Download Germany States (Bundesländer)
Free download of all 16 German federal states (Bundesländer) as GeoJSON, Shapefile, KML, SVG, DXF, GeoPackage, TopoJSON, or FlatGeobuf. Loads automatically — pick the format you need.
Boundary data provided by geoBoundaries (Runfola et al., 2020), licensed CC-BY 4.0. Please provide attribution when using this data.
About the German Bundesländer dataset
This page gives you a one-click download of all 16 German federal states (Bundesländer) in every common geospatial and design format. Data is sourced from geoBoundaries — an open, peer-reviewed dataset maintained by the College of William & Mary and released under CC-BY 4.0. The authoritative German source is the Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie (BKG), whose VG250 dataset is also freely available.
Bundesländer are the first-level subnational division (ADM1) in Germany. For district-level (Landkreise / kreisfreie Städte, ADM2) boundaries see the Germany districts page. For other countries use the administrative boundaries downloader.
All 16 Bundesländer
| Baden-Württemberg | DE-BW | Stuttgart | 11,280,000 | 35,748 |
| Bavaria (Bayern) | DE-BY | Munich | 13,369,000 | 70,542 |
| Berlin | DE-BE | Berlin | 3,755,000 | 891 |
| Brandenburg | DE-BB | Potsdam | 2,573,000 | 29,654 |
| Bremen | DE-HB | Bremen | 685,000 | 419 |
| Hamburg | DE-HH | Hamburg | 1,910,000 | 755 |
| Hesse (Hessen) | DE-HE | Wiesbaden | 6,392,000 | 21,115 |
| Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen) | DE-NI | Hanover | 8,140,000 | 47,710 |
| Mecklenburg-Vorpommern | DE-MV | Schwerin | 1,628,000 | 23,295 |
| North Rhine-Westphalia (Nordrhein-Westfalen) | DE-NW | Düsseldorf | 18,140,000 | 34,113 |
| Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz) | DE-RP | Mainz | 4,153,000 | 19,858 |
| Saarland | DE-SL | Saarbrücken | 992,000 | 2,571 |
| Saxony (Sachsen) | DE-SN | Dresden | 4,086,000 | 18,450 |
| Saxony-Anhalt (Sachsen-Anhalt) | DE-ST | Magdeburg | 2,186,000 | 20,454 |
| Schleswig-Holstein | DE-SH | Kiel | 2,953,000 | 15,804 |
| Thuringia (Thüringen) | DE-TH | Erfurt | 2,120,000 | 16,202 |
When to use which format
GeoJSON
The most flexible choice — opens in QGIS, ArcGIS Pro, Mapbox, Leaflet, MapLibre, D3, and any web mapping library. Use the simplified version for client-side web maps.
Shapefile
Use for desktop GIS workflows in ArcGIS, QGIS, or MapInfo. Delivered as a ZIP containing .shp / .dbf / .prj / .shx.
KML
Use for Google Earth and Google My Maps. KML preserves the Bundesland name in each feature popup.
SVG
Designer-ready vector paths with each Bundesland as a separate path, labelled with its German name. Opens in Illustrator, Figma, Sketch, or Inkscape.
DXF
AutoCAD format for civil engineers and architects. Each Bundesland becomes a closed polyline you can layer, colour, or extrude.
TopoJSON
A topology-encoded extension of GeoJSON — much smaller for choropleths because adjacent states share borders. Common in D3.js dashboards.
GeoPackage
A modern, OGC-standard, single-file SQLite container. Ideal for portable GIS workflows where one file carries the whole dataset.
FlatGeobuf
A binary streaming format optimised for fast loading in MapLibre, OpenLayers, or Leaflet. Use when minimum latency matters.
Common uses for German state boundaries
- • Bundesland-level election mapping (Bundestagswahl, Landtagswahlen)
- • Aggregating German postal codes (PLZ) into state-level statistics
- • Demographic and economic analysis using Destatis state data
- • State-level COVID-19 or public-health reporting
- • Sales-territory and market-area mapping for the DACH region
- • Joining BIP, unemployment, or population stats from Statistisches Bundesamt
- • Backgrounds for D3.js or MapLibre choropleths and dashboards
- • Posters, infographics, and editorial maps (SVG export)
- • Civil-engineering site plans referencing state borders (DXF export)
- • Reporting maps in Power BI, Tableau, or Looker Studio
Need to process these boundaries before download?
Download the Germany states GeoJSON above, then drop it into the Workflow Builder to simplify, buffer, clip to a bounding box, generate centroids, or chain multiple operations before exporting in any format.
Alternative German state boundary sources
The geoBoundaries data on this page is the easiest one-click option for most use cases. If you need higher-precision or officially-maintained German data, also consider:
- • BKG VG250 — official German federal cartographic agency. Highest precision, multiple vintages, free for non-commercial use.
- • GADM — generalised administrative boundaries at multiple resolutions; commonly used in academic research.
- • Natural Earth — cartographer-friendly generalised boundaries — only ADM0 plus a small set of ADM1 features for some countries.
- • OpenStreetMap — community-edited boundaries via Overpass or Geofabrik extracts; very current but accuracy varies.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many federal states does Germany have?
Germany has 16 federal states (Bundesländer). Thirteen are area states (Flächenländer) and three are city-states (Stadtstaaten): Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg. All 16 are first-level administrative units (ADM1) and load automatically on this page.
What is the difference between Bundesländer and Landkreise?
Bundesländer are the 16 federal states — Germany’s first-level administrative division (ADM1). Landkreise are second-level districts (ADM2). Germany has 401 districts: 294 rural districts (Landkreise) and 107 urban districts (kreisfreie Städte). For ADM2 boundaries, see the Germany districts download page.
Where does this Germany boundary data come from?
The boundaries are sourced from geoBoundaries (Runfola et al., 2020), an open peer-reviewed dataset maintained by the College of William & Mary. The authoritative German source is the Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie (BKG), whose VG250 dataset is also freely available. geoBoundaries data is released under CC-BY 4.0 and is suitable for thematic mapping and most analytical work.
Can I download the German states as SVG for design work?
Yes — the SVG export above produces a vector file with each Bundesland as a separate path, labelled with its German name. Open it in Adobe Illustrator, Figma, Sketch, or Inkscape and re-colour each state for posters, infographics, or election maps. The projection used is Web Mercator and the file is sized to a 1000-pixel-wide viewBox.
How big is the Germany states GeoJSON file?
The full-resolution Germany ADM1 GeoJSON is typically 2–4 MB. The simplified version is well under 200 KB and is the right choice for client-side web maps. The SVG export is small (~30–80 KB) because it uses the simplified geometry.
Can I use this data commercially?
Yes — geoBoundaries data is released under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC-BY) licence. You can use it in commercial products, modify it, and redistribute it as long as you provide attribution to geoBoundaries (Runfola et al., 2020).
Are the city-states (Berlin, Hamburg, Bremen) included?
Yes, all three Stadtstaaten are included as separate ADM1 features with the same status as the area states. Berlin and Hamburg appear as single polygons; Bremen is made up of two parts (the city of Bremen and the city of Bremerhaven).
How do I open this in QGIS, ArcGIS, or AutoCAD?
GeoJSON, Shapefile, GeoPackage, FlatGeobuf, and KML all open natively in QGIS and ArcGIS Pro. For AutoCAD, use the DXF export — every Bundesland becomes a closed polyline you can colour, layer, or extrude. SVG is ready for Illustrator, Figma, Sketch, and Inkscape.