analytica 2028
Munich.

What analytica is, in two lines

analytica is the world’s leading trade fair for laboratory technology, analysis and biotechnology: in Munich, since 1968, it brings together analytical instrumentation, laboratory automation, quality and life science, flanked by the scientific analytica conference. It is a biennial fair, held in even years, and one of the reference events for anyone working in pharma, medtech and diagnostics laboratories. The 2026 edition closed with 1.135 exhibitors from 40 countries (56% international) and around 35.000 visitors from 115 countries (~40% international), across 55.200 m² spread over five halls.

The practical consequence: at analytica almost no purchase closes at the stand. The conversation is about analytical instruments, automation systems, laboratory equipment and quality control solutions, that is, technical decisions that mature in the weeks after the fair, inside laboratory evaluation cycles and budgets. That is why the number of badges collected matters less and how those contacts are qualified, enriched and followed up afterwards matters far more. The value is not in the hall: it is in what happens from the following Monday onwards.

What to exhibit, where to exhibit

analytica is organised into themed areas spread across five halls, and that is the first thing to understand in order to position yourself. For the 2026 edition the map was this: halls A1/A2/A3 dedicated to analysis and quality control, with hall A3 also hosting biotechnology and life science; halls B1/B2 for laboratory technology (automation, robotics, equipment, lab 4.0 digitalisation); the ICM - International Congress Center for the scientific analytica conference. Those selling analytical instrumentation live in the A halls, those offering laboratory automation and digital solutions in the B halls.

A word of caution on 2028 planning, though: the map above is the 2026 one, and in 2028 ceramitec runs concurrently on the same grounds (occupying halls A4/A5/A6), so the exact layout of the analytica halls may change. For this reason, plan your position around the themed area, not the hall number, and wait for the official 2028 floor plan before committing. A practical tip: if your product spans two areas (for example an analytical instrument with a strong automation or software component), choose the area your decision-making buyer enters first and use the other as a secondary traffic channel. Whoever is close to the ICM and the conference audience intercepts a scientific crowd already inclined to talk about methods and data.

Visitor profile

The analytica audience is technical, scientific and international: 115 countries represented in 2026, with a strong German and DACH core and around 40% international visitors. It is a laboratory audience, not a mass-market one: those who walk up to the stand know what they are talking about and often arrive with a concrete analytical problem.

In terms of profiles, expect a majority of technical figures with direct influence on purchasing. Laboratory managers and technicians (industry and research), together with chemistry, biochemistry and pharmaceutical researchers and scientists, typically make up the largest share of qualified visitors (roughly 45-55%). Next come quality managers and quality control leads and buyers in the pharmaceutical, medtech and diagnostics sectors (together another substantial share, around 25-35%), who are often the real suppliers’ decision-makers. Completing the picture are R&D, laboratory automation and digitalisation managers and distributors and resellers of scientific instrumentation. The average seniority is high and so is the technical bar: at the stand you have to answer competently, but above all quickly understand who is in front of you, because a researcher evaluating a method and a pharma buyer signing a framework contract need to be handled and followed up in different ways.

How to prepare in the 4 weeks before the event

Week -4: message audit

Review what you communicate and to whom. At analytica the visitor is specialised and short on time: the generic claim “innovative solutions for your laboratory” stops no one. Define two or three concrete messages for your themed area (what the instrument does, on which analytical problem, with what measurable benefit on time, sensitivity, throughput or compliance). Align panels, demos and the technicians’ pitch on those, and prepare answers to the most likely technical objections (specifications, method validation, integration with existing systems): at the stand you will get them all.

Week -3: stand operating playbook

Decide who does what across the four days. Who greets, who runs the technical demo or shows the instrument live, who qualifies, who manages the appointments already booked with the conference or with pharma buyers. Set a clear rule: every useful conversation becomes a recorded lead, not a business card that ends up in a pocket. Decide on a single capture tool for the whole team and rehearse the flow at an empty stand, so on day 1 nobody improvises.

Week -2: the 3-question qualification form

You do not need twenty fields. You need three questions that, at the stand, tell you whether a lead is worth calling back and with what priority. For analytica these work well: (1) which application or analytical method they are trying to cover or improve; (2) timeframe and budget of the laboratory project; (3) role in the decision (uses the instrument, specifies the method, signs off the purchase). Three sharp answers that turn a name into a lead with a level of interest, and that after the fair are worth their weight in gold.

Week -1: CRM integration

Decide now where the leads go, not later. The goal is that every contact captured at the stand lands directly in the CRM with the event tag “analytica 2028”, the answers to the three qualification questions and a voice note from the technician recalling the context of the conversation. This is exactly the flow Linkly automates: capture, company-data enrichment, qualification and note, into the CRM with no manual steps. Test the integration on a few dummy leads before you start: the wrong moment to discover the flow does not run is Tuesday morning of day 1.

Is the official analytica app worth it?

Here the truth has to be told: analytica has no documented official mobile app. There is the web portal with hall plans and the online exhibitor search (exhibitors.analytica.de), useful for getting your bearings, building your agenda and making yourself findable ahead of the fair, but there is no dedicated mobile tool to lean on during the days themselves. For an exhibitor this changes the picture more than it seems.

It means you cannot delegate any part of your commercial process to the fair: there is no app that captures contacts, exports them to your CRM, enriches the data of the people you meet, follows up on your behalf or hands you an executive report on how it went. Without a capture system of your own, you end up collecting business cards and hand-filled sheets that, after the fair, nobody transcribes and calls back in time. On top of that, official portals and tools change with every edition: the only reliable capability is the one you bring with you, independent of the fair. See how Linkly works.

What to do during the 4 days of the fair

Day 1 (Tuesday): opening and calibration

A warm-up day. There is traffic but it is sparser and the audience is the more organised one, often with an agenda already set or tied to the analytica conference. Use it to calibrate: check that the capture flow runs, that the three qualification questions work in the field, that the instrument demos run smoothly. Fix today whatever is not working, because from tomorrow you will not have the time.

Day 2 (Wednesday): rising traffic

The flow grows. Laboratory managers and researchers start arriving in evaluation mode, alongside quality managers. Keep qualification discipline high: every relevant conversation must become a recorded lead with its level of interest, right away, while the context is fresh.

Day 3 (Thursday): peak of decisions

This is typically the central and most intense day, the one with the most decision-makers at the fair, the most pharma and medtech buyers and the most substantive conversations. Concentrate your best stand people and your most important meetings here. Do not let volume lower the quality of capture: better to qualify 30 contacts well than to pile up 80 indistinct ones.

Day 4 (Friday): closing, lower traffic but high quality

The last day has lower volumes, but whoever comes specifically on Friday is often motivated and has little time to waste. Close open conversations, set concrete next steps, and before dismantling make sure every lead of the week is already in the CRM with tag, qualification and note. Whoever leaves Munich with leads already ready for follow-up has already won the half that counts.

What to do in the 7 days after the fair

This is where the real return on investment is decided, and the number-one factor is response speed. On laboratory instrumentation and supply decisions the contact’s window of attention closes fast: whoever calls back first, with the right context, starts ahead.

• Within 24 hours: send the first follow-up to hot leads (those with a project and a near-term horizon). Personalised on the content of the conversation, not a generic template. This is where the voice note taken at the stand makes the difference.
• Within 7 days: work the medium-interest leads with technical materials targeted to their analytical application, and propose a concrete second contact (call, dedicated demo, method trial, exchange of specifications).
• Within 14 days: re-engage those who have not yet replied with a different angle, and clearly segment who is real pipeline from who should be placed in long-term nurturing.
• Within 30 days: close the fair’s accounts with real numbers (leads by level of interest, open opportunities, estimated value) and use that report to decide how to invest at the next edition, which with the biennial cadence will arrive in two years.

This is exactly where Linkly’s six AI agents work in a chain: contact capture, company-data enrichment, qualification, routing into the CRM, follow-up and reporting. Not to replace the salesperson, but to make sure no hot lead goes cold while it waits for someone to find the time to call back.

Practical FAQ

How much does it cost to exhibit at analytica?

It depends on themed area, position and stand build. As an order of magnitude for a fair of this level at Messe München, bare space alone starts indicatively from a few hundred euros per square metre, to which you must add stand build, technical services, mandatory fees and logistics: a small stand can sit in the tens of thousands of euros range, a structured space rises quickly. Ask the organiser for the up-to-date 2028 edition price list: official prices change with every edition.

Which is the best day for important meetings?

Thursday, the central day, is usually the peak of decision-makers at the fair. Tuesday and Wednesday are excellent for unhurried planned appointments and for intercepting the analytica conference audience; Friday is quieter but brings highly motivated visitors. Concentrate your strategic meetings in the middle of the week.

When does visitor registration open and why does it concern me?

Registration and tickets go through the official website and generally open months before the event. It concerns you because many visitors plan their agenda in advance: if you make yourself findable in the online exhibitor search (exhibitors.analytica.de) with a curated profile and propose meetings before the fair, you arrive at day 1 with appointments already booked rather than hoping for walk-up traffic.

Is there an alternative to collecting leads on paper or business cards?

Yes, and it is strongly recommended, especially because analytica has no official app to lean on. The problem with business cards and hand-filled sheets is not collecting them: it is that after the fair nobody transcribes them, qualifies them and calls them back in time. A digital capture system that brings the contact straight into the CRM with event tag, qualification answers and a voice note eliminates that manual work and shortens follow-up times. This is the use case Linkly exists for.

Is it worth tying my presence to the analytica conference?

For many exhibitors, yes. The analytica conference (scientific programme of the Forum Analytik: GDCh, GBM, DGKL) at the ICM draws a high-level scientific audience that also moves around the fair. If your product has technical-scientific content, intercepting that flow (through stand position, targeted materials or a talk) brings you more qualified conversations. Keep structured capture ready all the same: the best contacts from the conference are exactly the ones you do not want to lose in a business card.

Page updated ahead of the 2028 edition. For official information (dates, hall plans, price lists and registration) always refer to the official website analytica.de.