Stuttgart-Umfrage 2025: Mehrheit der Bürger lebt gerne in Stuttgart

The Stuttgart‑Umfrage 2025, commissioned by the Landeshauptstadt Stuttgart, is a large‑scale citizen survey aimed at gauging residents’ satisfaction with urban life and identifying the city’s most pressing problems. Conducted between 8 April and 30 June 2025, the study invited a random sample of roughly 10 000 Stuttgart inhabitants aged 16 and over, achieving a high response rate of 40 % with more than 4 000 participants. The survey is part of a biennial series that allows longitudinal comparison of key quality‑of‑life indicators.

A striking 76 % of respondents affirm that they like living in Stuttgart, matching the figure recorded in 2023. Overall perceived quality of life remains stable, with a municipal barometer score of 69, slightly below the 72 points of 2021 but well above the low‑70s scores from 2007‑2009. This indicates sustained satisfaction despite ongoing housing challenges.

Residents rate several service areas highly: shopping facilities (77 pts), employment opportunities (76 pts), cultural institutions (73 pts) and universities (73 pts). Lower scores are recorded for inner‑city parking (37 pts), river accessibility (37 pts) and the housing market (28 pts). Notable changes since 2023 include a decline in waste‑management satisfaction (from 73 to 69 pts) and a drop in perceived quality of medical care (‑4 pts). Public safety perception also fell from 59 to 54 pts.

Two mobility‑related domains show improvement. Cycling conditions rose by four points to a score of 48, while electric‑vehicle charging infrastructure increased by eight points, now standing at 47. These gains suggest successful policy measures in sustainable transport.

Housing affordability remains the top concern, with 69 % of respondents citing “too high rents” as the biggest problem. An equal share (69 %) also points to “too many construction sites” as a major issue. “Insufficient housing supply” is mentioned by 59 % of participants. These three problems have persisted unchanged over the past two survey cycles.

Perceptions of right‑wing extremism have nearly doubled since 2023, while concerns about xenophobia, integration of foreign residents, and safety on public transport have each risen by eight‑plus percentage points. Overall, the sense of insecurity in public spaces has grown by seven points, reflecting broader societal tensions.

The personal reputation of the city administration improved slightly to a barometer score of 54, up from 53 in 2023. However, the perceived reputation of the administration among the wider public remains lower at 45 pts, unchanged since the previous survey. This divergence highlights a gap between internal and external perceptions of municipal performance.

Despite awareness of a strained municipal budget, respondents support higher spending in 21 out of 36 surveyed areas. The strongest demand is for increased investment in housing construction (77 % in favour), followed by kindergartens (74 %) and schools/ vocational training (72 %). Conversely, 75 % wish to maintain current funding for libraries, and 36 % would cut spending on road expansion.

The survey employs random sampling from the resident register, ensuring that all residents over 15 with a primary Stuttgart address have equal invitation chances. While the sample is broadly representative, non‑German citizens are under‑represented (15 % of respondents versus 30 % of the population) and the 16‑24 age group is half its real‑world proportion (6 % versus 12 %). These biases are acknowledged in the analysis.

For a pan‑European audience focused on sustainable housing, the data underline Stuttgart’s persistent housing affordability crisis, high resident desire for increased housing investment, and the impact of construction activity on perceived livability. The survey’s longitudinal design offers valuable benchmarks for tracking the effectiveness of housing policies and related sustainability initiatives over time.