MesserMonitor statistics place published knife attacks, knife threats, robbery and extortion involving a knife in their regional and temporal context. The federal-state comparison shows case counts and cases per 100,000 residents. Further analysis shows absolute case numbers by period, case type, level of use and reported injury outcome.
Comparison year2026
Federal states compared · 2026
Cases through August 29, 2026
Comparison of published cases by federal state with population, immigration history and people seeking protection.
Population Immigration history People seeking protectionMesserMonitor cases
Baden-Württemberg
11,245,909 Population
13.47 %32.06 %3.40 %
311 Cases · 2.77 Cases per 100,000 residents
Bavaria
13,260,815 Population
15.88 %26.18 %2.98 %
253 Cases · 1.91 Cases per 100,000 residents
Berlin
3,701,307 Population
4.43 %35.45 %5.21 %
109 Cases · 2.94 Cases per 100,000 residents
Brandenburg
2,552,851 Population
3.06 %10.07 %2.96 %
22 Cases · 0.86 Cases per 100,000 residents
Bremen
706,901 Population
0.85 %40.03 %6.62 %
49 Cases · 6.93 Cases per 100,000 residents
Hamburg
1,869,801 Population
2.24 %35.51 %4.12 %
40 Cases · 2.14 Cases per 100,000 residents
Hesse
6,281,600 Population
7.52 %33.51 %4.42 %
259 Cases · 4.12 Cases per 100,000 residents
Lower Saxony
8,002,922 Population
9.58 %22.62 %4.24 %
174 Cases · 2.17 Cases per 100,000 residents
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
1,567,290 Population
1.88 %8.61 %3.34 %
27 Cases · 1.72 Cases per 100,000 residents
North Rhine-Westphalia
17,999,392 Population
21.55 %30.14 %4.40 %
508 Cases · 2.82 Cases per 100,000 residents
Rhineland-Palatinate
4,124,910 Population
4.94 %25.87 %3.51 %
102 Cases · 2.47 Cases per 100,000 residents
Saarland
1,008,047 Population
1.21 %24.11 %5.35 %
7 Cases · 0.69 Cases per 100,000 residents
Saxony
4,024,188 Population
4.82 %10.49 %3.41 %
87 Cases · 2.16 Cases per 100,000 residents
Saxony-Anhalt
2,121,638 Population
2.54 %9.95 %3.69 %
62 Cases · 2.92 Cases per 100,000 residents
Schleswig-Holstein
2,959,859 Population
3.54 %19.29 %4.03 %
42 Cases · 1.42 Cases per 100,000 residents
Thuringia
2,081,288 Population
2.49 %10.19 %3.49 %
49 Cases · 2.35 Cases per 100,000 residents
Analysis and result
The figures are based on publicly reported cases found through the evaluated sources.
Social context
Each point represents a federal state. Its position connects the selected social indicator with published cases per 100,000 residents.
Area statesCity states
Result for the selected indicatorData table and sources
A 21-year-old is alleged to have threatened police officers with a utility knife near Bremen's main railway station. He was arrested and nobody was injured.
During an identity check in Crailsheim, a man drew a knife and moved toward two police officers. He was injured by police gunfire and taken to hospital.
A 27-year-old man died from stab injuries after an altercation in Calden. Another man was seriously injured but is not believed to be in life-threatening condition.
During an altercation in Bremen's Gröpelingen district, one teenager injured two others with a utility knife. Three people involved were injured in total.
After a reciprocating saw was stolen from a garage in Kierspe, a man allegedly threatened a witness with a knife. The suspect fled into nearby woodland.
A 35-year-old man allegedly threatened two security employees with a utility knife at Zuffenhausen station. Police seized the knife and opened an investigation.
Two unidentified men allegedly threatened a 59-year-old woman with a knife while she was opening her front door in Hamburg-Billstedt and stole her handbag and jewellery. She was not injured.
An unidentified man is alleged to have repeatedly attacked a 58-year-old woman with a stabbing weapon at Viehofer Platz in Essen. She sustained stab and cut injuries, while the suspect fled.
Following a dispute on Dorotheenstraße in Düsseldorf, a 45-year-old man was seriously injured in a knife attack. The unknown suspect fled and police are searching for him.
Following an argument outside a snack bar in Emmerich, a man is alleged to have stabbed another man several times with a knife. The victim suffered serious injuries but is not in danger of death, police said.
