How digital are the federal states? How quickly is digitalisation progressing? What characterises the federal states’ digital policies? The Bitkom State Index provides answers to these questions. Using more than 1,100 data points, the digital ranking assesses the federal states every two years in the areas of digital society, the digital economy, digital infrastructure, and governance & administration.

The top three places in the digital economy category are held by Hamburg as the overall winner of the ranking with a total of 72 points, Berlin with 68 points and Baden-Württemberg with 65 points. The overall average for the federal states within this category stands at 49.2 out of a possible 100 points in 2026.

Making social progress measurable

In order to assess the economy’s innovative strength and level of digitalisation, the study considered the relevance of the ICT sector and the field of computer science in higher education and vocational training, as well as the number of start-ups founded, public procurement practices, and the number of research institutions in key technologies.

The frontrunner, Hamburg, stands out with an impressive number of new start-ups (2025: 203) and several pilot projects that support the local economy:

With Hamburg Digital-Check and Hamburg-Kredit Digital, Hamburg provides targeted support for small and medium-sized enterprises, craft businesses, freelancers and start-ups in their digital transformation. The programmes promote consultancy, investment and measures for the digitalisation of business processes, market development and IT security.

With GovTechHH, Hamburg is systematically expanding cooperation between the public sector and innovative providers. The programme identifies specific challenges within the administration and matches them with suitable digital solutions from start-ups and companies. Pilot projects, experimental clauses and supported implementation phases facilitate the practical application of new technologies.

Rural regions at a disadvantage

Unsurprisingly, federal states with less developed urban structures have a comparatively low score in the digital economy category. Thuringia (29 points), Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (30 points), Saxony-Anhalt (37 points), Schleswig-Holstein (38 points) and Lower Saxony (39 points) are thus well below the overall average of the ranking.

It therefore appears that there is still room for improvement, particularly in eastern German federal states, when it comes to start-ups and the growth of the digital economy.

More information on the study results is available here or live on site at #SCCON26.