A significant majority of people in Germany feel heavily burdened by the substantial rise in energy prices. According to a recent survey conducted by the polling institute Insa for “Bild am Sonntag”, 72 percent stated that higher costs for electricity and energy are weighing heavily on them. More specifically, 35 percent report feeling very strongly burdened, while 37 percent feel rather strongly burdened. Conversely, 21 percent consider the costs to be only slightly or not at all burdensome, and 7 percent declined to answer.
The assessment of the energy transition also shows division. Forty-three percent view the restructuring of the energy system toward renewable sources as fairly positive, nearly equal to the 42 percent who rate it as fairly negative. Fifteen percent offered no opinion on this matter. Respondents are more critical of the phase-out of nuclear power: 49 percent rated this aspect as rather negative, compared to 36 percent who rated it as rather positive, with 15 percent remaining undecided.
Regarding the expansion of renewables, almost half of those surveyed favour increased development. Forty-seven percent believe that there should be more wind turbines and solar installations built in the future. Twenty-six percent desire no change, while 16 percent would prefer less expansion.
The goal of climate neutrality by 2045 also reveals a mixed picture: 46 percent consider this target to be rather important, while 38 percent find it rather unimportant. sixteen percent did not express a view on this objective.
In total, the polling institute Insa questioned 1,001 people for “Bild am Sonntag” on April 16th and 17th, 2026.
