In this guide
Start with two names: Stuttgart Automotive Expo in March 2027 and SPS – Smart Production Solutions. For most exhibitors selling into engineering, components or factory technology, those two carry the clearest audience fit. The first is the only event in this set with confirmed 2027 dates; the second draws on Stuttgart’s automation base.
Everything else depends on your buyer. Bau and CMT both sit in January 2027 with exact dates still to be confirmed, which makes them hard to schedule against a full-year calendar. LogiMAT, INTERGASTRA, Fakuma, Control, AMTS and Vocatium all list months rather than fixed days, so treat those months as planning anchors, not confirmed bookings.
This guide compares all ten by industry, stated exhibitor count and likely visitor profile, then sets out a shortlist method. No stand here suits every company. The point is to pick one or two shows, commit properly, and skip the rest without regret.
Who Should Go to Which Stuttgart Show
Match your buyer before you match your budget. The ten events split into three rough groups.
- Engineering and factory technology: Stuttgart Automotive Expo, SPS, AMTS, Control, Fakuma and LogiMAT. Pick by problem, not by size — measurement buyers at Control, processing plants at Fakuma, warehouse operators at LogiMAT.
- Built environment and consumer-facing: Bau for professional construction, CMT for leisure vehicles and travel.
- Sector-specific and talent: INTERGASTRA for hospitality operators, Vocatium for education and recruitment.
A simple test: write one sentence naming the visitor who signs your contract. If that person appears in two events, choose the smaller one where your stand is easier to find. If they appear in none, skip Stuttgart this cycle.
The Stuttgart Exhibition Calendar, Compared
- Stuttgart Automotive Expo — Confirmed March 2027 dates, automotive focus
This is the one event in the set with fixed 2027 dates: March 15–17. That certainty matters when you build a stand budget and book freight. The audience is automotive, and the named participant roll includes Daimler AG, Porsche, Bosch, Volkswagen and Audi, which suggests conversations with OEM-adjacent buyers rather than general public traffic. Around 400 exhibitors makes it the smallest of the automotive pair here, so a stand has a fair chance of being found. If your product touches drivetrain, electronics, interiors or vehicle software, start your shortlist here.
Best for: Tier-one suppliers and vehicle-tech vendors
- Bau — Large construction showcase, January 2027 window
Bau is the heavyweight of this list, with a stated 2,500 exhibitors and names such as Knauf, Saint-Gobain, BASF, Hilti and Rockwool. The industry is construction, and the audience skews toward specifiers, contractors, distributors and architects rather than consumers. January 2027 is the stated month, but exact dates are unconfirmed, so plan a flexible window. With that many stands, footfall is spread wide; your stand design and pre-show outreach do more work than location alone. Come if you sell materials, systems or tools into professional building projects.
Best for: Building materials and systems suppliers
- CMT – Caravan, Motor, Touristik — Travel and caravan fair with consumer pull
CMT covers travel and tourism, and the named participants — Dethleffs, Hymer, Knaus, Fendt, Carthago — point to caravan and motorhome brands alongside holiday operators. At a stated 2,000 exhibitors, this is a big show with a consumer-facing flavour, which changes how you staff a stand: demo time and lead capture matter more than technical depth. The month is January 2027; exact days are unconfirmed. Exhibitors selling leisure vehicles, camping equipment, destinations or travel booking services should weigh this against purely industrial options.
Best for: Leisure vehicle and holiday brands
- SPS – Smart Production Solutions — Automation and smart production, November 2026 slot
SPS – Smart Production Solutions lists automation as its industry, with around 1,600 exhibitors and names including Siemens, Schneider Electric, Rockwell Automation, Beckhoff and Mitsubishi Electric. That mix suggests an engineering audience evaluating control systems, drives and production software. November 2026 is the stated month, with exact dates unconfirmed. For a supplier of industrial electronics or factory IT, this is a stronger fit than a broad manufacturing fair, because visitors arrive with specific integration questions. Bring technical staff, not just sales.
Best for: Controls, drives and production IT vendors
- LogiMAT — Intralogistics and warehousing decision-makers
LogiMAT focuses on logistics, with a stated 1,500 exhibitors and participants such as DHL, Kuehne + Nagel, Siemens, Honeywell and Jungheinrich. The named mix spans logistics operators and equipment makers, so expect visitors comparing handling systems, warehouse software and fleet kit. March 2026 is the stated month; exact dates are unconfirmed. If your product shortens picking times or cuts warehouse cost, this audience understands the maths. Stand staff should speak in throughput and payback terms rather than feature lists.
Best for: Warehouse tech and materials handling
- INTERGASTRA — Hospitality equipment and food service buyers
INTERGASTRA covers food and hospitality, with about 1,300 exhibitors and names including Miele, Bosch, Siemens, Coca-Cola and Unilever. That combination suggests commercial kitchen equipment alongside food and beverage brands. February 2026 is the stated month, and exact dates remain unconfirmed. The audience is hoteliers, restaurateurs and catering operators — practical buyers who want to see equipment working. Live demonstrations earn attention here. If you sell into professional kitchens or hospitality supply chains, this show puts you in front of decision-makers who rarely attend industrial fairs.
Best for: Kitchen tech and catering suppliers
- Fakuma — Plastics processing, October 2026 window
Fakuma addresses plastics and rubber, with a stated 1,000 exhibitors and participants such as BASF, Covestro, Engel, Arburg and KraussMaffei. The mix of material makers and machine builders fits a processing audience: moulders, converters and product designers. October 2026 is the stated month, with exact dates unconfirmed. Because the sector is specialised, conversations tend to be technical and short-listed in advance. A stand works best paired with scheduled meetings. If your offer is polymer, tooling or processing equipment, this is a focused room rather than a broad crowd.
Best for: Machinery and polymer material suppliers
- Control — Measurement and inspection specialists
Control covers quality assurance, with about 900 exhibitors and names including Zeiss, Kistler, Keyence, Renishaw and Fluke. Those are measurement and inspection brands, so visitors arrive with calibration, testing and tolerance problems to solve. May 2026 is the stated month; exact dates are unconfirmed. It is one of the smaller events here, which keeps the floor navigable and puts serious buyers within reach. If your product measures, tests or certifies, this audience speaks your language. Prepare sample parts and data sheets rather than broad marketing material.
Best for: Metrology, testing and QA teams
- AMTS – Automotive Manufacturing Technologies Show — Production-side automotive manufacturing audience
AMTS – Automotive Manufacturing Technologies Show sits in the automotive industry, with a stated 800 exhibitors and names including Daimler, Bosch, ZF Friedrichshafen, Volkswagen and Audi. The emphasis is manufacturing technology rather than vehicles, so expect plant engineers, process planners and production managers. September 2026 is the stated month, and exact dates are unconfirmed. Compared with Stuttgart Automotive Expo, this show looks narrower and more factory-floor oriented. If you sell line equipment, joining, forming or assembly technology, this is the more targeted of the two automotive options.
Best for: Line equipment and factory suppliers
- Vocatium — Careers and training, June 2026 month
Vocatium covers education and training, with a stated 300 exhibitors and participants described as universities, training institutions and corporations. That makes it the smallest event in this set and the only one aimed at career and study decisions rather than industrial purchasing. June 2026 is the stated month; exact dates are unconfirmed. For a training provider, university or employer building a talent pipeline, the audience is different from every other show here — school leavers, students and career changers. Plan interactive formats and plain-language materials.
Best for: Universities and training providers
Quick comparison
| # | Event | Dates | Industry | Exhibitors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stuttgart Automotive Expo | March 15-17, 2027 | Automotive | 400+ |
| 2 | Bau | January 2027 (exact dates TBD) (unconfirmed) | Construction | 2,500+ |
| 3 | CMT – Caravan, Motor, Touristik | January 2027 (exact dates TBD) (unconfirmed) | Travel & Tourism | 2,000+ |
| 4 | SPS – Smart Production Solutions | November 2026 (exact dates TBD) (unconfirmed) | Automation | 1,600+ |
| 5 | LogiMAT | March 2026 (exact dates TBD) (unconfirmed) | Logistics | 1,500+ |
| 6 | INTERGASTRA | February 2026 (exact dates TBD) (unconfirmed) | Food & Hospitality | 1,300+ |
| 7 | Fakuma | October 2026 (exact dates TBD) (unconfirmed) | Plastics & Rubber | 1,000+ |
| 8 | Control | May 2026 (exact dates TBD) (unconfirmed) | Quality Assurance | 900+ |
| 9 | AMTS – Automotive Manufacturing Technologies Show | September 2026 (exact dates TBD) (unconfirmed) | Automotive | 800+ |
| 10 | Vocatium | June 2026 (exact dates TBD) (unconfirmed) | Education & Training | 300+ |
Event details reflect supplied records and have not been independently verified for this guide. Always confirm on the official event website before booking travel or stand space.
Stuttgart's Position for Cross-Border Business
Stuttgart sits in southwest Germany, and that geography shapes who walks the halls. The named participants across these events lean German and Central European — Daimler, Bosch, ZF Friedrichshafen, Porsche, Siemens, Beckhoff, Knauf, BASF. Machinery and materials names such as Engel, Arburg and KraussMaffei reflect the same regional industrial belt.
For an exhibitor, that suggests a visitor base reachable by road and rail from neighbouring markets, though the details of routes and access are for you to check with your freight and travel providers. What the event data does support is a pattern: the automotive and automation shows pull international engineering brands, while construction, hospitality and travel events lean toward German-speaking trade and consumer audiences.
Plan language accordingly. English works widely at SPS, AMTS and Control. At Bau, CMT and INTERGASTRA, German-language stand materials will likely do more work. None of that replaces your own market research — it simply tells you where to start the conversation.
A Practical Stuttgart Exhibitor Kit
Treat the calendar as unconfirmed until you hold written dates. Only Stuttgart Automotive Expo (March 15–17, 2027) has fixed days in this set. Everything else lists a month, so build a flexible plan.
- Lock dates in writing. Request written confirmation of exact days for any show you shortlist.
- Set a decision deadline. Give yourself a fixed date to choose one or two shows, then stop reviewing.
- Budget by show, not by year. Stand, staffing, freight and materials per event, so comparisons stay honest.
- Staff for the audience. Technical people for SPS, Control and AMTS; demo staff for INTERGASTRA and CMT.
- Prepare materials in German and English where the audience calls for it.
| Show | Stated month | Stated exhibitors |
|---|---|---|
| Bau | January 2027 | 2,500 |
| CMT | January 2027 | 2,000 |
| SPS | November 2026 | 1,600 |
| LogiMAT | March 2026 | 1,500 |
Counts are as stated by the event records; they describe past or listed editions, not forecasts.
The Final Recommendation
If you exhibit once in Stuttgart, make it Stuttgart Automotive Expo in March 2027. The dates are fixed, the audience is clearly automotive, and 400 exhibitors means your stand is findable. For a second show, add SPS if you sell controls, drives or production software, or AMTS if your buyers sit on the factory floor.
For non-industrial sectors, the logic holds: Bau for construction professionals, INTERGASTRA for hospitality, Vocatium for education and recruitment. Each serves a distinct buyer.
One caution. Several of these events list months rather than days, and a past edition does not promise a future one. Confirm dates and participation directly before committing budget. Then choose, book, and stop shopping.
Stuttgart Exhibitions: Common Questions
Which Stuttgart trade show has confirmed dates?
In this set, only Stuttgart Automotive Expo lists fixed days: March 15–17, 2027. Bau and CMT state January 2027 with exact dates to be confirmed, and the remaining events list months only. Treat every month as a planning anchor and request written confirmation of exact days before you commit stand or travel budget.
How do I choose between AMTS and Stuttgart Automotive Expo?
Both are automotive. Stuttgart Automotive Expo has fixed 2027 dates and around 400 exhibitors; AMTS states 800 exhibitors and points toward manufacturing technology. If you sell line equipment, assembly or forming technology, AMTS looks more factory-focused. If your product touches vehicle technology more broadly, start with the March event.
Is Stuttgart a good base for Central European buyers?
The named participants across these events lean German and Central European, including Daimler, Bosch, ZF Friedrichshafen, Siemens and BASF. That suggests a visitor base reachable from neighbouring markets, though travel and freight arrangements are yours to check. The pattern is strongest in automotive, automation and construction.
Should I exhibit at more than two Stuttgart shows?
Usually not. Ten events span very different audiences, and spreading budget across several stands weakens each one. Pick one or two where your contract-signing visitor appears, staff them properly, and plan follow-up. A smaller, focused presence tends to serve better than several thin ones.
Do past editions guarantee a future show?
No. The exhibitor counts and participant names describe supplied records for listed editions. They do not confirm that a future edition will run at the same scale, or at all. Confirm dates and participation with each event's organiser before you commit budget, and avoid forecasting visitor numbers from past figures.
Next step: shortlist two shows by buyer, then request written dates and stand details for each. Start with Stuttgart Automotive Expo for March 2027, and add SPS or AMTS if your buyers are technical. Decide once, commit, and leave the rest of the calendar alone.