Neuss and Solingen both sit within Düsseldorf’s immediate catchment area. On the prime shopping street in Neuss, roughly one shop in thirty stands empty; in Solingen, it is nine out of 31. That is one finding of the Highstreet Report 2026 by Columbia Threadneedle Investments, published in September 2026, which for the first time systematically measures high street vacancy in Germany – across the prime retail pitches of 100 cities. On average, 9.1% of shop units are vacant, but the range runs from zero in Lippstadt to 29% in Solingen. For owners and investors, that spread is more revealing than the average: vacancy can hardly be explained by city size or purchasing power – which means it can often be influenced.
Key takeaways
- The Highstreet Report 2026 measures vacancy on the prime high streets of 100 German cities for the first time: an average of 9.1% (as of September 2026).
- The range runs from 0.0% in Lippstadt to 29.0% in Solingen. Among Germany’s seven largest cities, it runs from Munich (6.5%) to Cologne (14.6%).
- The economically strongest locations sit above average at 10.1%. Economic strength, in other words, does not protect against vacancy.
- Local factors are decisive: competition from inner-city shopping centers, unit sizes, regional competition, rent levels and active place management.
An average of 9.1% – a figure that hides more than it explains
The Highstreet Report has analyzed the tenant mix of Germany’s prime shopping streets every year since 2020; the 2026 edition is the seventh. It covers all cities with at least 70,000 inhabitants plus nine smaller locations, each with its high street – the prime pitch with the highest footfall. The vacancy rate is the share of vacant units previously used for retail among all units recorded on that street. Because vacancy was measured for the first time, the data are a snapshot. Trends will only become visible with the next edition (source: Columbia Threadneedle Investments, Highstreet Report 2026).
The five high streets with the lowest vacancy
- Lippstadt: 0.0% (0 of 44 units)
- Ulm: 2.0% (1 of 50 units)
- Heilbronn: 2.7% (2 of 74 units)
- Konstanz: 2.8% (3 of 108 units)
- Ratingen: 2.9% (3 of 102 units)
The five high streets with the highest vacancy
- Solingen: 29.0% (9 of 31 units)
- Gera: 25.0% (12 of 48 units)
- Castrop-Rauxel: 21.6% (16 of 74 units)
- Ingolstadt: 21.6% (11 of 51 units)
- Böblingen: 19.4% (6 of 31 units)
The figures also reveal a limitation of the method: on small high streets, a handful of shops moves the rate considerably. Solingen and Böblingen each have only 31 units. Two new lettings would cut Böblingen’s rate by more than six percentage points. Absolute numbers therefore always belong in the picture.
Why location rankings do not explain high street vacancy
The report groups the 100 cities into five bands of 20, based on a location score built from 22 indicators, including purchasing power, centrality and population growth. If vacancy were mainly a question of economic strength, the rate would rise steadily from the strongest to the weakest group. It does not:
- Top scorers: 10.1%
- High scorers: 7.8%
- Mid scorers: 7.8%
- Low scorers: 11.2%
- Base scorers: 8.7%
Even within the strongest group, Ulm (2.0%) and Ingolstadt (21.6%) are far apart. Among the low scorers, Bergisch Gladbach (3.3%) and Paderborn (3.4%) reach figures that many large cities miss. Our analysis 100 German High Streets Compared shows that the shopping street as a whole is proving more resilient than the inner-city shopping center. The vacancy data add an uncomfortable insight: a strong city does not guarantee a fully let high street.
Neuss and Solingen: same proximity to Düsseldorf, opposite outcomes
The local nature of vacancy is clearest in two cities with a similar starting position. Both lie within the catchment of the state capital, whose prime streets Königsallee and Schadowstraße draw spending power from across the region. Neuss records 3.3% vacancy, while Solingen, at 29.0%, has the highest figure of all 100 cities studied.
Solingen: too much space, too much competition
For Solingen, the report cites several causes:
- Two inner-city shopping centers, Clemens-Galerien and Hofgarten, divert footfall away from the high street. Hofgarten also lies outside the prime pitch.
- Düsseldorf is around 30 minutes away, and Cologne and Wuppertal are within commuting distance.
- The share of chain stores fell from 74.5% in 2020 to 62.7% in 2026.
- On top of that come very large shop units, poor public-realm quality, a small catchment area and below-average purchasing power.
The urban development program “City 2030” has not reversed the trend so far. With the “Mitteschmiede” initiative, retailers, property owners and residents now want to counter the decline together.
Neuss: compact, fine-grained, no shopping center competition
Neuss sits directly opposite Düsseldorf on the left bank of the Rhine and benefits from the proximity instead of suffering from it. The report points to a compact center with a historic old town and short walking distances, a diverse offer with attractive public spaces, and the absence of a competing shopping center. Particularly relevant for owners: shop units vary in size, and large-format units are considerably rarer.
Lippstadt: zero vacancy with 50% fashion
Lippstadt achieves the best result: on the high street of this Westphalian town of around 69,000 inhabitants, none of the 44 recorded shop units is vacant. The town has a compact center close to the station, a large catchment area and no competing shopping center. Above all, it has active town-center management that has brought together the local business development agency, owners and initiatives since 2024. Through a North Rhine-Westphalia funding program for future-proof town centers, the business development agency leases vacant shops and sublets them on favorable terms to operators of new concepts. At the same time, Lippstadt has the highest share of fashion stores of all 100 cities, at 50%. A fashion-heavy street is therefore not automatically an endangered one.
Five factors that determine high street vacancy
The data and city examples point to five factors that say more about how lettable a high street is than its position in the ranking:
- Shopping center competition. Since 2020, the number of stores in the inner-city shopping centers of the cities studied has fallen by 14.8%, while shopping streets lost only 0.2%. Where a center outside the prime pitch captures the footfall, the street loses.
- Unit size. Large units are harder to re-let than smaller ones. This is the core topic of our article on retail right-sizing.
- Regional competition. Proximity to a major city is not destiny. Depending on a town’s profile, it either drains spending power or brings in additional customers.
- Place management. Town-center management, retailer associations and Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) influence footfall and lettability. Hamburg had 15 active BIDs at the start of 2026, and Neuer Wall is already in its fifth term.
- Market-level rents. The report explicitly also cites unsuitable units, structural defects and rent expectations above market level as causes. When comparing offers, the benchmark is the effective rent, not the contract rent alone.
What owners can do about high street vacancy
The data also show who is taking over vacated space. Since 2020, Woolworth (+35 stores), Mister Spex (+33), Loris Parfum (+32), Lovisa (+32), Søstrene Grene (+31) and Go Asia (+25), among others, have expanded on the streets studied, and food and beverage grew by 20.6%. Depot (−53), Bonita (−52), Görtz (−45) and Galeria (−35) shrank markedly (source: Highstreet Report 2026). This points to four levers:
- Start re-letting early. In our experience, long vacancies rarely begin with the tenant moving out, but with preparation that starts too late. Our article on re-letting and active leasing management shows what a systematic approach looks like.
- Think in divisible units. Many growing concepts are looking for smaller units with wide frontages, for example as part of the beauty expansion in Germany.
- Use interim uses with a follow-up strategy. JUPITER, housed in the former Karstadt Sport building on Mönckebergstraße, animated around 8,000 square meters for almost three years. No permanent use followed at first, and the outlet that opened afterwards closed again in June 2026. In Lübeck, by contrast, the “Übergangshaus” with more than 150,000 visitors paved the way for converting the former Karstadt building into an education center due to open in 2028.
- Open up rent models. In the report, the German Retail Federation (HDE) calls for turnover-based rents to become standard. It also wants to abolish the add-back of rent payments for trade tax purposes in order to speed up new lettings.
Owners should not count on support from the public sector: the federal program for future-proof city centers expired at the end of 2025. The Association of German Cities is calling for €500 million a year so that municipalities can lease vacant shops on an interim basis.
Conclusion: vacancy is a local issue – and can therefore be shaped
The report’s first vacancy survey refutes a common assumption: strong cities do not automatically have fully let high streets, and weak ones are not necessarily empty. High street vacancy is determined by unit quality, the competitive environment, rent levels and whether owners, retailers and the municipality manage the location together. For investors, the layout and surroundings of the individual property therefore matter more at acquisition than the city’s ranking. For owners, the message is encouraging, because key levers such as unit layout, rent concept and letting lead time are in their hands. How the shopping street as a whole is reinventing itself is the subject of our article on the future of German high streets.
Frequently asked questions about high street vacancy
How high is retail vacancy in German city centers?
According to the Highstreet Report 2026 by Columbia Threadneedle Investments, an average of 9.1% of shop units on the prime high streets of 100 German cities are vacant. Figures range from 0.0% in Lippstadt to 29.0% in Solingen. Published in September 2026, the report measured vacancy for the first time.
Which German city centers have the lowest vacancy?
The lowest vacancy is recorded in Lippstadt (0.0%), Ulm (2.0%), Heilbronn (2.7%), Konstanz (2.8%) and Ratingen (2.9%). It is highest in Solingen (29.0%), Gera (25.0%), Castrop-Rauxel and Ingolstadt (21.6% each) and Böblingen (19.4%).
Why do economically strong cities sometimes have more vacancy?
Vacancy does not follow a city’s economic strength but local factors: competition from shopping centers, oversized units, regional competition, rent levels and the quality of place management. The economically strongest cities are even above the 9.1% average, at 10.1%.
What helps against vacancy on the high street?
Effective measures include early, targeted re-letting, divisible units for smaller concepts, market-level and flexible rent models, and interim uses with a clear follow-up plan. At location level, town-center management and Business Improvement Districts help, as Lippstadt and Hamburg show.
UNIQUE RETAIL supports owners of retail properties with vacancy and re-letting – from analyzing the unit and its surroundings to approaching suitable tenants and closing the deal. Learn more about our leasing and expansion management or get in touch.
