If you‘re in the tech industry, you‘ve surely noticed the explosion of Software as a Service (SaaS) in recent years. SaaS has transitioned from an emerging trend to the norm for software delivery for all types of businesses. But just how massive has the SaaS market become? What is the total number of SaaS companies worldwide as of 2024? I‘ll explore the scale and growth trends in detail so you can truly appreciate the soaring impact of SaaS.
SaaS Companies Worldwide Now Number in the Tens of Thousands
Research from leading market analysts projects the current number of SaaS companies globally is between 30,000 to 100,000. Crunchbase data indicates at least 70,000 active SaaS firms worldwide. My conservative estimate based on industry data puts the total at around 50,000 SaaS companies globally.
To put that figure into perspective, only around 200 SaaS firms existed back in the year 2000. The number steadily grew year after year, but remained in the hundreds into the mid-2000s. The late 2000s saw growth accelerate into the low thousands. Then beginning early last decade, SaaS really hit an inflection point with thousands of new entrants per year.
What explains this massive growth into the tens of thousands of SaaS providers we see today? Primarily, the maturing of cloud computing infrastructure and increasingly affordable, scalable delivery models. The subscription-based access used by SaaS opened the door to recurring revenue models that investors love. SaaS also allowed small companies to compete via pay-as-you-go access rather than huge upfront software purchases.
As you‘ll see ahead, SaaS growth shows no signs of slowing down. The ease of launching SaaS products means we should expect the number of companies to continue rising at a rapid clip.
United States Home to 75% of SaaS Firms, But India and Others Rising Quickly
The United States remains the dominant leader in SaaS companies by far. According to Crunchbase data, the U.S. is home to over 17,000 active SaaS firms out of the global total. That means over 75% of SaaS providers still come from the U.S.
This lines up with the U.S. lead in the broader tech industry. Silicon Valley and tech hubs like Seattle and Austin make the U.S. fertile ground for SaaS startups. However, other countries are rapidly growing their presence in the SaaS market. Here‘s a breakdown of SaaS companies by country:
| Country | Number of SaaS Companies |
|---|---|
| United States | 17,000 |
| India | 5,500 |
| United Kingdom | 2,000 |
| Canada | 1,800 |
| China | 1,500 |
| Germany | 1,200 |
India has emerged as a leader in SaaS with thousands of startups in recent years. The UK and Canada also have strong footholds in SaaS. China‘s booming tech scene has fostered SaaS growth, while European tech hubs like Berlin and Paris account for most of Germany‘s SaaS firms.
The global nature of SaaS means companies can sell products anywhere with an internet connection. This enables smaller countries to build thriving SaaS ecosystems.
SaaS Startups Peaked at Nearly 1,500 Founded Per Year
Let‘s look at the dramatic rise in new SaaS companies launched annually over the past two decades:
| Year | New SaaS Companies |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 150 |
| 2005 | 225 |
| 2010 | 675 |
| 2015 | 1,450 |
| 2020 | 1,250 |
As you can see, the number of new SaaS providers founded each year accelerated quickly beginning around 2010. Just five years later in 2015, nearly 1,500 SaaS startups launched in a single year. That remains the peak year so far for newly founded SaaS companies.
The 2010s tech boom led to an unprecedented wave of new SaaS entrants across many software categories like collaboration, security, e-commerce, and more. This explosion of startups attracted enormous venture capital investments in SaaS as well.
Funding and founding rates have moderated slightly in the past five years as the market matures. But with at least 1,000 new SaaS companies launching annually, rapid growth continues today.
SaaS Industry Revenues Now Exceed $175 Billion
These thousands of SaaS firms have unleashed incredible innovation and value across the economy. Worldwide SaaS revenues illustrate the massive scale of business generated:
| Year | Global SaaS Revenue |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $31 billion |
| 2020 | $120 billion |
| 2022 | $176 billion |
| 2025 (projected) | $370 billion |
Global SaaS revenue has multiplied nearly 6x from 2015 to 2022, exceeding $175 billion last year. At current growth rates above 15% annually, SaaS revenues are forecast to reach $370 billion by 2025!
From established giants like Salesforce, Dropbox and Slack to thousands of emerging companies, SaaS is driving a giant chunk of the global tech economy. Its flexible subscription models are locking in recurring revenues that appeal to investors despite some firms not being profitable yet.
Adoption Still Growing as SaaS Changes How Companies Operate
What‘s driving so many organizations to adopt SaaS products? The benefits of SaaS include:
- Cost-efficiency – No large upfront software purchases required
- Scalability – Easy to add or remove users as needed
- Speed – New capabilities available in days or weeks rather than months
- Accessibility – Login from anywhere with an internet connection
SaaS has turned software into a variable operating expense rather than major capital expense. This flexibility unlocks innovations and growth, especially for small businesses.
However, some firms still have reservations about relying on SaaS. Concerns like security, integration challenges, and vendor lock-in still make some enterprises hesitate. But as cloud delivery matures and improves, SaaS adoption appears inevitable across most industries.
The SaaS Revolution Still Has Room to Run
Even after incredible growth over the past decade, the SaaS revolution likely remains in the early-to-middle innings. The thousands of SaaS companies globally shows entrepreneurs believe there are still plenty of opportunities in this sector.
As software eats the world, nearly every industry requires technology solutions. SaaS enables speed, flexibility, and accessibility in delivering those solutions. So while the number of SaaS companies is massive already, expect it to keep growing for years to come. The software delivery model of the future has arrived, yet we‘re still just scratching the surface of its potential.
