Market Research Companies in Berlin

Key figures for researchers

Population

3,700,577 (31 December 2025)¹

Districts

12 Bezirke: Mitte, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg, Pankow, Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, Spandau, Steglitz-Zehlendorf, Tempelhof-Schöneberg, Neukölln, Treptow-Köpenick, Marzahn-Hellersdorf, Lichtenberg, Reinickendorf¹

Foreign nationals

24.9% of registered residents, from 17.7% in Steglitz-Zehlendorf to 36.9% in Mitte (end of 2025)²

Migration background

42.3% of registered residents (end of 2025), up from 41.1% a year earlier³

Average age

42.9 years (population register, end of 2025)²

Households

2.23 million, 1.76 people on average; 56.8% are one-person households (end of 2025)⁴

Housing

84.6% of households in residential buildings rent their home (2022)⁵

Moves

368,825 people moved in and 349,126 moved out in 2025¹

Economy

GDP of €218.3 billion in 2025, up 1.1% in real terms⁶

Research guide

Research landscape

Berlin is one of the main research hubs in Germany, alongside Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich and Nuremberg. Full-service agencies work alongside qualitative specialists, B2B and healthcare firms, field and telephone studios and online panel providers. As the federal capital, with a GDP of €218.3 billion in 2025, the city is also a base for public sector, political and social research, as well as B2B studies.

Who you will interview

Berlin is both a city and a federal state (Land), with 3,700,577 inhabitants at the end of 2025. According to the population register, 24.9% of residents held a foreign nationality and 42.3% had a migration background, up from 41.1% a year earlier. For migrant audiences, consider translated questionnaires or bilingual interviewers.

Households are small: 1.76 people on average, and 56.8% are one-person households. Studies of families or couples therefore need quotas on household type. The average age of registered residents was 42.9 years at the end of 2025.

Fieldwork in practice

Berlin has 12 districts (Bezirke), with large differences between them. The share of foreign nationals ranges from 17.7% in Steglitz-Zehlendorf and 17.8% in Treptow-Köpenick to 30.6% in Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg and 36.9% in Mitte. The share of residents with a migration background ranges from 27.7% in Treptow-Köpenick to 59.3% in Mitte. Sampling or quotas by district help control the spread of interviews.

Most people rent: in 2022, 84.6% of households in residential buildings were tenants and 15.4% owners. The population also moves a lot (368,825 arrivals and 349,126 departures in 2025), so address lists age quickly and door-to-door studies need more contact attempts. Online panels are the main method for consumer surveys, with telephone or face-to-face interviews for older or offline audiences.

Focus groups and qualitative research

In-person focus groups are usually held in dedicated studios with a one-way mirror and video streaming, most of them in central districts. Allow for travel time from outer districts such as Spandau, Marzahn-Hellersdorf or Treptow-Köpenick when scheduling evening groups.

Ask the agency for its Berlin incentive levels and recruitment lead times; B2B, public sector and senior respondents often prefer online interviews. Online communities and video interviews are widely used, alone or alongside in-person groups.

Timing

Berlin sets its own school holidays. In 2026/27: autumn holidays from 19 to 31 October 2026, Christmas holidays from 23 December 2026 to 2 January 2027, winter holidays from 1 to 6 February 2027, Easter holidays from 22 March to 2 April 2027, days off on 7 May and on 18 and 19 May 2027, and summer holidays from 1 July to 14 August 2027. Families and business targets are harder to reach in these periods.

International Women’s Day (8 March) is a public holiday in Berlin, which is not the case in most other Länder. Check national public holidays in the Germany guide.

Working with a Berlin agency

• Share a clear brief: objectives, target, sample size, districts or areas, method, languages and deadline.
• For face-to-face or recruitment, ask how the agency reaches renters, recent movers and migrant communities.
• For focus groups, ask for the studio address, viewing room capacity, streaming options and incentive levels.
• Ask whether the agency is a member of ADM or BVM and follows the German research guidelines.
• Compare several proposals: you can send one request to up to 5 Berlin companies from this page.

National rules (data protection, holidays, sampling across regions) are covered in our guide to market research in Germany.