Schwanthalerhöhe (Westend)

The Schwanthalerhöhe, usually called the Westend, is district no. 8 and Munich's smallest by area. It grew during industrialisation as a working-class and craft quarter with dense tenement blocks; breweries and factories arrived around 1850, and the Augsburg–Munich railway accelerated its growth. Nearly half of the housing stock dates from before 1919.

On 31 December 2025, 29,456 people lived here on about 2.1 km², 142 residents per hectare. About 33.5% did not hold German citizenship, above the city average of 30.6%.

• Old Westend: dense blocks from around 1900; renovation from the 1970s onwards turned the former "Glasscherbenviertel" into a sought-after area while keeping its character. The former Metzeler rubber factory site became a craft and technology centre.
• Augustiner brewery: a brick brewery building and local landmark.
• Theresienhöhe: after the trade fair moved to Riem in 1998, the former fairground was redeveloped with about 1,800 flats and business space; nearly a third of the 47-hectare site is green or open space.
• Bavaria statue and Ruhmeshalle above the Theresienwiese, and the Verkehrszentrum of the Deutsches Museum in listed Art Nouveau halls.
• The city portal describes the atmosphere as urban and trendy, but quieter than the city centre.

• U-Bahn: U4 and U5 run through the middle of the district (Schwanthalerhöhe, Heimeranplatz; Theresienwiese on the eastern edge).
• S-Bahn: the trunk line runs along the northern edge, and there is an S-Bahn stop at Heimeranplatz.
• Trams also serve the north of the district.

Most homes are rented flats in older multi-storey buildings; the newer Theresienhöhe quarter adds modern blocks, including the stacked residential terraces nicknamed the "Betongebirge". Today most jobs in the district are in services, trade and public administration.

About 13% of residents were under 18 at the end of 2025 (city average 15.2%). The Bavariapark and several small squares provide green space. Georg-Freundorfer-Platz won a national prize in 2006 for its playground and leisure design, and the Quartiersplatz on the Theresienhöhe has water play, trampolines and slides.