In this article, the consumption of catalysts in the chemical industry in Germany as well as their recycling are investigated. Metal catalysts play a dominant role both quantitatively and economically. Precious metal catalysts are also used very often, however, their quantitative use is, with less than 1000 t per annum, small and they are regularly reclaimed. The biggest group of catalysts consists of non-precious metal catalysts and it represents ca. 9 000 t per annum. The used catalysts from this group are only partially recycled. Some of these metals are often reclaimed, such as Ni, Cr, Mo, Co, and Cu. The catalysts that are not recycled are utilized in the chemical industry or disposed of. Economical criteria, such as the price of the metal, the content of the metal, the impurities, etc., are usually decisive for the choice between recycling and disposal. The support material can also be re-utilized or disposed of.