When it comes to managing money, covering areas such as rent, insurance, retirement planning, and investments, only one in three men and about one in five women in Germany consider their financial knowledge to be good or very good. According to a survey conducted for the consumer advice platform Finanztip, just 30 percent of Germans on average rated their knowledge in key financial areas as high or very high.
Finanztip is therefore calling for stronger financial education in schools and for Germany to take part in the financial literacy module of the OECD’s PISA study. To support this, the organization launched a petition at weact.campact.de/p/finanz-pisa. By Friday morning, more than 53,700 people had signed the appeal.
“The public wants better financial education – and reliable data showing how well young people in Germany are prepared to handle money,” Finanztip stated.
“Financial education should not be a privilege. Those who understand how money works can live independently – and that’s exactly what citizens want for the next generation,” said Finanztip’s editor-in-chief Hermann-Josef Tenhagen.
Finanztip Foundation’s managing director Fabian Dany added: “Financial knowledge should not depend on gender – that needs to change. If financial education is introduced early in schools, boys and girls will learn equally – and society as a whole will benefit.”
The petition calls on Germany’s Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs and the education ministers of the federal states to commit to participating in the OECD’s optional financial literacy module in the next PISA study, which will be conducted in 2029. OECD member states must declare their interest in participating in the coming months.
The Finanztip survey, described as representative, asked respondents to assess their knowledge across ten financial areas such as banking, the stock market, and real estate. A total of 1,023 adults aged 18 and over took part in the survey in October 2025, following up on a similar survey from September 2023.
According to the findings, respondents felt most confident about everyday financial topics:
However, only 26 percent rated their knowledge about loans as good or very good, and just 21 percent said the same about the stock market. “Knowledge about stocks and ETFs is particularly important for private retirement planning,” Tenhagen said. “Yet despite the risk of poverty in old age, there remains significant uncertainty.”
From breaking news to thought-provoking opinion pieces, our newsletter keeps you informed & engaged.
