Frankfurter Buchmesse 2026: Where the industry shapes its future
78th Frankfurter Buchmesse, featuring 4,000 exhibitors and 236,000 visitors from 137 countries, more than 3.800 events and a new hall layout
In an era of political polarisation and technological upheaval, Frankfurter Buchmesse brings together the international book industry as an actionable public forum.
With a total of 236,000 visitors (119,000 trade visitors and 117,000 private visitors) from 137 countries, Frankfurter Buchmesse maintained its high attendance level from the previous year. This year, publishing professionals from more countries than in 2025 attended the fair. Compared to the previous year, new participating countries included Belize, Bermuda, Botswana, Cabo Verde, the Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Guatemala, Greenland, Guinea, Namibia, Senegal, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Togo and the Turks and Caicos Islands. The fair featured 4,000 exhibitors and more than 3,800 events took place on the fairgrounds and in the city.
“This fair has shown that the future of books is being shaped in several places at once: at the tables of rights agents, in the debate over AI and freedom of publishing, and in direct interactions with readers. Frankfurt brings these places together. This is where the industry comes together for business, discusses the conditions determining its future, and celebrates literature together with readers,” says Juergen Boos, Director of Frankfurter Buchmesse.
Sebastian Guggolz, Chairman of the German Publishers & Booksellers Association, also draws a positive conclusion: “Frankfurter Buchmesse is the place where the industry addresses important issues across exhibition halls and national borders. We are all concerned about the declining reading skills among young people and the impact of AI on the industry. However, the continued high level of public attention and the enormous interest shown by many visitors at the book fair in Frankfurt allow us to look to the future with confidence, despite all the economic challenges.”
New order, clear guidance: 2026 hall layout
The new hall layout was well received among exhibitors, trade visitors, the general public and the media. Positive aspects that were mentioned particularly often include the clear navigation and the appealing new layout of the halls.
Publisher Jo Lendle (Carl Hanser) says about the new layout: “More space, less congestion: Frankfurter Buchmesse retains its importance as a trade fair. At the same time, it takes a huge step towards becoming a literary festival. The days for the public felt noticeably more relaxed – lively, but not overcrowded.”
Anna Soler-Pont from Pontas Agency comments on this year’s Literary Agents & Scouts Centre: “Although many editors had to run back and forth a lot, and the short time between appointments was a challenge, this year’s LitAg was fantastic. And for me, it was one of the best venues ever.”
Audio: Growth continues
Frankfurt Audio, the fair’s audio area saw more exhibitors than before, while the audiobook market continues to grow internationally: Spotify announced its expansion into 180 new markets at the fair. Audible presented a survey of 18,000 customers across 11 markets, which revealed increasing listening times and a growing number of listeners. Audiobooks help give local stories and languages a wider reach: “In Brazil, 220 million people speak the same language: Portuguese. But we also have 295 indigenous languages, many of which people know nothing about. We need to give indigenous cultures a voice so they can speak for themselves about their cultures,” said Henrique Lian, CEO of Proteste/Euroconsumers Brasil.
Book-to-Screen Day: Stories for films and series
This year’s Book-to-Screen Day brought together publishers, agents, producers and filmmakers to discuss stories, rights and new adaptations. Highlights included the panel “European Adaptation Trends” and a discussion between director Volker Schlöndorff, producer Regina Ziegler and author Jenny Erpenbeck about the film adaptation of Heimsuchung (Visitation). The upcoming Netflix release of Melanie Raabe’s novel Die Falle (The Trap) demonstrated how books can reach new audiences.
Frankfurt Calling: Who creates knowledge, and who is heard?
Frankfurt Calling, the book fair’s cultural-political programme, addressed issues that are shaping the publishing industry and public debates. At 125 events held at 14 venues on the fairgrounds and across Frankfurt, participants included US historian and winner of the Pulitzer Prize Jill Lepore, Philippe Sands – winner of the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade –, and Melissa Fleming, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications. Topics included digital surveillance, the protection of democratic institutions, international law and freedom of publishing. The first IPA Freedom of Expression Defenders Award was received by The Media Coalition. The US-based group representing the book, film, music and games industries has been defending freedom of speech since 1973.
From Gisèle Pelicot to PublisHer: Women’s voices shape Frankfurter Buchmesse
While Anne Carson was announced as this year’s recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature in Stockholm, female authors, journalists and industry representatives shaped the discussions taking place at the book fair in Frankfurt. Gisèle Pelicot drew attention to the social dimension of sexual violence with her powerful message: “Shame has to change sides.” During one of the international PublisHer events taking place in Frankfurt, publisher Chantal Restivo-Alessi (USA), industry journalist Emma House (UK) and publisher Kelly Gallagher (USA) discussed new career paths and the visibility of women’s perspectives in the book industry. During the SHEROES talk “Our Father – When Daughters Write Stories,” moderator Jagoda Marinić was joined by Natalie Amiri, Düzen Tekkal and Alexa Hennig von Lange to explore the question: to what extent does our background determine who we become – and when does our own story begin?
Guest of Honour Czechia: A Country on the Coast
As Guest of Honour at Frankfurter Buchmesse 2026, Czechia presented more than 100 events with 75 authors under the motto “A Country on the Coast”. Among the authors that came to Frankfurt were Radka Denemarková, Marie Iljašenko, Dora Kaprálová, Jáchym Topol and Kateřina Tučková, as well as new voices in contemporary Czech literature, such as Marek Torčík, Anna Beata Háblová and Klára Vlasáková, and many more. The 2,300-square-metre Guest of Honour pavilion brought the coastal theme to life in a tangible way: exceptional, inflatable design elements invited visitors to linger; readings, discussions and interactions among trade professionals took place on two stages. A poetic lighthouse and interactive “buoys” showcased Czech literature assisted by AI, while artworks were created on site – supported by a robot.
At the weekend: From book signings to the Matsuri Stage
From Friday till Sunday, visitors were able to experience the fair through the perspective of many different worlds, including romance and fantasy in the Festhalle, manga, cosplay and audiobooks in Hall 4.0, children’s books and new film adaptations in the Screen World, crime fiction and audiobooks and live podcasts at Frankfurt Audio. Around the Agora, spaces opened up for spontaneous interactions and planned fan moments. Authors met with their readers, children drew pictures and listened to stories, and the first Matsuri Stage and the K-Pop area brought Asian pop culture to the fair. Colson Whitehead, Yang Shuang-zi, Jenny Erpenbeck, Robert Habeck, Cornelia Funke, Skye McKenna and other well-known authors appeared on the stages of the fair and its media partners.
The 79th Frankfurter Buchmesse will take place from 6 to 10 October 2027. The Guest of Honour will be Chile.