Why the Netherlands leads Europe's market research industry, and what the data mean for buyers

What does NACE M73.2 measure?

NACE is the EU's classification of economic activities, and class M73.2 covers enterprises whose main activity is market research or public opinion polling. Eurostat publishes, for each member state, the number of such enterprises, the persons they employ, their net turnover and the value they add.

Three limits shape how the figures should be read:

• Main activity only. In-house research teams, advertising agencies that run some research and management consultancies are counted under other codes.
• Location of the enterprise, not of the respondents. A study managed from Amsterdam but fielded in five countries appears in Dutch turnover.
• Nominal euros. Values are not adjusted for price levels, which differ widely between member states.

With those caveats, the series is the only consistent, official comparison of the research industry across the EU.

Which EU countries have the largest research industries?

In 2024 the Netherlands ranked first by turnover, about 23% ahead of Germany and well ahead of France, both countries with far larger populations.

The industry is concentrated. The five largest national industries, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy and Belgium, account for about 65% of EU turnover of €17,046.9 million. Bulgaria ranks 15th, with €183 million. The Netherlands also leads on the number of enterprises, 5,641 in 2024, narrowly ahead of Italy with 5,290.

How does the Dutch industry compare on each measure?

The headline turnover is only one view. The table sets the Netherlands against the EU-27 and Bulgaria, adding three ratios derived from the Eurostat figures.

Three patterns stand out. Dutch research turnover per inhabitant is about five times the EU average. Dutch firms are small on average, with fewer than three people each. And value added is a lower share of turnover in the Netherlands than in the EU or Bulgaria, meaning more of each euro of revenue is spent on bought-in goods and services.

Why is Dutch research turnover so high?

The statistics describe the industry; they do not explain it. Four explanations fit the data and are worth testing, but none is proven by the figures alone.

A highly digital client base. In 2025, 94.2% of Dutch individuals bought online, the second-highest share in the EU, and 98.4% used the internet daily (Eurostat). Among Dutch enterprises with ten or more employees, 83.8% used social media in 2025 and 33.2% used AI, against EU averages of 63.6% and 19.9%. An economy that runs online generates both demand for data and an audience that online panels can reach at scale.

International coordination. The low value-added share is consistent with Dutch firms buying fieldwork, panel sample or data from other suppliers, including abroad, for projects they manage. If so, part of Dutch turnover reflects research carried out in other countries.

A large tail of very small firms. With 2.9 persons per enterprise, the Dutch count probably includes many freelancers and micro-agencies alongside the large groups. Countries also differ in how fully very small units appear in business registers, which affects enterprise counts more than turnover.

High price levels. Eurostat's 2024 price level index for GDP is 117.2 in the Netherlands and 61.4 in Bulgaria (EU-27 = 100). Part of the gap in turnover per person employed reflects what things cost in each economy, not only how productive researchers are.

Is the Dutch lead stable?

The Dutch series is more volatile than the EU total. Turnover rose by 26% in 2023 and then fell by 15% in 2024, while persons employed dropped by 9% to 16,510 and the number of enterprises declined from 6,163 in 2021 to 5,641.

The Dutch swing dominates the EU picture. EU turnover fell by 3.8% in 2024; without the Netherlands, it was almost flat, down 0.4%, and the Dutch decline accounts for about nine-tenths of the EU's fall. Over the full period 2021–2024, Dutch turnover grew by 14%, close to the EU's 13.6%.

A single year deserves caution. Structural business statistics are revised, and a change in how one large research group is classified or consolidated can move a national total noticeably. Even after the 2024 fall, the Netherlands kept first place by a clear margin.

How does Bulgaria's research industry compare?

Bulgaria's industry is small but growing fast. Turnover rose from €127.4 million in 2021 to €182.8 million in 2024, an increase of about 43% and a compound annual growth rate of roughly 12.8%, against 14% total growth for the Netherlands over the same three years. The number of enterprises rose from 563 to 591, and turnover per person employed from €34.5 thousand to €49.8 thousand.

Bulgarian firms are larger on average, with 6.2 persons per enterprise, and value added makes up 62.4% of turnover. That profile fits an industry where interviewing, coding and analysis are done in-house rather than bought in, although the statistics cannot confirm the business models behind it. For the consumer side of the same market, see our briefing on Bulgaria's consumer market in numbers.

What does this mean for buyers of research?

The figures carry practical lessons for anyone commissioning a study in Europe:

• Expect specialists in the Netherlands. A deep supplier market makes it more likely that someone has worked in your niche before. Start by defining the question; the report finder maps common business questions to study types.
• Ask where fieldwork is done. A project managed in one country may be fielded in several. Ask for each country's sample source, interview mode and quality checks, especially for B2B research with hard-to-reach decision-makers.
• Compare scope, not headlines. Turnover per person reflects price levels and business mix. When comparing proposals across countries, compare sample size, method, quality control and deliverables line by line.
• Check standards. Ask suppliers whether they work to the ICC/ESOMAR International Code and use ISO 20252 as a process framework. In the Netherlands, the industry association MOA also sets rules for its members.
• Match the method to the country. Online methods work at scale in the Netherlands; in Bulgaria, general-population studies still need telephone or face-to-face interviews alongside online panels.

For a study that spans several EU markets, a market entry study or a full market research report can combine official statistics with fieldwork in each country. Our research industry data section charts the full Eurostat series. To discuss your project, request a proposal.