Find a pharmacy in Dortmund
Dortmund's pharmacy network covers a city of roughly 590,000 residents in the heart of the Ruhr region, with 69 verified pharmacies in the PillsCard directory serving a population that blends long-standing working-class neighbourhoods, a sizeable student community around TU Dortmund, and substantial Turkish, Polish, and southern European communities whose multilingual needs shape counter service in many shops. Concentration follows the city's polycentric layout: the Innenstadt-West around Westenhellweg and Hansaplatz holds the highest density of walk-in pharmacies, while the outer districts of Hörde, Aplerbeck, Mengede, and Eving are served by neighbourhood Apotheken anchored near tram stops, GP practices, and the Klinikum Dortmund and Knappschaftskrankenhaus campuses.
The market is fragmented in the German tradition: chain ownership is prohibited beyond a four-branch limit per pharmacist, so independent operators dominate. Long-established names like Bären Apotheke and Mohren-Apotheke trade on heritage in the central districts, while Fleming Apotheke and Lindemann Apotheke serve the residential belts further out. Markt-Apotheke holds the typical town-square position you find across Westphalian towns, and Apotheke am Hansaplatz handles heavy footfall from the U-Bahn interchange and weekly market traders. Körnebach Apotheke and Drei Linden Apotheke anchor the eastern neighbourhoods near the B1, and specialist compounding (Rezeptur) and palliative supply are clustered around the hospital corridors in Mitte and Hörde.
Pricing & coverage
Prescription medicines dispensed under GKV carry a statutory co-payment of 5–10 EUR per item (10% of the pack price, floored at 5 EUR and capped at 10 EUR), with full exemption for under-18s and capped annual out-of-pocket spend at 2% of gross income (1% for chronic patients). Over-the-counter items — paracetamol packs typically 2–5 EUR, ibuprofen 400mg 4–8 EUR, a basic travel first-aid consultation 0–15 EUR — are paid privately. PKV policyholders are reimbursed against submitted receipts at tariff. Approved indications and reimbursement classifications are maintained by BfArM and the G-BA.
Emergencies & out-of-hours care
Out-of-hours pharmacy cover (Notdienst) runs on a rotating duty rota coordinated by the Apothekerkammer Westfalen-Lippe; the nearest open Apotheke at any hour is posted in every pharmacy window and at aponet.de or by dialling 22 8 33 from a mobile. For medical emergencies — chest pain, stroke symptoms, severe allergic reactions, suspected overdose — call 112 for ambulance and fire rescue. Non-life-threatening after-hours medical issues route through 116 117 (Ärztlicher Bereitschaftsdienst), with the emergency departments at Klinikum Dortmund (Mitte) and St.-Johannes-Hospital handling acute presentations around the clock.
Frequently asked questions
Do Dortmund pharmacies serve customers in Turkish or Polish?
Yes, frequently. Given the demographic make-up of districts like Nordstadt, Eving, and Hörde, many counter staff speak Turkish, Polish, or Russian alongside German, and several pharmacies in Nordstadt advertise multilingual consultation explicitly. English is reliably available in city-centre and university-adjacent shops; less so in outer residential pharmacies, where pointing to the package or showing a prior prescription remains the most efficient route.
Can I get a prescription from another EU country filled in Dortmund?
Yes, EU cross-border prescriptions issued on the standard EU template are dispensable at any German pharmacy, provided the medicine is licensed in Germany. The pharmacist will charge the private price; reimbursement is handled by your home insurer afterwards. Controlled substances (BtM) require a German-issued narcotic prescription and cannot be filled on a foreign script.
Are Sunday and public holiday closures absolute?
Standard pharmacies close on Sundays and public holidays, but the Notdienst rota guarantees that several Dortmund pharmacies are open at any given moment, distributed across the districts. A Notdienst surcharge of 2.50 EUR per prescription applies between 20:00 and 06:00 and on Sundays/holidays.
Where are the nearest hospital pharmacies for complex medications?
Klinikum Dortmund in Mitte and St.-Johannes-Hospital operate in-house pharmacies (Krankenhausapotheke) that supply ward stock and specialist preparations; outpatients are generally referred to public Apotheken with a written order, and oncology or HIV medications often route through specific designated pharmacies in the Mitte and Hörde corridors that hold the relevant supply agreements.
Is e-prescription (E-Rezept) accepted everywhere in Dortmund?
Yes. Since 2024 the E-Rezept is the mandatory standard for GKV prescriptions across Germany, and all verified Dortmund pharmacies in this directory accept it via insurance card (eGK), the gematik app, or printed token. Older paper prescriptions remain valid until their expiry date.
Safety note
This directory is informational only and is not medical advice. For individual clinical decisions, dosing questions, or interactions, consult a licensed pharmacist or your treating physician in person.