Lewis Williamson continued where he left off after winning the second GP3 race at Silverstone to top the first free practice session at the Nurburgring. The Scot's best time, set at the end of the session, was 0.355 seconds quicker than anyone else.
Tom Dillmann led the running early on in the session for Addax, before Nigel Melker moved top for Mucke. Valtteri Bottas went second quickest, with Williamson third and Dillmann slipping to fourth.
Midway through the session Dillmann returned to top spot, with Mitch Evans in second place ahead of Adrian Quaife-Hobbs.
Dillmann remained in first place until the closing minutes when MW Arden driver Williamson went quickest. He then found an extra three tenths with his final effort to put him clear at the top.
Antonio Felix da Costa moved into second place at the expense of Dillmann, who dropped to third. Evans ended up fourth, with Rio Haryanto fifth and James Calado sixth.
Championship leader Alexander Sims was seventh quickest, with Aaro Vainio, Michael Christensen and Marlon Stockinger completing the top ten. Series newcomer Callum MacLeod, who has replaced Daniel Morad at Carlin, was 29th quickest of the 30 runners, 2.212s adrift.
Practice 1 times:
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
| 1 | Lewis Williamson | MW Arden | 1:50.766 | 13 | |
| 2 | Antonio Felix da Costa | Status Grand Prix | 1:51.121 | 0.355 | 13 |
| 3 | Tom Dillmann | Addax Team | 1:51.235 | 0.469 | 12 |
| 4 | Mitch Evans | MW Arden | 1:51.275 | 0.509 | 14 |
| 5 | Rio Haryanto | Marussia Manor Racing | 1:51.411 | 0.645 | 15 |
| 6 | James Calado | Lotus ART | 1:51.458 | 0.692 | 12 |
| 7 | Alexander Sims | Status Grand Prix | 1:51.543 | 0.777 | 14 |
| 8 | Aaro Vainio | Tech 1 Racing | 1:51.571 | 0.805 | 14 |
| 9 | Michael Christensen | RSC Mucke Motorsport | 1:51.573 | 0.807 | 13 |
| 10 | Marlon Stockinger | Atech CRS GP | 1:51.576 | 0.810 | 15 |
| 11 | Nico Müller | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:51.625 | 0.859 | 15 |
| 12 | Valtteri Bottas | Lotus ART | 1:51.641 | 0.875 | 11 |
| 13 | Adrian Quaife-Hobbs | Marussia Manor Racing | 1:51.670 | 0.904 | 14 |
| 14 | Matias Laine | Marussia Manor Racing | 1:51.670 | 0.904 | 14 |
| 15 | Nigel Melker | RSC Mucke Motorsport | 1:51.750 | 0.984 | 14 |
| 16 | Dean Smith | Addax Team | 1:51.801 | 1.035 | 13 |
| 17 | Gabby Chaves | Addax Team | 1:51.945 | 1.179 | 14 |
| 18 | Tamás Pál Kiss | Tech 1 Racing | 1:52.024 | 1.258 | 14 |
| 19 | Vittorio Ghirelli | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:52.094 | 1.328 | 15 |
| 20 | Nick Yelloly | Atech CRS GP | 1:52.146 | 1.380 | 15 |
| 21 | Conor Daly | Carlin | 1:52.193 | 1.427 | 14 |
| 22 | Pedro Nunes | Lotus ART | 1:52.253 | 1.487 | 4 |
| 23 | Zoël Amberg | Atech CRS GP | 1:52.258 | 1.492 | 14 |
| 24 | Simon Trummer | MW Arden | 1:52.277 | 1.511 | 14 |
| 25 | Maxim Zimin | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:52.297 | 1.531 | 14 |
| 26 | Ivan Lukashevich | Status Grand Prix | 1:52.346 | 1.580 | 15 |
| 27 | Luciano Bacheta | RSC Mucke Motorsport | 1:52.783 | 2.017 | 13 |
| 28 | Thomas Hylkema | Tech 1 Racing | 1:52.971 | 2.205 | 14 |
| 29 | Callum Macleod | Carlin | 1:52.978 | 2.212 | 13 |
| 30 | Leonardo Cordeiro | Carlin | 1:53.318 | 2.552 | 14 |
