AI Usage in Germany: Who Uses ChatGPT and Where Trust Ends

AI usage in Germany is above all a question of age. 87.5% of 16 to 19 year olds use ChatGPT, compared to 26.6% of those over 60 (question P24, wave 16, multiple answers allowed)¹. Google Gemini peaks at 31.5% among 30 to 39 year olds, and Perplexity reaches 12.5–13.6% among those under 30¹. The study also measures what Germans use AI for: 34.3% use it for product search (P26), and 35.0% would use AI to manage their email inbox (P28)¹. Trust ends at autonomous purchasing, 53.8% reject the idea of an AI buying on its own (P27)¹.

These figures come from the Internet Communication Study 2025/26 (Studie zur Internetkommunikation), which Convios has run since 2009 on behalf of WEB.DE and GMX (United Internet), now in its 16th wave¹. Fieldwork took place in October 2025 via CAWI with 1,004 respondents, a representative sample. For the first time, the study includes a three-year trend on AI usage, broken down by provider, age, gender, and education. That makes AI adoption in Germany traceable across years and population groups for the first time.

How many Germans use ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity?

ChatGPT clearly leads the field, with a steep age gradient: 87.5% of 16 to 19 year olds use it, compared to 26.6% of those over 60 (P24, multiple answers allowed)¹. Gemini is strongest among 30 to 39 year olds (31.5%). Perplexity reaches 12.5–13.6% among those under 30 and stays a tool of the younger crowd¹.

What strikes me most about these numbers is the gap. Between the youngest and the oldest group, ChatGPT usage differs by a good 60 percentage points (my own calculation based on P24). Anyone talking about AI adoption in Germany is talking about very different realities: for students and early-career professionals, ChatGPT is everyday routine, for the 60+ generation it's the exception. The fact that the study now tracks this across three years, and additionally by gender and education, makes the gap measurable over time.

Do Germans trust AI with their shopping?

Only up to a clear point. 34.3% of respondents already use AI for product search (P26)¹. But as soon as the AI is supposed to buy on its own, the picture flips: 53.8% reject autonomous AI shopping (P27)¹. Consumers accept help with research and keep the purchase decision to themselves.

For anyone building agentic features, that's a hard message. A third of Germany's online population has let AI into the buying process. At the point of the final decision, a majority hits the brakes. If you're building agentic commerce, keep control visibly with the human, otherwise you're working against 53.8% of your market¹.

Is email still the preferred channel between customers and companies?

Yes, by a wide margin. 77.7% of Germans prefer email for communicating with companies, chatbots reach 16.8% (P42)¹. 82.8% want order confirmations by email. The channel has gone mobile: 66% use email primarily on their smartphone (P23)¹.

Looking back shows how stable this market is. Since the first wave in 2009, WEB.DE has grown its share from 23.0% to 26.4%, while Gmail fell from 17.5% to 13.8% (P8)¹. 50.1% of users stay with their provider out of habit (P12), and 82.2% don't pay anything for their inbox (P19)¹. It's a slow, habit-driven market where shares move by just a few points over 16 years.

And the AI question inside the inbox? 35.0% would use an AI that manages their emails (P28)¹. Together with the 34.3% for product search, that's a consistent picture: roughly a third of Germany's online population is open to handing routine work to AI. The line from P27 still stands, the human decides.

How much interest is there in a super app in Germany?

It peaks in mid-life. 53.6% of 30 to 39 year olds and 52.4% of 20 to 29 year olds show interest in a super app (P43)¹. Among 16 to 19 year olds it's 41.7%, among 40 to 49 year olds 42.8%, then the curve drops to 32% (50–59) and 23.4% (60+)¹.

The youngest group surprises me. Of all people, the group with the highest ChatGPT usage sits behind the 20 to 39 year olds when it comes to super app interest. The highest AI usage and the highest interest in bundled services live in different age groups. For product strategists, that means reading both curves separately before settling on a target group.

How do Germans feel about data privacy with US providers?

They're split. 26.9% of respondents have concerns about entrusting their data to US corporations, 41.5% answer with partly, and 22.4% have no concerns (P35)¹. The study also compares usage of US cloud services such as Google Drive, Apple iCloud, Microsoft, Amazon, and Dropbox with the German offering from T-Online (P30)¹.

Add up full and partial concerns and more than two thirds of respondents voice reservations about US data processing (my own calculation based on P35: 26.9% plus 41.5%). For European providers, that's an opening. The same study tempers the expectation right away, because 50.1% stay with their provider out of habit (P12)¹.

My Take

I read this study as a corrective for product roadmaps. In many B2B software plans I see, the chatbot ranks high and email is treated as legacy. The customers of these companies say the opposite, 77.7% to 16.8%. The generational question is just as clear: if you're building for buyers between 40 and 60 today, you can't count on the ease with ChatGPT that 16 to 19 year olds bring. For go-to-market, that means dosing AI features by target group and leaving the final decision with the customer. And honestly, anyone selling an autonomously acting AI agent should price the 53.8% rejection from P27 into their onboarding before sales hears about it in the first call.

You'll find the full results of the Internet Communication Study 2025/26, with all trend series and breakdowns, on the Internet Communication Study page. You can also request the full study there. For more analysis on scaling and AI, see our insights on convios.com.

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