compared to the previous year. At 7,975, the number of special exhibitions was back at the 2022 level after a slight decline, according to the overall statistical survey carried out by the Institute for Museum Research at the SPK every year across Germany. It shows that museums and exhibition centres continued to operate at a high level in 2024.

Museums: 102.9 million visits, 22.9 per cent more exhibitions, moderate price adjustments

4,592 of the more than 6,500 museums contacted took part in the survey. They reported a total of 102.9 million visits for 2024 - a slight increase of almost two per cent compared to 2023. 6,384 exhibitions were also reported for 2024, which corresponds to a significant increase of around 23 per cent compared to the previous year.

Museum admission prices are also surveyed as part of the overall statistical survey. In 2024, the average admission price was 5.60 euros - only 70 cents more than in 2019. This price increase of around 14 per cent in five years is below the general inflation rate and below the average wage and salary development over the same period.

Exhibition centres: slight decline to 4.5 million visits

Exhibition centres, i.e. institutions that show exhibitions but do not have their own collections, recorded a total of 4.5 million visits in 2024. This corresponds to a slight decrease of 11 per cent compared to the previous year. The number of exhibitions shown in 2024 was 1,591, the same level as in the previous year. Of the 507 exhibition centres contacted, 283 submitted their visit figures to the Institute for Museum Research.

Special questionnaire on provenance research: every fifth museum
takes responsibility

In addition to the visit and exhibition data collected annually, the Institute of Museum Research also requested data on provenance research as part of the overall survey for 2024. Researching the history of their own collections and the provenance of objects is one of the core tasks of museums. However, the current survey focussed on provenance research into collection items from sensitive contexts - such as Nazi-looted property, colonial contexts or expropriations in the Soviet Occupation Zone/GDR. According to their own information, 16.5 per cent of the responding museums carry out such specialised provenance research; a further 3.3 per cent are planning to do so. This means that around one in five museums is actively dealing with the conflict-ridden parts of its collection history. In the last survey on provenance research in 2016, only 11.3 per cent were conducting or planning such research.

Figures collected for zoos and botanical gardens for the first time

For 2024, the Institute for Museum Research included zoos, animal parks and botanical gardens in its survey for the first time, as these institutions are also considered museums according to the International Council of Museums (ICOM). They reported a total of 23.3 million visits, which are not included in the 107.4 million visits to traditional museums. Zoos and animal parks accounted for 13.6 million and botanical gardens for 9.7 million. For the first survey, participation was pleasingly high: of the 146 zoos and animal parks contacted, just over half submitted their figures, and almost 60 per cent of the 92 botanical gardens.

Prof Dr Marion Ackermann, President of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, explains: "The Institute for Museum Research's statistical survey for 2024 shows that museums and exhibition centres continue to be very popular - their visitor numbers have even stabilised at a consistently high level. This underlines how important museums are for our society. That is why they must continue to receive reliable and sustainable support in the future so that they can fulfil their important role in cultural education."

Silvia Willkomm, Managing Director of the German Museums Association, says: "Museums and exhibition centres are facing a wide range of challenges - from social upheaval and financial uncertainty to technological changes and new expectations in terms of participation and sustainability. They are responding to these developments with creative energy: this is shown by the visitor figures for 2024 and confirms their social relevance. Dealing with sensitive collection topics also highlights the museums' commitment to responsible, transparent and future-orientated museum work.

For the Director of the Institute for Museum Research, Prof. Dr Patricia Rahemipour, one thing is certain: "The annual overall statistics serve the Institute for Museum Research as an important indicator of the effectiveness of museums' work in society. The public clearly shows us that they are satisfied with this work - which of course makes us very happy. By including zoos and botanical gardens for the first time, we have also fully mapped the spectrum of the museum landscape and made its diversity of content even more clearly visible. This is precisely why a differentiated view is becoming increasingly important in order to really understand the situation of individual museums. Whether a museum was successful in 2024 depended heavily on its location, sponsorship and sector. The hyper-individualisation of the museum sector continues."

Information on museum statistics and the overall statistical survey at the Institute for Museum Research

https://www.smb.museum/museen-einrichtungen/institut-fuer-museumsforschung/aufgaben/museumsstatistik/

Enquiries can be addressed to:

Institute for Museum Research
In der Halde 1, 14195 Berlin
Tel. 030/266 4269 01
Mail: ifm(at)smb.spk-berlin(dot)de