Finally, Accurate Coaching Market Size Data for 2023 & 2024
Despite countless stories and narratives around the exploding growth of the coaching space, accurate data on the coaching industry market size isn’t so easy to find. A quick search reveals numbers ranging from $1B to $20B+. So what is it?
To get you a better answer, the CoachRanks team analyzed the top studies and reports so you don’t have to. Then we calculated what we believe to be the best, most comprehensible estimates for coach industry market size in 2023 and 2024.
What Is the Coaching Industry Market Size in 2023-2024?
If you’re looking for the quick answer, here it is:
The coaching industry market size sits at ~$5.34B in 2023.
The coaching industry market size will be ~$6.25B in 2024.
How did we get there?
Referencing data from the International Coaching Federation’s flagship Global Coaching Studies (including its most recent one in 2023), we calculated the industry’s compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2019 to 2022. Then we extrapolated the numbers for 2023 and 2024. Note that our estimates define “market size” as being equivalent to coaching revenue generated by active coach practitioners in a given year.
To drill down further, the ICF’s 2023 report estimates that coach practitioners generated $4.65B in revenue in 2022¹. This represents a 60% increase from its 2019 estimate of $2.85B². Breaking down that 60% growth yields a CAGR of 17%, which looks like this over the span of 6 years:
Coaching Market Size 2019-2024 (in Billions)
💡 The coaching market is projected to grow to $6.25B in 2024.
Market Size by Number of Active Coaches in 2023-2024
While market size and growth is most commonly calculated using financial data, we’d be remiss not to mention some other indicators. For example, active coach practitioners in the market tells us a similar story around the industry’s growth.
The ICF’s 2023 study estimates that the industry boasts 109,200 coaches, marking a 54% increase from its 2019 estimate of 71,000 coaches. Using the same method described in the previous section, we can reverse engineer this metric to land on a CAGR of 15.43%. This yields the following estimations:
There are ~126,050 active coaches in 2023.
There will be ~145,500 active coaches in 2024.
If these numbers actualize as expected, that would mean active coaches in the market will double from 2019 to 2024. Impressive!
Coaching Market Size by Active Coaches (2019-2024)
💡 Active coaches in the market are projected to double from 2019 to 2024.
Why Some Coaching Industry Size Estimates Are Much Larger
Some readers may see the above market size statistics and wonder if they should be larger. It makes sense to ask. After all, it was just a few years ago that coaching platform BetterUp secured a $4.7B valuation (albeit, at the height of the 2021 fundraising bubble).
If you’re looking for market size data that includes all company valuations within the coaching industry, you’ll get a much higher number. That’s because major enterprises worth billions of dollars may liberally be labeled as coaching-related firms. It’s also because startups in the coaching space command valuations that far exceed their revenues—often 5-10x (once again, BetterUp).
If measuring industry size this way—as broadly as possible—your calculation would likely include:
Combined value of coaching startups, SMBs, and enterprises
Combined value of sole practitioners’ private businesses
Combined value of existing coaching departments at organizations
Such a calculation is virtually impossible to gauge. It would certainly be well within the tens of billions. But since there is no good way to land on a number here, we are sticking with “coaching revenue generated” as the best, most precise indicator of market size.
Analyzing the Validity of Popular Estimates Online
Part of the difficulty in estimating the size of the coaching industry lies in the industry’s lack of standardization. Take, for example, the fact that some studies focus on specific types or niches of coaching.
To help hit this home with an example, IBIS World has published separate reports on the market size of both life coaching³ and business coaching⁴. The firm’s 2023 estimate for life coaching revenue is $1.5B, while its 2023 estimate for business coaching revenue is $15.2B.
Why such a difference? Part of the reason is that the business coaching report measures market size by attempting to aggregate the values of companies within the business coaching space (a method that brings downsides covered in the previous section). The report on life coaching, however, does not get the same boost.
Herein lies why it’s important to understand the methods by which today’s market size estimations are created. That’s not to say all estimations are invalid. Rather, readers should be mindful that calculation methodology may be a driver of inflated reporting—which can be misleading and easily manipulated.
Parting Remarks on the State of the Coaching Industry
We hope this analysis helps readers better understand where the coaching industry sits today and where it’s headed. While not so easy to measure, the size and growth of the coaching market is in great health. By any measure, coaching is a strong industry poised for continued growth over the coming years.
For new coaches entering the market and/or veteran coaches wanting a boost of confidence, rest assured you’ve picked a great industry!
