Overview
- About 1.9 million people with high educational attainment were classified as at risk of poverty in 2025, roughly 350,000 more than in 2022.
- The number of residents with higher qualifications grew to around 21.04 million in 2025 from 19.41 million in 2022.
- The unemployment rate for people with academic credentials rose to 3.3% from 2.2% since 2022, according to the Federal Employment Agency.
- Overall, some 13.3 million people in Germany were counted as poverty‑vulnerable in 2024, with single adults and single parents particularly affected.
- Risk remained much higher for the low‑educated, with about 4.14 million of 14.34 million in that group deemed vulnerable in 2025 under the 60%-of-median-income measure (€1,446 per month for a single adult).