The Leipzig Book Fair attracted more visitors in 2026 than the previous year, breaking the 300,000‑visitor mark for the first time. A total of 313,000 people from across Germany and around the world came to Leipzig, the organisers announced on Sunday. In 2025 the fair had drawn 296,000 visitors.
The event spanned four audience days. According to official counts, the Leipzig Book Fair, the Manga‑Comic‑Con, and the Reading Festival Leipzig together hosted over 3,000 events at more than 300 reading venues in the city. There were 2,044 exhibitors from 54 countries on site, compared with 2,040 exhibitors from 45 countries in 2024. The focus this year was “Danube – Under Current and Between Worlds” bringing the literature of the Danube region into the spotlight.
Astrid Böhmisch, director of the Leipzig Book Fair, offered a positive assessment: “2026 has also proven that the Leipzig Book Fair is a place for debate, whether about literary, social or cultural‑political issues”. She added that the fair and Leipzig’s Reading Festival-Europe’s largest reading festival-continue to serve as a central marketing platform, appreciated by publishers for their growing attractiveness as a magnet for audiences.
