Police, fire services and prisons in Europe: what they buy and who supplies them
Buyers declaring "Public order and safety" as their main activity, across the EU, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
In proportion
General government spending on goods, services and investment for public order and safety in the EU-27 came to €88.7 billion in 2024 (Eurostat, COFOG). How much of it reaches suppliers through tenders depends on how the country organises the sector — for example whether statutory health insurance is classified in government.
Source: Eurostat, government finance statistics (gov_10a_main, gov_10a_exp) and GDP (nama_10_gdp), retrieved 9 November 2026.
The market in numbers
Public supply contracts in Europe: award notices published on TED from 2023-11 to 2026-11, by publication year.
- Contracts awarded
- 78.4K
- in 13.1K award notices
- Awarded value
- €17B
- from 52% of awards with a published value
- Suppliers
- 7.8K
- with at least one award
- Public buyers
- 1.5K
- in this sector
Table view
| Nov–Dec 2023 | 698 |
| 2024 | 21,573 |
| 2025 | 24,060 |
| 2026 | 32,021 |
Table view
| Nov–Dec 2023 | €177.9M |
| 2024 | €4.7B |
| 2025 | €6.9B |
| 2026 | €5.7B |
- Pharmaceutical products18,683
- Motor vehicles4,571
- Other36,651
Table view
| Pharmaceutical products | 18,683 |
| Miscellaneous food products | 9,239 |
| Food, beverages, tobacco and related products | 6,825 |
| Motor vehicles | 4,571 |
| Cereals, potatoes, vegetables, fruits and nuts | 3,993 |
| Animal products, meat and meat products | 3,978 |
| Individual and support equipment | 3,555 |
| Computer equipment and supplies | 2,547 |
| Other | 36,651 |
- Romania51,661983 companies
- Poland8,0771,322 companies
- Germany2,313830 companies
- Slovakia2,312322 companies
- France2,210855 companies
- Czechia2,039390 companies
- Spain1,998431 companies
- Latvia1,206254 companies
- Bulgaria960301 companies
- Hungary761202 companies
Table view
| Romania | 51,661 |
| Poland | 8,077 |
| Germany | 2,313 |
| Slovakia | 2,312 |
| France | 2,210 |
| Czechia | 2,039 |
| Spain | 1,998 |
| Latvia | 1,206 |
| Bulgaria | 960 |
| Hungary | 761 |
- Large companies
- Medium-sized
- Small
- Micro
- SME (size not stated)
- Size not stated
Table view
| Large companies | 14,763 · 18.8% |
| Medium-sized | 26,510 · 33.8% |
| Small | 13,047 · 16.7% |
| Micro | 1,446 · 1.8% |
| SME (size not stated) | 6,190 · 7.9% |
| Size not stated | 16,396 · 20.9% |
- Germany86
- Czechia81
- Estonia52
- Italy45
- Lithuania38
- Austria38
Table view
| Germany | 86 |
| Czechia | 81 |
| Estonia | 52 |
| Italy | 45 |
| Lithuania | 38 |
| Austria | 38 |
Awards to companies registered in the buyer's own country
99.1%
721 awards went to companies registered elsewhere.
Share of the 5 biggest winners
15.2%
Of all awards; a high share means a concentrated market.
Lots with a single bid
20.9%
Among 68.7K awards whose notice states the number of tenders.
How we count: one award per procedure, lot and winning company, from live contract award notices; a joint procurement counts on every buyer's market. Values are the awarded amounts published in the notice (framework ceilings and estimates are never added), converted to euro at the ECB yearly average. Company size is the SME flag of the notice (eForms BT-165). Read the methodology.
Questions
- What do police, fire services and prisons in Europe buy through public tenders?
- Mostly pharmaceutical products (18,683 awards), miscellaneous food products (9,239 awards), food, beverages, tobacco and related products (6,825 awards) — 78,352 supply contracts in total since November 2023.
- How much is it worth?
- The 40,934 awards with a published value add up to €17B; the rest are framework ceilings or undisclosed amounts, which we never add.
All sectors in Europe · Europe by product category
Source: contract award notices on TED — Tenders Electronic Daily (ted.europa.eu), © European Union, published since November 2023; processed by Cresques. Numbers updated 2026-11-13.