Originally founded in 1848 as the Ministry for Commerce and Public Works (Ministerium für Handel und öffentliche Arbeiten), the institution's formal name of exact portfolio have undergone numerous changes over the years.

Over the course of the next several decades, its list of responsibilities gradually grew longer; its name changed several time to reflect the new reality.

In 1918, following the collapse of the Austrian Empire in the final days of World War I, the ministry was briefly divided into a commerce department (Staatsamt für Gewerbe, Industrie und Handel) and a reconstruction department (Staatsamt für Kriegs- und Übergangswirtschaft).

In 1967, the Ministry was split into a Ministry of Commerce and Industry (Ministerium für Handel, Gewerbe und Industrie) and a Ministry of Civil Engineering (Ministerium für Bauten und Technik); the latter assumed responsibility for managing public real estate and structures, roadworks, waterways, hydraulic engineering, water supply, sewerage, the promotion of housing construction, and engineering standardization, among other things.

The Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs is responsible for:[2] As of May 2018, the ministry consists of the Minister and his personal staff (Kabinett), the office of the director general, and nine departments:[3] The Minister and his staff are political appointees; the general secretary and the section heads are career civil servants.