Global Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market Size, Share, Growth Analysis Report - Forecast 2034

Contract Research Organization (CRO) Industry Prospective:

The global contract research organization (CRO) market size was worth around USD 82.74 Billion in 2024 and is predicted to grow to around USD 194.25 Billion by 2034 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of roughly 8.2% between 2025 and 2034. The report analyzes the global contract research organization (CRO) market's drivers, restraints/challenges, and the effect they have on the demands during the projection period. In addition, the report explores emerging opportunities in the contract research organization (CRO) industry.

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Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market: Overview

A contract research organization (CRO) is a company that provides supporting or ancillary clinical trial services to another company operating in the drug development or healthcare sectors. Although there are different types of CROs with each company offering special services, the general concept that all CROs follow is providing assistance in the medical device sector including clinical trial planning, managing regulatory affairs, recruitment support, site selection & initiation, data management, clinical monitoring, medical writing, trial logistics, projection management, and biostatistics. A company that intends to run a clinical trial but lacks the necessary resources to execute the trial successfully without missing any regulatory mandates generally takes the help of CROs since they are not only equipped with essential tools but also have the knowledge base and other capabilities to execute the most complex clinical trials with excellent results. As of 2023, there are several companies operating in the CRO industry and the demand for their services is growing at a steady pace driven by growing needs in the end-user verticals.

Key Insights

• As per the analysis shared by our research analyst, the global contract research organization (CRO) market is estimated to grow annually at a CAGR of around 8.2% over the forecast period (2025-2034).
• Regarding revenue, the global contract research organization (CRO) market size was valued at around USD 82.74 Billion in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 194.25 Billion by 2034.
• The contract research organization (CRO) market is projected to grow at a significant rate due to rising R&D outsourcing by pharma and biotech companies to reduce costs and accelerate drug development.
• Based on Type, the Early Phase Development Services [Chemistry segment is expected to lead the global market.
• On the basis of Application, the Oncology segment is growing at a high rate and will continue to dominate the global market.
• Based on the End-user, the Pharmaceutical & Biotechnological Companies segment is projected to swipe the largest market share.
• Based on region, North America is predicted to dominate the global market during the forecast period.

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Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market: Growth Drivers

Increase in drug research & development (R&D) to drive market growth

The global contract research organization (CRO) market is projected to grow owing to the rapidly expanding drug research & development sector in the backdrop of a growing population and surging demand for novel medicinal drugs. In 2020, the world was not prepared for the impact of COVID-19. To curb the virus from spreading and provide patient care to infected individuals, all pharmaceutical companies and drug developers were working toward developing the right vaccine or drug. This led to a higher workload and demand for existing CROs. As of 2023, world leaders are investing in novel drugs that can fight any future scenarios like COVID-19 or medical conditions worse than the mutating virus.

In addition to this, there is growing pressure on pharmaceutical players to develop medicines for known life-threatening medical conditions such as AIDS, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and others. For instance, the Christie NHS Foundation Trust is investing heavy resources in 30 ongoing immunotherapy clinical trials aimed at treating blood cancer. Out of the 30 trials, around 5 are focused on myeloma. In August 2023, researchers at the City of Hope Center published a report indicating the use of a proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) for developing a targeted chemotherapy that is currently under phase 1 trial. The protein, during initial results, seems to show promising results in eliminating solid tumors.

Increasing spending on building world-class CROs to propel market growth

The global contract research organization market is expected to come across higher revenue owing to the increasing spending on building modern and world-class CRO facilities as drug research and development is becoming complex with changing patient needs. For instance, CRO services by LabCorp provide comprehensive solutions. The company purchased Covance for USD 6 billion in 2015. Covance is a leader in drug development while LABCORP is known for its medical testing knowledge and expertise.

Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market: Restraints

Issues surrounding intellectual property rights may restrict market growth

Once a drug development company or pharmaceutical player collaborates with a contract research organization, the latter gets access to the drug developers' critical information related to drug research and patented products. This increases the risk of data leakage or intellectual rights infringement. Although there are legal contracts in place to ensure such incidents do not occur, giving access to confidential information to a third party comes with certain risks. Pharmaceutical companies undertaking the services should ensure the safety of their intellectual property to avoid data loss.

Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market: Opportunities

Increasing number of patients with chronic conditions and rising healthcare infrastructure to create growth opportunities

The rising number of patients with chronic medical conditions and the surging geriatric population are likely to create higher growth possibilities for the contract research organization industry players. Some of the most common yet life-changing chronic conditions include neurological disorders, arthritis, obesity, respiratory conditions, heart diseases, and chronic pain syndromes. Most of these conditions do not have any cure and available medicines are effective in managing only the associated syndromes. However, with the growth in the healthcare infrastructure in emerging and developed economies, the demand for CROs is likely to continue growing.

Rising adoption of new-age digital systems by CROs may help them deliver better results

The pharmaceutical industry is rapidly changing in terms of its requirements and expectations. Contract research organizations must invest in resources that help them align with changing consumer demands. The growing adoption of modern digital systems such as business intelligence and data analysis tools along with regulatory or clinical information management systems will help CROs stay ahead in the game. For instance, PARAXEL International Corporation uses high-end tools to provide real-time access to clinical trial data to its customers.

Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market: Challenges

Growing number of end-users conducting clinical trials in-house to challenge the market expansion

One of the key challenges faced by the contract research organization industry players is the end-users such as pharmaceutical giants conducting clinical trials in-house and without the assistance of a third party. These measures are beneficial to pharma companies and research organizations since they do not have to share critical information with other companies. For instance, in March 2023, Pfizer acquired Seagen for USD 43 billion. The latter is a prominent biotechnology company dealing in the discovery, development, and commercialization of transformative cancer medicines.

Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market: Segmentation

The global contract research organization (CRO) market is segmented based on end-user industry, service type, application, and region.

Based on end-user industry, the global market segments are academic institutes, pharmaceutical & biopharmaceutical companies, and medical device companies. In 2022, the highest revenue-generating segment was pharmaceutical & biopharmaceutical companies due to the increased number of drug-related research and development procedures in the backdrop of the COVID-19 virus. Additionally, these companies are well-funded to contract the services of CROs for better and smoother results. More than 1300 cancer vaccines and medicines are currently under clinical trials or are waiting for approval from the United States Food and Drugs Administration (FDA).

Based on service type, the contract research organization industry divisions are clinical research services, early phase development services, regulatory consulting services, and laboratory services.

Based on application, the global market divisions are ophthalmology, oncology, gastroenterology & hepatology, cardiology, infectious diseases, neurology, and others. The demand for CROs is growing rapidly for all types of diseases since there are several drug developers who are working on developing and researching novel medicines and therapeutic procedures for all departments including oncology, cardiology, and neurology. The number of patients with heart conditions is growing rapidly with around 690,000 deaths in the US in 2021 caused by heart diseases.

Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market: Report Scope    

Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market: Regional Analysis

North America to register the highest growth rate during the forecast period

The global contract research organization (CRO) market will be led by North America during the forecast period owing to the presence of several key CROs in the US. These companies such as Harlan, PRA Health Sciences, Curia, and many more are equipped with modern-day technologies and systems to smoothen the entire services provided by the companies. Moreover, they have shown exceptional results in providing customized services depending on the requirements of the end-users. The US is also home to some of the largest pharmaceutical and drug research institutes and has the presence of a robust drug development ecosystem. The US FDA follows strict guidelines before allowing the sale of any drug in the commercial market. The approval process is long and complex resulting in an increasing number of drug manufacturers undertaking the assistance of CROs to manage the procedures including clinical trials and final approval. A growing number of novel drug research and increasing pressure on the regional healthcare sector to meet patient needs may trigger higher growth in North America.

Contract Research Organization (CRO) Market: Competitive Analysis

The report provides a company market share analysis to give a broader overview of the key market players. In addition, the report also covers key strategic developments of the market, including acquisitions & mergers, new product launches, agreements, partnerships, collaborations & joint ventures, research & development, and regional expansion of major participants involved in the contract research organization (CRO) market on a global and regional basis.

The global contract research organization (CRO) market is dominated by players like:

• Covance
• ICON plc
• IQVIA
• Medpace
• PPD
• WuXi AppTec
• Syneos Health
• KCR
• Charles River Laboratories
• Celerion
• Parexel
• Society for Clinical Research Sites
• Catalent
• Wuxi Clinical Development Services
• CROMSOURCE
• and others.

The global contract research organization (CRO) market is segmented as follows;

By Type

• Early Phase Development Services [Chemistry
• Manufacturing and Controls (CMC)
• Preclinical Service
• and Discovery]
• Clinical [Phase 1
• Phase 2
• Phase 3
• and Phase 4]
• Laboratory Service

By Application

• Oncology
• Neurology
• Cardiology
• Infectious Disease
• Metabolic
• Disorder
• Renal/Nephrology
• and Others

By End-user

• Pharmaceutical & Biotechnological Companies
• Medical Device Companies
• Academic & Research Institutes
• and Others

By Region

• North America
  • The U.S.
  • Canada
  • Mexico
• Europe
  • France
  • The UK
  • Spain
  • Germany
  • Italy
  • Rest of Europe
• Asia Pacific
  • China
  • Japan
  • India
  • Australia
  • South Korea
  • Rest of Asia Pacific
• The Middle East & Africa
  • Saudi Arabia
  • UAE
  • Egypt
  • Kuwait
  • South Africa
  • Rest of the Middle East & Africa
• Latin America
  • Brazil
  • Argentina
  • Rest of Latin America