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 woman is alleged to have threatened a resident at an accommodation facility in Pfeffenhausen with a knife and later threatened emergency personnel. The operation ended without incident.
In Burgkirchen an der Alz, a man is alleged to have attacked his former partner with a knife. The woman died from an injury to the neck area, and the suspect was remanded in custody.
Stuttgart police are investigating a group suspected of attacking, robbing and in some cases seriously injuring men after arranged online meetings while armed with knives and other weapons.
Following a theft at a Ludwigshafen supermarket, a man threatened an employee and a customer with a utility knife. The customer was slightly injured while the suspect was restrained.
Three masked suspects allegedly threatened, tied up and robbed four employees at a fast-food restaurant in Bocholt using a firearm and a knife. Police provisionally detained three men.
A 57-year-old man is suspected of injuring a 32-year-old with an unknown pointed object in Ludwigsburg and attacking his companion. He has been remanded in custody.
An unidentified man allegedly threatened an employee at a Frankfurt betting shop with a knife and stole cash. He also used an irritant spray during the robbery.
A 43-year-old man allegedly made stabbing motions with a tanto knife in front of a 21-year-old in Braunschweig. Police later subdued him and took him into custody.
A 33-year-old man allegedly tried to stab a colleague at a call centre in Frankfurt. The 34-year-old suffered a minor leg injury, and the suspect was arrested.
A man is alleged to have attacked his former partner with a knife in her Hagen apartment, seriously injuring her. The woman was temporarily in life-threatening condition and the suspect was detained.
