Data from nearly 400 stations were compiled for the study.Eight distinct epibenthic communities were found in the south-eastern North Sea by using multivariate analysis. Distribution modelling with eight environmental variables (bottom temperature and salinity, temperature differences between summer and winter, mud content of sediments, maximum bottom shear stress, stratification, water depth and annual primary production) and one human pressure (fishing effort) was used to extrapolate probable spatial distributions and to identify associated habitat characteristics of the communities in the south-eastern North Sea. Three large epibenthic communities “Coast”,“Oyster-ground” and “Tail End”reflect a gradual habitat change from the coast towards offshore regions, expressed in gradients of bottom salinity, seasonal temperature differences and stratification as the dominant environmental factors. Five smaller communities (“Amrum Bank”, “Frisian Front”, “Deeps”,“Dogger Bank” and “Dogger Slope”) outline specific habitats in the south-eastern North Sea. The “Dogger Slope”community has not been recognized before, but has a predicted spatial extent of 7118 km2.