Robotics market
Robot installations did not set a record last year: they peaked in 2022
Robot installations did not hit a record last year. They peaked in 2022 at 552,946 units, and both 2023 (541,302) and 2024 (about 542,000) came in below that.
The IFR itself calls 2024 the second highest in history, 2% below the 2022 record, yet coverage routinely reports each year's figure as an all-time high. The record was two years ago, and the years since have run just under it.
This page traces the installation figures and the forecast to their sources and corrects the reflexive 'record year' framing.
Data covers Global annual robot installations, 2022 to 2024, and IFR forecast to 2028. Last reviewed by a human editor before publication.
The figures and where they come from
Each figure is rated for how safely you can cite it today. Ratings judge current usability, not whether a number was ever correct.
| Figure | What it is | Source | Citation Confidence | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 552,946 units | Installations in 2022 (the record) | [A] | High | The all-time record for annual robot installations, set in 2022. Later years have not matched it. |
| 541,302 units | Installations in 2023 | [A] | High | The IFR calls 2023 the second highest in history, below the 2022 record, not a new one. |
| about 542,000 units | Installations in 2024 | [B] | High | 2024 installations, about 2% below the 2022 record. Still not a record year. |
| 575,000 units | Forecast installations, 2025 | [B] | Medium | The IFR forecasts 2025 installations at 575,000, which would finally exceed the 2022 record. |
| 700,000 units | Forecast milestone, 2028 | [B] | Medium | The IFR expects the 700,000-unit mark to be surpassed by 2028. |
Why the numbers disagree
The 'record year' habit comes from treating a large number as a new high without checking the series. Installations were 552,946 in 2022, 541,302 in 2023, and about 542,000 in 2024, so the last two years sit just below the peak, not above it. The IFR is explicit that 2024 is 2% below the record, yet the reflex is to call each big year a record anyway.
The confusion is compounded by report timing. The World Robotics reports are named for the year after the data, so a 2025 report carries 2024 data, and coverage keyed to the report year misreads which year the figure describes. That is a separate error from the record framing, and it stacks on top of it.
The forecast is where a real record returns. The IFR projects 575,000 installations in 2025, which would exceed 2022, and the 700,000 mark by 2028. So the honest arc is a 2022 peak, two years just below it, and a forecast new high ahead, not an unbroken string of records.
How to cite these figures
State the peak: annual robot installations set a record of 552,946 in 2022, and 2023 and 2024 came in just below it.
Do not call the latest year a record unless it exceeds 552,946. Through 2024 it did not.
For the future, cite the IFR forecast: 575,000 units in 2025 and the 700,000 mark by 2028, as forecasts, not results.
Where people go wrong
Calling each year's installations a record. The record is 2022; later years have run below it.
Misreading the data year from the report year. A World Robotics report is named for the year after its data.
Quoting a forecast as an actual figure. The 575,000 and 700,000 numbers are projections, not installations that have happened.
How we checked
The figures come from two IFR World Robotics press releases, one carrying the 2022 and 2023 installation counts and one carrying the 2024 figure and the forecast. We retrieved both and confirmed the 552,946, 541,302, 542,000, 575,000, and 700,000 figures in their text.
We put the three actual years side by side because the record-year error only shows up when you see them together. A single large figure looks like a record; the series shows the peak was 2022.
We label the forward figures as forecasts and keep them separate from the actual installation counts, so a projection is not mistaken for a result.
Full source list
Primary sources, with live links. Every figure above traces to one of these.
- [A]International Federation of Robotics (IFR)2024
IFR, "Record of 4 Million Robots Working in Factories Worldwide" (World Robotics 2024)
https://ifr.org/ifr-press-releases/news/record-of-4-million-robots-working-in-factories-worldwide - [B]International Federation of Robotics (IFR)September 25, 2025
IFR, "Global Robot Demand in Factories Doubles Over 10 Years" (World Robotics 2025)
https://ifr.org/ifr-press-releases/news/global-robot-demand-in-factories-doubles-over-10-years
Common questions
- Were robot installations a record last year?
- No. Installations peaked in 2022 at 552,946 units. 2023 (541,302) and 2024 (about 542,000) both came in below that, which the IFR itself notes.
- Why is each year called a record then?
- Habit, plus a timing confusion. Coverage treats each large figure as a new high without checking the series, and the World Robotics reports are named for the year after their data, which compounds the error.
- When will installations exceed the 2022 record?
- The IFR forecasts 575,000 installations in 2025, which would exceed 2022, and expects the 700,000-unit mark to be surpassed by 2028. Those are forecasts, not results.
- How many robots were installed in 2024?
- About 542,000, roughly 2% below the 2022 record of 552,946, per the IFR. It was the second or third highest year, not a record.
More data, traced to source
- Where the world's new robots go: by region and by industry
Asia takes 74% of the world's new robot installations, Europe 16%, the Americas 9%. Within the US, automotive leads at 13,700 of 34,300 units. Where robots actually go, traced to source.
- North American robot orders: the quarterly number every trade outlet quotes
Every US robotics headline about orders traces to one source: the quarterly data from the Association for Advancing Automation. Here are the figures, and how to read them without getting the story wrong.
- Robot density statistics and where they come from
The most-cited robot density figures are stale. Here are the current numbers, where each one comes from, and why the global average fell while automation kept rising.