The diocese covers an area of 16,934 km² and was erected as the Diocese of Messen on 24 June 1921. The name was changed to Dresden-Meissen on 15 November 1979.
| Tenure
| Incumbent
| Notes
|
| 22 May 1801 to 7 September 1831 | Bishop Georg Lock, Prefect of Meissen | Priest of Meissen; died in office
|
| 1831 to 14 September 1841 | Bishop Ignatz Bernhard Mauermann, Prefect of Meissen | Priest of Meissen; died in office
|
| 20 April 1846 to 5 October 1853 | Bishop Joseph Dittrich, Prefect of Meissen | Priest of Litomerice; died in office
|
| 11 July 1854 to 8 January 1875 | Bishop Ludwig Forwerk, Prefect of Meissen | Priest of Meissen; died in office
|
| 28 January 1876 to 18 March 1890 | Bishop Franz Bernert, Prefect of Meissen | Priest of Litomerice; died in office
|
| 11 July 1890 to 1900 | Bishop Ludwig Wahl, Prefect of Meissen | Priest of Rottenburg; resigned
|
| 13 February 1904 to 28 December 1905 | Bishop Georg Wuschanski, Prefect of Meissen | Priest of Meissen; died in office
|
| 4 April 1906 to 5 September 1914 | Bishop Aloys Schaefer, Prefect of Meissen | Priest of Meissen; died in office
|
| 30 January 1915 to 4 December 1920 | Bishop Franz Löbmann, Prefect of Meissen | Priest of Meissen; died in office
|
| 12 August 1921 to 13 August 1930 | Christian Schreiber, Bishop of Meissen | Priest of Fulda; ordained 14 September 1921; appointed Bishop of Berlin
|
| 13 January 1931 to 21 May 1932 | Conrad Gröber, Bishop of Meissen | Priest of Freiburg im Breisgau; ordained 1 February 1931; appointed Archbishop of Freiburg im Breisgau
|
| 9 September 1932 to 9 March 1951 | Petrus Legge, Bishop of Meissen | Priest of Paderborn; ordained 28 October 1932; died in office
|
| 9 March 1951 to 19 August 1957 | Heinrich Wienken, Bishop of Meissen | Coadjutor Bishop of Meissen; installed 29 November 1951; retired
|
| 23 June 1958 to 21 June 1970 | Otto Spülbeck, Bishop of Meissen | Coadjutor Bishop of Meissen; installed 24 July 1958; died in office
|
| 12 September 1970 to 15 November 1979 | Gerhard Schaffran, Bishop of Meissen | Auxiliary Bishop of Görlitz; installed 23 September 1970; becoming Bishop of Dresden-Meissen
|
| 15 November 1979 to 1 August 1987 | Gerhard Schaffran, Bishop of Dresden-Meissen | Hitherto Bishop of Meissen; retired
|
| 2 January 1988 to present | Joachim Friedrich Reinelt, Bishop of Dresden-Meissen | Priest of Dresden-Meissen; ordained 20 February 1988;
|
