Book Market 2025: Ongoing consumer restraint now also impacting the book trade

The harsh overall economic situation is now also hitting the book market. In a weak year for the retail sector as a whole in 2025, turnover of books was not able to match the positive results of the two previous years (2024: +1.8 per cent, 2023: +2.8 per cent). Turnover across the central sales channels (retail bookstores, e-commerce including Amazon, railway station bookstores, department stores, electronic goods stores and drugstores) fell by 2.9 per cent compared to 2024. In a three-year comparison, however, turnover is still 1.6 per cent higher than in 2022, the first year following the coronavirus pandemic. Business in local bookstores in 2025 was 3 per cent down on the previous year, but here too there was an increase compared to 2022 (+1 per cent). These are the findings of the industry monitor BUCH report, which is published today.

"The book market is currently in the same situation as the entire retail sector: in view of the ongoing adverse consumer climate, the assessment for 2025 is somewhat mixed. High cost pressure and an immense amount of bureaucracy pose additional hurdles for retailers, publishing houses and book logistics companies. The continuing enthusiasm for books among young people gives cause for hope: Interest in new-adult titles in particular, and therefore turnover in fiction, continues to grow. This means that the book industry is heading into the new year faced with many challenges, but also with optimism and confidence," says Sebastian Guggolz, Chairman of the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels (German Publishers & Booksellers Association).

Despite declining overall turnover, fiction grew again, by 1.3 per cent compared to 2024 (and by 14.9 per cent compared to 2022). Other product groups failed to match the previous year's results. Books for children and young adults closed the year with a slight drop in turnover of 2.5 per cent and non-fiction with a drop of 4.7 per cent. Companions were also unable to maintain their level of turnover (-7 per cent).

According to Media Control, the best-selling book of 2025 (hardback) was “Der Nachbar” by Sebastian Fitzek. “Asterix 41” by Fabcaro and Didier Conrad ranked in second place followed by “The Secret of Secrets” by Dan Brown in third place. 

The published data for the following sales channels: retail book trade, e-commerce incl. Amazon, railway station bookstores, department stores, as well as electronic goods stores and drugstores, provide an initial indication of the trend for the development of the book market in 2025. Comprehensive book market figures, including all other sales channels (direct from publishers, mail-order book trade, other sales outlets, book clubs) plus business from books ordered by the public from physical bookstores, will be available in the summer of 2026. 

The industry monitor BUCH is published monthly by the Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels. It is based on data from the Media Control retail panel. For more information and to register go to: www.boersenverein.de/branchen-monitor-buch