Golem.de
Golem.de is a Berlin-based German-language IT news portal serving technology professionals in the DACH region with daily journalism, reviews, podcasts, and newsletters, monetized via advertising, subscriptions (Golem Pur and Golem Plus), affiliate commerce, and a job marketplace.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1997
- HeadquartersBerlin, Germany
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Golem.de does
Golem.de, operated by Golem Media GmbH and headquartered in Berlin, is a German-language IT news portal founded in 1997 (originally as a weekly magazine, transitioning to daily online publication in 1998 and rebranded to Golem.de in 2000). The platform delivers original journalism, technical analysis, product reviews, and commentary across hardware, software, telecommunications, network policy, security, gaming, science, and economics for an audience of IT professionals, decision-makers, and early adopters in the DACH region. The company operates a portfolio of sub-brands including the Golem.de Forum, the Besser Wissen podcast, Golem Ratgeber (a comparison and test portal), Golem Karrierewelt (seminars, e-learning, coaching, and employer branding), the Golem Stellenmarkt job marketplace, the Golem-PC custom PC service, and Golem Games, plus a suite of newsletters (daily news, AI Lab Report, Chefs von Devs, Karrierewelt).
The underlying technology stack is a content-managed web publishing platform integrated with a subscription management system (Golem Pur from EUR 3/month and Golem Plus), a job marketplace powered by Kimeta and Classmarkets, price comparison via geizhals.de, podcast hosting via Podigee, newsletter delivery via Brevo, and consent management via Sourcepoint for GDPR compliance. First-party engagement analytics run on the open-source Remp Beam tool, and the ad-supported version of the site integrates Google Analytics, Outbrain, Google AdSense, and Ströer Digital Media among more than 160 third-party data processors.
Golem.de monetizes through a diversified mix: contextual and behavioral advertising (subject to cookie consent), two tiers of consumer subscription (Golem Pur ad-free from EUR 3/month and Golem Plus premium), affiliate commerce across AWIN, Amazon PartnerNet, Tradedoubler, CommunicationAds, Daisycon, Financeads, Webgains, and direct retailer partnerships (Ebay, Notebooksbilliger.de, MediaMarkt, Saturn), and a job marketplace plus B2B career services via Golem Karrierewelt. The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Computec Media GmbH, which belongs to the Swiss Marquard Group, and operates alongside sister property it-jobuniverse.de. Management is led by Geschäftsführer (Managing Directors) Benjamin Sterbenz (also Editor-in-Chief) and Rainer Rosenbusch.
Golem.de firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Golem.de
- Legal name
- Golem Media GmbH
- Website
- https://golem.de
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1997
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Golem.de is a Berlin-based German-language IT news portal serving technology professionals in the DACH region with daily journalism, reviews, podcasts, and newsletters, monetized via advertising, subscriptions (Golem Pur and Golem Plus), affiliate commerce, and a job marketplace.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Golem.de is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Berlin
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Golem.de business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations
Revenue model
- Advertising Revenue: Contextual and behavioral advertising displayed to users who consent to tracking cookies. The site uses Ströer Digital Media for ad targeting and supports up to 160 third-party data processors for advertising purposes.
- Golem Pur Subscription: Premium ad-free subscription offering access to golem.de without analysis or advertising cookies. Available in monthly (€5.50), 6-month (€24), and annual (€36) plans.
- Golem Plus Subscription: Full access subscription to all Golem.de content with additional premium features and benefits.
- Affiliate Commerce: Revenue from affiliate partnerships and networks including AWIN, Amazon PartnerNet, Tradedoubler, and others. Commission earned on product referrals and conversions.
- Job Marketplace: Career world platform featuring job listings, seminars, workshops, e-learning courses, and coaching services for IT professionals.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Golem Pur Monthly - Ad-free reading with essential features |
| Subscription | Pay-as-you-go | Golem Pur 6 Months - Mid-term ad-free subscription |
| Subscription | Annual | Golem Pur Annual - Best value ad-free subscription |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels9 records
Golem.de product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Golem.de is a leading German-language IT news portal delivering daily journalism, analysis, reviews, and commentary on hardware, software, telecom, security, gaming, and science for technology professionals. It monetizes through advertising, tiered ad-free/premium subscriptions (Golem Pur, Golem Plus), affiliate commerce, and IT career services.
Product overview
Golem.de operates a multimedia IT news platform for technology professionals, consisting of a core news portal (Golem.de) offering daily IT news, analysis, reviews, and commentary across hardware, software, telecommunications, network policy, security, games, and science. The company offers two paid subscription tiers: Golem Pur (ad-free reading from 3 EUR/month with RSS and Dark Mode) and Golem Plus (full content access with exclusive articles and newsletters). Supplementary offerings include Golem Ratgeber (product test and comparison portal), Golem.de Forum (community discussions), Podcast Besser Wissen, multiple newsletters (daily news, AI Lab Report, Chefs von Devs, Karrierewelt), Golem Karrierewelt (seminars, workshops, e-learning, coaching), a Jobs marketplace, a Price Comparison powered by geizhals.de, Golem-PC custom PC service, Golem Games/Rätsel (gaming content), Deals, and Top Angebote (deal highlights). The portfolio is unified around IT-professional journalism with career development and commerce features extending the core editorial offering.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Golem Pur: Ad-free subscription service for Golem.de, available from 3 EUR per month
- Golem Plus
- Golem Ratgeber
- Golem Karrierewelt
- Golem Games
Products and services
- Golem.de Leading German-language IT news portal for technology professionals, delivering daily news, analysis, interviews, reviews, and commentary on hardware, software, telecommunications, network policy, business, security, game culture, and science.
- Golem Pur Ad-free subscription tier priced from EUR 3/month, offering Golem.de without advertising and analytics cookies, RSS full-text feed for offline reading, Dark Mode, event discounts, and access to video recordings.
- Golem Plus Premium subscription providing full access to all Golem.de content, including exclusive Plus articles and additional editorial newsletters.
- Golem Ratgeber Product test and comparison portal covering computer hardware, electronics, gaming, smart home, outdoor, and WLAN categories with detailed reviews, buying guides, and product rankings monetized via affiliate links.
- Golem Karrierewelt Career services platform offering seminars, workshops, e-learning courses, coaching, language learning (via Gymglish), a job board, and employer branding solutions for IT professionals and companies.
- Golem Stellenmarkt Job marketplace for IT professionals, powered by kimeta and classmarkets technology, where companies post job listings and candidates apply.
- Podcast Besser Wissen Podcast series covering technology topics, hosted via Podigee.
- Golem.de Newsletters Multiple newsletter offerings including Tagliche Nachrichten (daily news), AI Lab Report, Chefs von Devs, and Karrierewelt, delivered via Brevo/Sendinblue.
- Golem.de Preisvergleich Price comparison search engine powered by geizhals.de enabling users to compare product prices across retailers.
- Golem-PC Custom PC configuration and purchasing service for readers.
- Golem.de Forum Community discussion platform where registered users post in forums and comment on articles.
Companies that use Golem.de
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Golem.de technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration30 records
Feature3 records
Golem.de partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Ströer Digital Media GmbHcoreDigital advertising marketer for behavioral targeting on Golem.de. Golem and Ströer are joint controllers for advertising data processing.
- Sourcepoint Technologies Inc.coreConsent management platform provider for managing cookie consents and privacy preferences per GDPR requirements.
- Brevo (Sendinblue GmbH)coreEmail service provider used for newsletter delivery and campaign analytics.
- Podigee GmbHcorePodcast hosting service for Golem's Besser Wissen podcast and audio content.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Golem.de competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Heise Online: Heise Online is the leading German-language IT news portal, operated by Heise Verlag, which also publishes c't, iX, and Make magazines. It is Golem.de's most direct head-to-head competitor for German IT professional readership, advertising, and subscriptions.
- WinFuture: WinFuture is a long-running German-language IT news and software download portal covering Windows, mobile, and consumer technology. It targets a comparable German-speaking tech enthusiast audience with similar ad-supported and affiliate-driven monetization.
- t3n: t3n (digital pioneers) is a German digital business and technology magazine covering the digital economy, tech, and the future of work. It targets an overlapping DACH professional audience and competes for tech advertising and event sponsorships.
- ComputerBase: ComputerBase is a major German-language technology news and review portal with a strong enthusiast and hardware-focused audience. It competes directly with Golem.de for technical readers, advertising, and affiliate revenue in the DACH market.
- Computerwoche: Computerwoche is Germany's flagship B2B IT publication, published by IDG, serving IT decision makers with news, analysis, and events. It directly overlaps Golem.de's IT decision-maker audience and competes for B2B advertising and recruiting revenue.
- Netzwelt: Netzwelt is a German consumer and prosumer technology news and review site covering hardware, software, gaming, and streaming. It targets a comparable German-speaking tech audience with similar advertising and affiliate monetization.
Broad incumbents
- The Verge: The Verge is a major US-based consumer and professional technology media outlet covering gadgets, tech policy, and the digital economy. It competes for global IT-pro audience attention and ad budgets, and serves as a comparable digital-native tech media business model.
- TechCrunch: TechCrunch is a leading global technology and startup news property. While English-language and broader in scope, it competes for the same kind of premium advertising and event sponsorships that fund Golem.de's IT-professional newsroom.
- Ars Technica: Ars Technica is a long-established English-language technology news and analysis publication known for deep technical reporting. While it serves a broader international audience, its editorial positioning, subscription model (Ars Pro), and audience profile closely parallel Golem.de's premium IT-prosumer approach.
- ZDNet: ZDNet is a global B2B technology news and reviews publication owned by Red Ventures. It serves an IT decision-maker audience similar to Golem.de's and operates comparable advertising, affiliate, and subscription monetization.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Golem.de social profiles
Digital presenceGolem.de compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Golem.de financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Golem.de leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
Golem.de subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Golem.de funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Golem.de M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Golem.de
What does Golem.de do?
Golem.de is a leading German-language IT news portal delivering daily journalism, analysis, reviews, and commentary on hardware, software, telecom, security, gaming, and science for technology professionals. It monetizes through advertising, tiered ad-free/premium subscriptions (Golem Pur, Golem Plus), affiliate commerce, and IT career services.
Is Golem.de a public or private company?
Golem.de is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Golem.de founded?
Golem.de was founded in 1997. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Golem.de based?
Golem.de is headquartered in Berlin, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Golem.de make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Advertising Revenue is the primary driver. The others are golem Pur Subscription, golem Plus Subscription, affiliate Commerce and job Marketplace.
Who are Golem.de's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Heise Online, WinFuture, t3n, ComputerBase, Computerwoche and Netzwelt. Broad incumbents are The Verge, TechCrunch, Ars Technica and ZDNet.
Does Golem.de have an API?
No public API is recorded for Golem.de.