Germany’s BundID gets 2 million logins per month

Germany’s BundID is gaining activity as Germans increase their usage, but the total number of accounts on the system has fallen. 

BundID is the country’s digital ID to access online services for federal, state or local governments. Using BundID, citizens can access nearly 1800 online services, platforms or portals, and register a new car or new place or residence, or apply for parental allowance, for example. 

According to an AFP report, the number of user accounts has fallen by several hundred thousand. The Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs revealed that the number of active BundID accounts as of August 11 is 4.9 million, down from just under 5.3 million at the end of 2024.

“The decline in the number of user accounts is explained by the automatic deletion of inactive accounts in the first quarter of 2025,” a spokesperson for the ministry told AFP. “The background is that due to data protection regulations, user accounts must be deleted after 24 months of activity.”  

The likely reason was accounts set up by students in 2023, according to the report, as BundID was needed at the time to receive a one-off hand-out of €200 ($233) to compensate for a rise in energy prices. 

However, since May this year, the number of BundID user accounts has increased by an average of 154,000 per month, the ministry spokesperson said. Additionally, the usage per month has doubled since 2024, with the average number of BundID logins rising from around one million to two million per month. 

The ministry did not say which services are the most commonly used. 

According to a study, only 35 percent of adult Germans have activated their electronic identity, despite the country offering eID functionality since 2010. The country faces low adoption rates as it was reported earlier this year that BundID was the only digital ID used by nine out of 16 federal states. 

The German government has been planning to upgrade the platform to DeutschlandID as part of its digital transformation plans, although when this will be carried out remains unclear. Authorities are also planning to introduce an interface to the upcoming EUDI Wallet on the BundID. A study found that a lack of use cases coupled with a cumbersome process to apply for eID has held back digital ID adoption in Germany, with women and older people having the lowest rates of eID activation.

Article Topics

BundID  |  digital ID  |  Germany  |  government services