Digitalization in Germany? A new forsa study by MeisterTask shows the current state of German municipalities
Everyone is talking about digital sovereignty – but how does the reality look like? In an interview with MeisterTask, we find out what German mayors have to say, where the problems lie, and what’s already going really well.
Vivien: Dear MeisterTask team, you recently published an interesting study titled “Digitalization in Germany’s Municipalities 2026.” What is your most important takeaway from it regarding digital sovereignty?
I am asking because here at Tuta, we keep hearing from customers – as well as from policymakers - about how important it is to become independent from American tech companies, yet in the end, most of them still use Microsoft. What is your take on this?
MeisterTask: A quick bit of background: For the study, forsa surveyed nearly 1300 mayors across Germany on our behalf. This is already the second round following the 2025 survey, so we can also see what has changed. When it comes to sovereignty, we were particularly surprised by the clarity of the responses. Nearly nine out of ten mayors consider it important that providers and servers are located in Germany or the EU. For us, this shows above all how important transparency is to local governments: that is, knowing where their data is stored and who can access it.
Vivien: How did you at MeisterTask manage to reach so many municipalities and convince them to explore new avenues with a German provider?
MeisterTask: At MeisterTask, it’s more about teams planning projects together so everyone can see who’s working on what and by when. More than 2000 public sector organizations now use our tool. We hear two reasons for this particularly often: We’re a German company and host our data in Germany, which means that many data protection issues are already resolved. And getting started is easy as well. The teams don’t need lengthy training - they can get started right away. The city of Gütersloh, for example, relies on MeisterTask for project planning as part of the digital transformation of its administration.
27% of the surveyed mayors are not happy with the current status of digitalization.
Vivien: Wow, it seems like there’s a lot happening right now in some organizations when it comes to digital sovereignty. But back to your study: 97% of respondents in your digitalization report consider digitalization to be important or even very important, and yet a good quarter of respondents are dissatisfied with the current level of digitalization. The problem isn’t a lack of will on the part of local governments; rather, the biggest hurdle remains regulations and externally imposed framework conditions.
What specific framework conditions do you think are hindering digitalization in German municipalities? Which regulations specifically need to be changed?
MeisterTask: Regulatory hurdles are indeed at the top of the list – three out of four mayors say so. Next come a lack of funding and a shortage of staff. When it comes to data protection, however, we’d be cautious. That isn’t the problem - it’s the foundation that allows people to trust digital services in the first place. What we hear more often in practice are lengthy and cumbersome procurement processes. Small municipalities with limited staff, in particular, often need a lot of time before they can even start using a new tool. Simplifying these processes would make a big difference.
Vivien: Lengthy and cumbersome procurement processes are, of course, a well-known problem in Germany. But fundamentally: How important do you think it is for German government agencies and municipalities to achieve digital sovereignty and independence from U.S. tech companies? What risks exist if they don’t? What future threats might arise?
MeisterTask: Very important. For us, however, sovereignty doesn’t mean isolating oneself, but rather remaining capable of taking action. From our perspective, a municipality should know where its data is stored and who has access to it.
It becomes difficult when that’s no longer clear. Those who become heavily tied to individual systems have less flexibility - whether in terms of pricing, contracts, or technical changes. That’s why it’s worth paying attention, right from the selection phase, to how open a system is and whether it integrates well with other solutions.
Vivien: We also hear time and again from our customers that they choose Tuta because it allows them to ensure that their data is stored on our own servers in Germany.
Your report states that while the willingness to adopt new digital solutions is very high among German municipalities, nearly three-quarters of respondents cite high costs and fees as the biggest challenge. At the same time, we hear from the government that cuts must be made across the board. Can German municipalities even afford digital sovereignty? Or, conversely, won’t it end up being more expensive for us as a country if we don’t prioritize digital sovereignty?
MeisterTask: Money is a real issue. When it comes to new software, most mayors cite high costs and fees as the biggest challenge. What we found interesting, however, is that while the digitalization budget has increased for nearly half of them, the average rating for the level of digitalization remains exactly at the same level as the previous year. So more money alone doesn’t necessarily lead to progress.
For us, the question is therefore less about whether municipalities can afford it, and more about how they get started. It’s often most effective to start small and solve a specific everyday problem, rather than tackling a major project right away. And in the long run, it’s usually more cost-effective to remain flexible than to have to switch systems later at great expense.
Vivien: It’s interesting to hear that while the budget for digitalization is increasing, the level of digitalization isn’t automatically following suit. So it seems there’s still a lot of ground to make up. Do you have a specific request for policymakers that would make the path to digital sovereignty easier for you and MeisterTask?
MeisterTask: Yes: simpler procurement. If municipalities could procure software more quickly and easily, everyone would benefit - especially small municipalities and smaller European providers. Common standards for interfaces would also help a great deal. Many municipalities today struggle to integrate new tools into their existing systems.
Vivien: We at Tuta couldn’t agree more. What does your ideal vision of a digitalized municipality (in the future) look like?
MeisterTask: A municipality where knowledge isn’t locked away in individual minds or inboxes, but is accessible to the entire team. Everyone can see what others are working on and what’s next on the agenda. Routine tasks run automatically, and employees have more time for residents.
And most importantly: digitalization doesn’t feel like just another project - it makes day-to-day work easier. By the way, if you’d like to dive deeper, you can find all the results of the study in our digitalization report “Digitalization in Germany’s Municipalities 2026” on our website.
Vivien: Thank you so much, MeisterTask team, for the interview about your study on digitalization in German municipalities. We at Tuta are excited to see how the journey toward digital sovereignty continues! With solutions like Tuta - the quantum-secure, end-to-end-encrypted email and calendar solution - and MeisterTask, the platform for project management and teamwork, we can help municipalities and government agencies to become digitally sovereign.
