Held from 14-17 April, PaintExpo 2026 served as a powerful signal of resilience and innovation, thriving despite a challenging global economic climate.
The world’s leading trade fair for industrial painting technology, PaintExpo, concluded its 10th edition as a resounding success. The 2026 edition solidified the event's status as an indispensable global hub for the industry.
- Total Visitors:
10,200 from 68 countries.
- Total exhibitors: 425 from 30 countries.
- International reach: 52% of exhibitors and 40% of visitors hailed from abroad.
- Decision power: Two out of three attendees were top decision-makers within their organizations.
- Exhibitor success: 89% of exhibitors achieved their participation goals.
“Despite industrial action in aviation and challenging economic conditions, PaintExpo 2026 was a resounding success. We have shown once again that the world’s leading trade fair for industrial painting technology is the sector’s most powerful driving force and an indispensable platform,” has stated Markus Geisenberger, Managing Director of Leipziger Messe.
The event highlighted a clear industry pivot toward sustainable, energy-efficient, and digitalised painting processes. Focus areas included powder coating, liquid painting, dip coating, and electroplating. Furthermore, automation and the integration of artificial intelligence were central themes, reflecting an industry-wide drive to simplify user processes and increase flexibility.
“I am very pleased with the high level of public interest we received at PaintExpo 2026. As in previous years, our stand had consistently high visitor numbers, and we held many productive, high-level discussions. I’m particularly impressed by the high proportion of international visitors,” has commented Michael Müller, CEO of WAGNER Group.
PaintExpo continues to be a unique venue, with nearly 45% of visitors stating they do not attend any other trade fair. Beyond showcasing products, the fair acted as a critical platform for networking and business development, facilitating high-level, in-person technical discussions.
“There’s simply no other event where you can meet all the necessary trades and discuss the latest technology across three exhibition halls in just a few days. And we’re talking about companies from countries ranging from Japan to the USA,” has said Thomas Querfurth, Sales Coordinator Germany at HangOn.
“In-person interaction is particularly important to us and cannot be replaced digitally, because it is only through one-to-one conversations that our technologies, solutions and services can be made tangible and comprehensible. But PaintExpo is also important to us as a trend barometer. Here we can decide which future areas of application to explore,” has added Matthias Haarer, Managing Director of Eisenmann.
On the final day, the event focused on the future workforce through a Career Day, providing students and graduates with networking opportunities and insights into career paths within the sector.
“Simply put, PaintExpo manages to bring the entire industry to Karlsruhe and present a comprehensive showcase of surface technology. PaintExpo is the most important trade fair for Krautzberger,” has concluded Thomas Weidmann, Managing Director of Krautzberger GmbH.
With the success of this year’s event, anticipation is already building for the next edition. Many exhibitors utilized on-site rebooking options to secure their stands for the future. The next PaintExpo is scheduled to take place from 25th 28th
April 2028.