Optician in Denmark – where to open

Active in Denmark

899

1.5 per 10,000 residents

3-year change

-1.6%

12 months: -1.2%

Opened / closed (12 mo.)

28 / 39

Median gross profit

DKK 2.5m

83% profitable

Deeper numbers

Survival, trouble signs, competition and people for optician in Hele Danmark.

Survival

Still open after 1 year88%

Still open after 3 years76%

Still open after 5 years67%

Businesses that closed in the last 10 years were open for 9.9 years on average.

Share of businesses started in the 10 years before each mark that were still open after 1, 3 and 5 years.

Trouble signs

Closed within 2 years of opening (last 12 months)5 · 13% of all closures

Companies with negative equity12%

Losses two years in a row8%

Equity and losses from annual reports 2025.

Financial health

Made a loss17%

Median equity ratio42%

Gross profit per employeeDKK 729k

Staff costs per employeeDKK 540k

Medians of companies that filed annual reports for 2025 - 381 companies.

Competition

Run by chains (3+ places)38%

Share of the 3 largest operators33% · 547 owners

	117 places
	116 places
	61 places
	10 places
	8 places

New and established

Openings per 10,000 residents (12 months)0.05

Average age of active businesses19.6 yrs

Younger than 2 years7%

Older than 10 years72%

Distance to the nearest one

Residents more than 5 km from one1,201,420 · 20%

More than 10 km373,700

Farthest parish (5,000+ residents)10.3 km · Vissenbjerg Sogn (Assens)

Measured from each parish centre.

When businesses open and close

OpenedClosed

Per calendar month, 2021–2025. Many closures are dated 31 December (the end of a financial year), so December's closures are higher than when businesses actually stopped.

Jobs

Average number of employees reported in the annual reports of companies that file accounts, sole proprietorships are not included.

Farthest from the nearest optician

Postcodes with at least 10,000 residents, measured from the postcode centre (the average of its addresses) – possible gaps in the local offer.

Postcode	Residents	Distance
6630 Rødding	10,004	11.7 km
9560 Hadsund	10,316	6.7 km
3550 Slangerup	10,113	5.4 km
9230 Svenstrup J	11,655	4.5 km
7700 Thisted	25,228	4.3 km
6705 Esbjerg Ø	14,703	4.1 km
8920 Randers NV	23,567	4.0 km
6430 Nordborg	11,321	4.0 km
2765 Smørum	12,554	3.7 km
7120 Vejle Øst	12,726	3.4 km

Active in Denmark over time

Openings and closures per year

OpenedClosed* 2026 so far

Best opportunities

Municipalities with room in the market.

Tårnby Kommune	78
Vallensbæk Kommune	77
Brøndby Kommune	74
Fredensborg Kommune	72
Albertslund Kommune	71
Ishøj Kommune	71
Lejre Kommune	70
Stevns Kommune	69
Assens Kommune	68
Ballerup Kommune	67

Growing fastest

3-year change in active businesses.

Svendborg Kommune	11	+22%
Gribskov Kommune	6	+20%
Vesthimmerlands Kommune	6	+20%
Hedensted Kommune	6	+20%
Ikast-Brande Kommune	6	+20%
Gentofte Kommune	16	+14%
Fredericia Kommune	9	+13%
Frederiksberg Kommune	18	+13%
Ballerup Kommune	11	+10%
Holbæk Kommune	11	+10%

Declining

Municipalities where this type is shrinking.

Hørsholm Kommune	5	-38%
Herlev Kommune	4	-33%
Skive Kommune	6	-25%
Næstved Kommune	11	-21%
Viborg Kommune	11	-21%
Silkeborg Kommune	12	-14%
Lyngby-Taarbæk Kommune	12	-14%
Hvidovre Kommune	6	-14%
Aalborg Kommune	26	-13%
Ringsted Kommune	7	-13%

All trends for this type →

Most per resident

Densest municipalities (15,000+ residents).

Lemvig Kommune	3.2
Brønderslev Kommune	2.7
Bornholm Kommune	2.6
Vordingborg Kommune	2.5
Odder Kommune	2.5
Skanderborg Kommune	2.4
Frederikshavn Kommune	2.3
Slagelse Kommune	2.2
Holstebro Kommune	2.2
Kolding Kommune	2.2

Financials of companies filing accounts

Median gross profitMedian result

Based on annual reports from Erhvervsstyrelsen. Sole proprietorships don't publish accounts.

By year

Year	Filers	Median gross profit	Middle 50%	Profitable
2025	381	DKK 2.5m	DKK 1.1m – DKK 4.7m	83%
2024	379	DKK 2.4m	DKK 1.1m – DKK 4.4m	80%
2023	383	DKK 2.2m	DKK 1.0m – DKK 4.2m	73%
2022	380	DKK 2.1m	DKK 1.0m – DKK 4.4m	77%
2021	375	DKK 2.3m	DKK 985k – DKK 4.3m	86%
2020	359	DKK 2.1m	DKK 962k – DKK 3.7m	84%
2019	350	DKK 1.9m	DKK 824k – DKK 3.7m	79%
2018	336	DKK 1.8m	DKK 704k – DKK 3.5m	77%
2017	154	DKK 1.3m	DKK 381k – DKK 2.3m	60%

By region

Region	Active	Per 10k	3-yr change
Region Hovedstaden	282	1.4	+1%
Region Midtjylland	195	1.4	-5%
Region Nordjylland	87	1.5	-2%
Region Sjælland	139	1.6	-3%
Region Syddanmark	188	1.5	-1%

What's included

Businesses whose main Danish branche code (DB07/DB25) starts with:

`477410…`	Optikeraktiviteter
`477810…`	Optikere

Also found by searching: optician, optiker, briller, glasses, contact lenses