U.S. Market Research: $37.7B Industry & Participant Recruitment
The U.S. market research industry reached $36.8B in 2025 with 7% job growth projected. Discover how brands recruit high-value research participants.
# The U.S. Market Research Industry: Size, Growth, and Participant Recruitment
The U.S. market research industry reached $36.8 billion in 2025, representing a critical pillar of data-driven business strategy. This article explores the industry's expansion, employment outlook, and the sophisticated strategies brands use to recruit high-value research participants.
Industry Size & Market Dominance
The U.S. holds 55% of total market research market share, underscoring American dominance in the global insights economy. The market is projected to reach $37.7 billion in 2026, growing 2.4% that year, while the industry has grown at a 3.0% CAGR between 2020 and 2025.
The U.S. market leads globally with $48 billion in market research turnover, followed by the UK ($9.1 billion) and China ($2.88 billion). This concentration reflects both the scale of the American economy and the sophistication of its data-driven business culture.
Employment Growth & Career Outlook
The market research profession is expanding rapidly. Employment of market research analysts is projected to grow 7 percent from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average for all occupations. About 87,200 openings for market research analysts are projected each year, on average, over the decade.
The median annual wage for market research analysts was $76,950 in May 2024. Employment growth is expected to be driven by an increasing use of data and market research across many industries.
Digital Transformation & Methodology Shift
The industry is undergoing rapid digitalization. Online surveys rank as the most used quantitative method among market research professionals with 85% of respondents who say they use this method regularly. In the U.S., 51.5% of survey responses came from mobile versus 47.3% non-mobile in Q3 2024, marking the first time mobile overtook desktop in American survey responses.
AI adoption is accelerating. 83% of professionals plan to invest in AI for research in 2025, with 47% already using it regularly.