Aral remains the biggest player when it comes to service stations in Germany. Last year they were operating 2,266 petrol stations according to data by Statista. Shell comes in second  with 1,947 locations while Total (1,157) is in third place. Many of these service stations also have a carwash.

Overall, there are a total of 14,093 service stations in Germany. Which makes Germany the second largest country in terms of service stations.

Italy has even more gas stations: approx. 21,700. While the number of inhabitants is less than Germany. This high coverage is made possible by a large number of unmanned filling stations. In some places, the opportunity to fill up is not much more than one or two pumps without staff or a sales area. Customers look in vain for a store or a car wash at such locations.

That’s different in Germany.  Many of the service stations there are also offering car washing. The gantry car wash is the most common type. Even if not every one of the 14,093 petrol stations in Germany has a car wash, the number is probably quite high. Not every country in Europe offers this combination of refueling and washing in such unity.

Aral turns 100

In 2024, Aral is celebrating its 100th birthday with a variety of activities. Read more about that (in German) here.

Also read: 

• Aral invests in premium portal washers
• Meet the entry-level car wash from Kärcher
• Wasserschmidt introduces new sludge-separation system at Autotechnica
• World Water Day: Istobal calls for responsible water use
• This is how a car wash can work on climate targets