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Countries With the Most German Speakers

Name the twelve countries that have the most people who speak German as their native language.
Percentages from Wikipedia
Total population as of 1 January 2026. More info here.
Quiz by
Aaron197
Featured Quiz
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Last updated: January 15, 2026
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First submittedDecember 11, 2018
Times taken86,644
Average score78.6%
Rating4.90
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Keep scrolling down for answers and more stats ...
# Speakers
%
Country
68.1 m
81.34
Germany
8.07 m
88.6
Austria
5.52 m
61.4
Switzerland
3.45 m
1.62
Brazil
1.23 m
1.77
France
1.06 m
0.3
United States
322 k
0.8
Canada
# Speakers
%
Country
301 k
0.51
Italy
227 k
0.6
Poland
211 k
0.44
Spain
108 k
0.4
Australia
94.3 k
0.45
Kazakhstan
82.4 k
0.7
Belgium
82.3 k
0.65
Bolivia
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85 Comments
Quizmaster
+23
Level ∞
Jan 15, 2026
The percentage for Bolivia is very out of data (2012 data). With newer data, it would be much higher. Paraguay would also be on the list.

By the end of the century its possible that Bolivia and Paraguay will have a higher percentage of Germans than Germany itself, due to a fast-growing Mennonite in South America. (And also a collapsing native population within Germany combined with mass immigration).

There are already parts of Bolivia and Paraguay where something like 15% of births are Mennonites.

Abderrahim
+17
Level 21
Dec 12, 2018
Forgot to add Namibia
CapitalAce
+13
Level 57
Oct 23, 2020
The CIA World Factbook states that .7% of Namibians speak other European languages (other than English and Afrikaans); 6.5% and 6% of the population are of mixed European and African ancestry and European ancestry, respectively. This is out of a population of 2,630,000.
letzi
+13
Level 78
Dec 12, 2018
What about Luxembourg? German is one of the country's official languages.
Aaron197
+22
Level 76
Dec 14, 2018
German is not so widely spoken in Luxembourg. It is official but not spoken among the normal people daily.
icenice
+14
Level 75
Dec 27, 2018
Wikipedia says 81 % of the people speak german tho

("A 2009 survey pointed out that French was the language spoken by most inhabitants (99%), followed by Luxembourgish (82%), German (81%) and English (72%)")

HinesBrothers
+39
Level 77
Sep 23, 2020
@icenice this quiz goes by # of native speakers
mf3
+10
Level 90
Sep 23, 2020
Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Luxembourg all speak a (sometimes bizarre) form of German, but all write in regular German. Why Switzerland is on the list but not the other two, I can't understand. It's official but not really purely spoken in all 3.
Salsichon
+6
Level 78
Feb 4, 2025
Because more than half of the Swiss are native German speakers, the vast majority of people in Luxembourg speak French as a first language and German only as a second or third
itzMayaa
+6
Level 58
Jul 7, 2025
i don't see how speaking a dialect makes it bizarre...
GlaucusExquisita
+4
Level 79
Jan 16, 2026
Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Luxembourg speak a bizarre form of German. Germany speaks 10 bizarre forms of German!
seechdog
+1
Level 68
Jan 20, 2026
My wife is German from Nurnberg and she said she has trouble speaking Schwabisch.
cornflakesfu
+47
Level 89
Sep 23, 2020
"Why Switzerland is on the list but not the other two"--> Switzerland has a population of more than 8 million. Liechtenstein has a population of less than 40,000.
Zwergnase
+1
Level 33
Jan 23, 2026
Liechtenstein ist still a German-speaking country. It's percentage per capita, so the amount of people shouldn't matter.
bittern
+2
Level 45
Jan 23, 2026
"Name the twelve countries that have the most people who speak German as their native language." You're getting fancy. The most people, not most per capita.
brandybuck96
+8
Level 82
Oct 3, 2020
@mf3 by 'somewhat bizarre' do you mean 'dialectual'
cpgatbyu
+9
Level 88
Sep 23, 2020
Surprised to see Poland on this list. Most of the German speakers native to present-day Poland (e.g. Prussians) were forced out after the war.
Djilas
+2
Level 86
Sep 23, 2020
Native means just that it's their mother tongue, not that they're native to the area.
Tramp
+12
Level 79
Sep 23, 2020
Yeah, but what he is saying is that most of the people who were native speakers (i.e. Germans) were forced out of Poland's present day boundaries after the war. Besides, Germans were native in parts of Poland for a very long time (just look at how Prussia intersects with modern day Poland, for example).
hwes
+3
Level 89
Sep 23, 2020
Most German speaking Poles are located in the south west -- Silesia/Wroclaw.
camus
+14
Level 80
Sep 30, 2020
My grandma was born in Silesia during WWII with German as her first language. Her mother admonished her to speak Polish after the war had ended, or else the Russians would come and apply a lock to her mouth. When she moved to Germany much later as an adult, she had to learn German like a second language, even though it was technically her first. The German which my old relatives spoke was rather old-fashioned because it was isolated from the main community of speakers. It was quite adorable and I liked to hear it.
Anderis
+6
Level 76
Oct 23, 2020
There were so many Germans in pre-war boundaries of modern Poland, that, despite the fact that most of them either fled or were forcefully resettled, those few who stayed were still in significant enough numbers to make this quiz. The Opole Voivodenship for some reason was the area where a lot of Germans were allowed to stay. According to the 2002 census, 10% of the entire Voivodenship was of German ethinicity. I guess there were many people of mixed descent around 1945 in there as it was a mixed Polish-German area, so it was harder for the authorities to determine who was Polish and who was German, unlike in areas that had a clear German majority and they could just resettle everyone.
mf3
+13
Level 90
Sep 23, 2020
Not Argentina, post WW2?
Jeremy
+12
Level 78
Sep 24, 2020
I assume most of those would've integrated to primarily be Spanish-speaking after the past 2 (3?) generations.
ing
+4
Level 73
Sep 24, 2020
So Dr. Mengele's family are now all named "Mengala"?
loni
+1
Level 68
Sep 20, 2022
To be fair, Mengele lived in Brazil rather than Argentina.
gzx5
+1
Level 75
Jan 23, 2026
Assimilating doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t speak another language.
wkrpnyc
+2
Level 81
Oct 16, 2021
I know Argentinians who have retained their German. (And OT, but others who also retained their Korean.)
PjotrL
+15
Level 78
Sep 24, 2020
Hi, your source is using a very limited list of countries. It's highly likely higher numbers of German native speakers are present in Brazil and Argentina 12 million and 3.5 million of German descent). Or closer to Germany, there are reportedly 350.000-400.000 Germans in each the Netherlands and Russia. Hard to believe less than 70.000 would have German as their native language. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germans
Jiaozira
+12
Level 72
Oct 23, 2020
I am skeptical that no South American country makes the list, considering both German immigration and also the Mennonite populations. I have heard about entire Brazilian communities that use the German language, and 70,000 isn't too high a benchmark to beat, although language data from some of those countries can be incomplete.
FedericoGuzman
+12
Level 74
Sep 24, 2020
Yes, I also find it hard to believe that Brazil doesn't make the list.
david2013
+7
Level 87
Oct 3, 2020
I guessed that one as well. The qualifier is probably "native language". It may be that not that many have German as a native language, most probably being second-language speakers after Portuguese.
Quizmaster
+4
Level ∞
Jan 15, 2026
Looks like the Wikipedia article has been updated and Brazil now comfortably makes the list.
dunkinggandalf2
+5
Level 71
Sep 29, 2020
I'm surprised that only 85% of people in Germany are native-speakers. I know there is some immigration, and some second-generation immigrants grow up bilingual, but surely bilinguals, even if they retain a distinctive accent, should be counted as native-speakers nonetheless. Anyway, I'm surprised - just enough to leave a comment, but not quite enought to go check out the source on my own ;-).
idontkn1
+8
Level 94
Oct 23, 2020
Just from my personal experience. In my in-laws neighborhood which is in a smallish village that's part of a slightly larger city 50 km northeast of Frankfurt I'd say a good 10 percent is Turkish and speak Turkish as their native tongue. Go to one of the public pools even in the tiny villages up in the hills and a good 10 to 15% are speaking something other than German. Lots of Polish and Russian. This isn't even taking into account the large ethnic neighborhoods that are in all of the major cities. Anywhere there is prosperity and an aging population their are going to be young immigrants looking for menial work.
Quizmaster
+1
Level ∞
Jan 15, 2026
It's 81% as of 2024, probably below 80% in 2026.
Waffler34
+1
Level 47
Jan 23, 2026
According to Language Knowledge EU its 90%, not 81%.

They use European Commission Data.

When I check the Wikipedia source it just gives me an excel spreadsheet with little on it?

Do you know how to look into the Wikipedia source more?

toccina
+3
Level 65
Oct 23, 2020
In France, there are not as many people speaking German as their mother tongue, you must confuse with Alsatian which is a Germanic language, but another language
TheHermitcraft
+6
Level 21
Oct 23, 2020
Alsatian counts as a German dialect, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alsatian_dialect. Same thing with Swiss German.
ADX31
+5
Level 56
Oct 23, 2020
But in this case Switzerland can't be counted too, because they don't speak "regular" German but also a Germanic/Alemannic dialect. But people who speak Alsacien or Swiss German can understand and speak "regular" German, so they should be counted.
Carry
+1
Level 63
Jan 19, 2021
What is the "regular" German then? No Bavarian, Saxon, Swabian, Hesse...?
GlaucusExquisita
+1
Level 79
Jan 16, 2026
probably German Standard German
Mappo
+3
Level 59
Oct 23, 2020
Why not Liechtenstein?
PaterN
+6
Level 81
Oct 23, 2020
Less than 40.000 inhabitants
SpartanLlama
+1
Level 78
Oct 23, 2020
Just missed Switzerland
Dontforget
+8
Level 76
Oct 24, 2020
Surprised to see Canada and Australia but not the UK
TuvaluGamer420
+3
Level 50
Jan 23, 2026
But your not surprised about Kazakhstan????
Billiam
+2
Level 41
Oct 25, 2020
Don't 100% of Liechtensteiners speak German tho
Carry
+10
Level 63
Jan 19, 2021
Maybe but they have a smaller population than the last number on this list.
Regtheledge1000
+1
Level 28
Oct 25, 2020
I didn’t think Germany would be here?
Carry
+2
Level 63
Jan 19, 2021
Why?
KrazyKookieKing
+1
Level 47
Nov 10, 2020
I got all but germany
MichaelPeblo
+1
Level 45
Feb 16, 2021
Would love to see a version with secondary speakers as well. :)
syphus590
+3
Level 28
Feb 18, 2021
0:00

Scoring

You scored 10/12 = 83%

This beats or equals 45.9% of test takers

The average score is 10

Your high score is 10

:(

PenguinTorpedo
+2
Level 49
May 15, 2021
No netherlands??
AverageLondoner
+2
Level 57
Oct 29, 2021
most speak dutch and the few that speak german is too little
kamata
+2
Level 61
Jun 4, 2021
i was really hoping Argentina would be on i here i would've lost my mind
selful
+1
Level 67
Dec 29, 2021
bruh,German is Liechtenstein's official language

oh yeah,i forgot how small it is

Neodymium
+2
Level 63
Dec 6, 2022
There is someone, statisitcally, who probably forgot #1...
MCdoesgeography
+2
Level 74
Feb 1, 2023
Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Russia, Kazakhstan, Hungary???
BroderG
+1
Level 45
Oct 17, 2023
Disappointed Argentina isn't one of them
CharlieBlue
+2
Level 22
Apr 3, 2024
Got the lot, but was a bit surprised about the inclusion of Poland (my last guess), though l probably shouldn't be due to historical and geographic (geopolitical) reasons. Surprise exclusions include Brazil (it has large communities of German descent in Rio and the Southern states), UK and predictably Liechtenstein due to its size, though it has German as its official language.
mlaur749
+2
Level 37
Jun 14, 2024
France Spain and italy but not Luxembourg and Liechtenstein
Pontiac
+2
Level 60
Jan 15, 2026
Small populations of Luxembourg and Liechtenstein vs large populations
Hagbard95
+1
Level 53
May 5, 2025
Nice quiz, but you missed a few, especially in South America. Brazil alone has over a million native speakers (yes, native!). Also Luxemburg should be included, as others mentioned.
DetentionSlip
+1
Level 19
Jul 11, 2025
I got all of them with 1:22 left.
DetentionSlip
+1
Level 19
Jul 11, 2025
How did only 72% of people get Canada? Canada is a linguistically diverse country, folks!
TheLonelyAlula
+2
Level 56
Sep 25, 2025
Missing a few https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geographical_distribution_of_German_speakers#Statistics Brazil and Kazakhstan should be on here
anomalyz
+2
Level 32
Oct 21, 2025
I am surprised argentina is not up here.
Anderis
+3
Level 76
Jan 16, 2026
Bolivia being 2nd of all Latin American countries surprised me greatly.
JackintheBox
+1
Level 82
Jan 16, 2026
I got the least-guessed answer since I knew about the Volga Germans :)
Kasskais
+1
Level 66
Jan 17, 2026
Twelve? Or fourteen? Either update the quiz description or remove some answers
Chocapic
+6
Level 71
Jan 18, 2026
What an outrageous thing to say that by the end of the century Paraguay and Bolivia might have a greater percentage of German speakers than Germany. Horrible logical reasoning.
Darkify
+11
Level 46
Jan 19, 2026
Kazakhstan!?
MindWax
+4
Level 87
Jan 21, 2026
Yeah, I came hoping someone in the comments would explain this seeming outlier. Any input, anyone?
Sterref10
+4
Level 61
Jan 23, 2026
From Wikipedia:

Most Germans in Kazakhstan are the descendants of Volga Germans, who were deported to the then Soviet republic of Kazakhstan from the Volga German Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic soon after the Nazi German Invasion during World War II.

kvad
+1
Level 51
Jan 23, 2026
as a person from Kazakhstan, I can confirm there are quite a lot of German descendants.
tshalla
+1
Level 78
Jan 23, 2026
Just a note on QM's comment up top:

Mennonites are often German-speaking, but they aren't Germans (unless, of course, they've come from German Mennonite communities). I can't speak to the numbers, but yes, Bolivia and Paraguay (and Brazil, Mexico, and Belize) have significant numbers of Mennonites. I don't know much about Brazilian Mennonite communities, but in the others, they live in Mennonite communities. As such, there are some parts of each of those communities in which Mennonites form 100% of the population. If you want to cast the net more widely (the Paraguayan Chaco, for example) then the 15% number might make sense.

gzx5
+3
Level 75
Jan 23, 2026
I struggle to believe Argentina isn’t on this list.
RaspberryBeret
+1
Level 57
Jan 23, 2026
I clicked on this shortly after taking a quiz on electric guitars, so I was like "how many German speakers are there? Not Bose. Burmester maybe?" and then "OH."
RollingStones1
+1
Level 47
Jan 23, 2026
I am very much surprised that Argentina is not an answer.
renbag
+1
Level 74
Jan 23, 2026
Fact checking aside, thank you for featuring this quiz this week.
eliasj4231
+1
Level 35
Jan 23, 2026
i totally forgot about blumenau (brasil). looks even more german then most german cities nowadays
branlito
+1
Level 52
Jan 23, 2026
Israel is missing there

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_Israel

ooftownroad
+1
Level 68
Feb 13, 2026
Surprised India doesn't have more than 80,000 German speakers with over 1.4 billion people
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