Museum für Naturkunde Berlin

What Museum für Naturkunde Berlin does

The Museum für Naturkunde Berlin is a publicly funded research museum and integrated science-communication institution within the Leibniz Association (Leibniz-Gemeinschaft), founded in 1810 and headquartered at Invalidenstraße 43, 10115 Berlin. It maintains a research collection of over 30 million objects — including approximately one million wet-collection specimens preserved in 80 tonnes of alcohol — spanning paleontology, biodiversity, evolutionary biology, and earth sciences, and employs between 275 and 438 staff across research, curation, collections management, and public engagement. The institution serves four primary audiences: general public visitors and tourists (737,918 on-site in 2025), families with children, school and educational groups, and the international scientific research community.

The core product is the on-site museum experience, comprising permanent exhibitions (Dinosaur Hall/Sauriersaal, Wet Collection, System Erde), special exhibitions such as DINOSAURIER! and ZUGvögel, and digital extensions including multilingual audio guides, two podcast series (Beats & Bones, Süßes oder Saurier — combined 550,000+ streams in 2025), the Naturblick citizen-science app, and downloadable educational materials. Research outputs are published through peer-reviewed venues including Nature and are supported by AI-assisted cataloguing of digitized insect specimens and AI-supported text and translation workflows aligned with the EU AI Act.

The business model combines institutional government funding — from the German Bundestag and Berlin Abgeordnetenhaus via the Leibniz Association — with earned revenue from admission fees (€11 adults, €5 concessions), guided tours and educational programs (€5–€15), and special ticketed events such as the Long Night of Museums (€17–€23). Distribution is direct through the museum's online ticket shop and on-site box office, supported by an event-driven go-to-market motion anchored on flagship exhibitions, the Lange Nacht der Museen, and a multi-channel marketing presence across Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube, and BlueSky. The museum is mid-execution on the Museums-Evolution Zukunftsplan, a multi-workstream renovation and expansion program encompassing building upgrades, collection development, knowledge transfer, and a planned second site in Berlin-Adlershof.

Name

Museum für Naturkunde Berlin

Legal name

Museum für Naturkunde Berlin

Website

https://museumfuernaturkunde.berlin

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

The Museum für Naturkunde Berlin is a Leibniz Association research museum in Berlin maintaining over 30 million collection objects. It serves the general public, families, school groups, and the international research community through permanent and special exhibitions, guided tours, podcasts, citizen science, and AI-assisted cataloguing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Natural History Museum and Research Institution

NAICS

Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Museums (71211), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

akta.pro primary industry

Natural History Museums (THAJADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA), Specialty Museums (e.g., Maritime, Aviation, Sports, Music, Film) (THAJADAF), History Museums (THAJADAB), Specialty Physical Artifact Storage (Museum Collections, Historical Documents, Rare Materials) (TLALALAJ), History, Heritage & Museum-Focused Study Tours (THAKAGAN), Museum, Zoo & Attraction Gift Shops (CRALAJAG)

Keywords

• Natural history museum
• Science exhibitions
• Biodiversity research
• Educational programmes
• Natural history collections

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Admission fees: Visitors pay admission fees for entry to the museum and its exhibitions. Adults pay €11.00, concessions pay €5.00.
2. Guided tours and educational programs: The museum offers paid guided tours, workshops, and educational programs for additional fees on top of admission.
3. Event tickets: Special events such as the Long Night of Museums are ticketed separately at higher price points (€23 regular, €17 concessions).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Museum für Naturkunde Berlin is an integrated research museum of the Leibniz Association that operates permanent and special natural history exhibitions (including the Dinosaur Hall, Wet Collection, DINOSAURIER!, and ZUGvögel), digital experiences such as audio guides and podcasts, and educational programmes (guided tours, microscopy workshops, citizen science). It also maintains a research collection of over 30 million specimens available to scientists and increasingly to the public.

Product overview

The Museum für Naturkunde Berlin is a research museum within the Leibniz Association offering a unified visitor experience centred on natural history exhibitions and science communication. The core product is its exhibition — including permanent halls (Dinosaur Hall, Wet Collection, System Erde) and rotating special exhibitions (DINOSAURIER!, ZUGvögel). This is complemented by digital experiences including audio guides and two podcast series (Beats & Bones and Süßes oder Saurier) totalling over 550,000 streams annually, plus a citizen science app (Naturblick). Educational offerings include guided group tours, the Microscopy Centre, and museum rally materials. The museum also provides research collection access, publications (Für Natur Journal, annual reports), and a monthly newsletter. All offerings are tied to the institution's public mission as a Leibniz research museum.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Museum Exhibition (Permanent and Special Exhibitions)
• DINOSAURIER! – Age of the Giant Lizards
• ZUGvögel – Collection in Motion
• Audio Guides
• Beats & Bones Podcast
• Süßes oder Saurier Podcast
• Guided Group Tours and Educational Programmes
• Microscopy Centre (Offenes Museumsatelier im Mikroskopierzentrum)
• Naturblick App
• Queering Nature Tour
• Publications and Downloads (Für Natur Journal, Annual and Science Reports)
• Research Collection Access (Sammlung)

Quantifiable outcome

• 737,918 visitors in 2025
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability3 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Partner institutions in Togo and GhanacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 June 2026Joint project with partner institutions in Togo and Ghana investigating colonial acquisition contexts and developing new perspectives on historical collections.
• Futurium, Hamburger Bahnhof, Medizinhistorisches MuseumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 May 2026MuseumsMeileMitte initiative: four Berlin museums launched a joint initiative for Berlin's Mitte district, offering free admission to a neighborhood festival.
• International research partnerscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 March 2026International research team discovered previously unknown harvestman species in 35-million-year-old amber from Ukraine and Baltic regions in the museum's collection.
• Wikipedia and 30+ cultural and educational institutionsminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 15 January 2026The museum participates in joint initiatives with Wikipedia and other German and Austrian cultural and educational institutions to promote free knowledge, in celebration of Wikipedia's 25th anniversary.
• Leibniz-GemeinschaftcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe museum is part of the Leibniz Association (Leibniz-Gemeinschaft), a German research association of scientific institutions.
• University of Naples Federico IIminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration on bat behavior studies, with female Daubenton's bats tracked in newly colonized mountain regions of the Italian Apennines.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• American Museum of Natural History: A non-profit research museum combining large natural history collections, dinosaur and biodiversity exhibitions, and active scientific research. Comparable in exhibition mix, educational programming, and integrated research/public engagement model.
• Royal Ontario Museum: A major Canadian museum combining natural history and world cultures collections with research and exhibitions. Directly comparable in operating a multi-million specimen collection alongside dinosaur/biodiversity public exhibits.
• Naturalis Biodiversity Center: A Dutch natural history research museum and collection center combining biodiversity research, large specimen holdings, and public exhibitions. Comparable in integrating active taxonomy research with science communication and education.
• Natural History Museum, London: A leading integrated research and public natural history museum with a comparable collection, exhibition, and research mission. Operates dinosaur galleries, public educational programming, and large-scale research infrastructure directly analogous to Museum für Naturkunde Berlin.
• Naturhistorisches Museum Wien: Vienna's natural history museum with comparable dinosaur halls, large research collections, and dual research/public-engagement mission. A German-speaking peer institution with similar exhibition scale and scientific profile.
• Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History: The U.S. national natural history museum with a massive specimen collection, research laboratories, and permanent dinosaur and biodiversity halls. Closely matches the integrated research-museum model and science communication mission of MfN Berlin.
• Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (Paris): France's national natural history museum combining research, collections, exhibitions, and graduate education. Highly comparable in being a publicly funded research museum with deep specimen holdings and public-facing dinosaur-era and biodiversity exhibits.
• Field Museum (Chicago): A non-profit natural history museum operating permanent exhibitions (including dinosaurs), research programs, and educational programming. Comparable in scope of collections, public engagement, and integrated research funding model.
• Naturhistoriska riksmuseet (Swedish Museum of Natural History): Sweden's national natural history museum with research, exhibitions, and large collections on biodiversity and geology. Matches MfN Berlin's role as a national research museum with a public-facing exhibition program.

Broad incumbents

• Museum für Naturkunde (Leibniz) – broader Leibniz Association network: The Leibniz Association umbrella under which MfN Berlin operates, alongside other German research museums. Relevant as a structural peer governing body affecting funding, research metrics, and institutional reporting standards.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/MfNBerlin
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mfnberlin
• Instagraminstagram.com/mfnberlin
• TikToktiktok.com/@mfnberlin?lang=de

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Museum für Naturkunde Berlin