Manufacturing technology is expanding globally, but adoption and performance are uneven across regions and industries. In 2024, factories installed 542,076 industrial robots worldwide, while the global operational stock reached 4,663,698 units. U.S. industry data for 2025 shows a more mixed picture: productivity rose in 39 of 80 covered four-digit manufacturing industries, while unit labor costs rose in 71.
Table of contents
- Global industrial robot adoption
- Where factory robots are being deployed
- National manufacturing technology markets
- Industries adopting industrial robots
- U.S. manufacturing productivity in 2025
- Labor costs and work hours
- Longer-run technology-linked performance
Global industrial robot adoption
The International Federation of Robotics reported 542,076 industrial-robot installations in 2024, the second-highest annual total on record. Annual installations remained above 500,000 units for the fourth consecutive year across 2021–2024. These figures describe installations during the year, not the total number operating in factories.
The operational stock of industrial robots reached 4,663,698 units in 2024, up 9% from 2023. Over the longer 2019–2024 period, the global operational stock increased at an average annual rate of 11%. Together, the installation and stock measures show both continuing yearly deployment and a much larger installed base accumulated over time. Executive summary World Robotics 2025 Industrial Robots
China accounted for the largest national share of that installed base. Its operational stock reached 2,027,190 units in 2024, equal to 43% of the global stock. China’s stock grew at an average annual rate of 21% from 2019 through 2024, nearly twice the global average rate over the same period.
Manufacturing robot density provides another way to read adoption. Worldwide, the average was 177 industrial robots per 10,000 manufacturing employees in 2024. This is a density measure, so it describes the relationship between installed robots and employment rather than the absolute size of a country’s factory base.
Where factory robots are being deployed
Asia and Oceania remained the main destination for new industrial robots. The region recorded 401,665 installations in 2024, up 5% year over year, and received 74% of all newly deployed industrial robots worldwide. Its share was 70% in 2023. Across 2019–2024, installations in Asia and Oceania grew at an average annual rate of 10%.
Europe installed 85,006 industrial robots in 2024. That was down 8% from 2023, but still Europe’s second-highest annual total. The region’s installations grew at an average annual rate of 3% from 2019 through 2024. Within Europe, the European Union recorded 67,819 installations, down 8% year over year, while the euro area recorded 54,945, down 11%.
The Americas installed 50,077 industrial robots in 2024, down 10% from 2023. The United States accounted for 34,164 of those installations, or 68% of the regional total, despite a 9% year-over-year decline. Mexico installed 5,594 units, down 4%, and Canada installed 3,787, down 12%.
The regional figures show why a single global growth rate can conceal different local conditions: Asia and Oceania increased installations in 2024, while Europe and the Americas recorded declines from their 2023 levels.
National manufacturing technology markets
The five largest national industrial-robot markets together accounted for 431,240 installations in 2024, or 80% of the world total. The supplied figures for selected markets show both concentration and different annual directions:
| Market | 2024 installations | Change from 2023 |
|---|---|---|
| Japan | 44,453 | -4% |
| United States | 34,164 | -9% |
| Republic of Korea | 30,596 | -3% |
| Germany | 26,982 | -5% |
| Italy | 8,783 | -16% |
| Spain | 5,086 | +1% |
Japan installed 44,453 industrial robots in 2024, down 4% year over year. The Republic of Korea installed 30,596, down 3%, and Germany installed 26,982, down 5% from its 2023 record. Italy’s 8,783 installations represented a 16% decline, while Spain’s 5,086 installations were up 1%.
These country figures are annual installation counts. They should not be interpreted as national operational stocks, and the year-over-year changes do not by themselves identify the causes of increases or declines. Executive summary World Robotics 2025 Industrial Robots
Industries adopting industrial robots
Electrical and electronics manufacturing was the largest named industry in the 2024 installation data. It installed 128,899 industrial robots worldwide, up 2% year over year and equal to 24% of all installations. From 2019 through 2024, installations in electrical and electronics grew at an average annual rate of 8%.
Automotive manufacturing installed 126,088 industrial robots in 2024. That was down 7% year over year, although automotive installations still grew at an average annual rate of 5% from 2019 through 2024. The near-sized totals for electrical and electronics and automotive show the scale of automation in two major manufacturing applications, while their different 2024 changes show that adoption does not move uniformly across industries.
Metal and machinery manufacturing installed 88,777 industrial robots in 2024, up 16% year over year and equal to 16% of all installations. Its installations grew at an average annual rate of 12% from 2019 through 2024. Among the three named sectors, metal and machinery therefore had the strongest 2024 increase and the fastest reported longer-period growth.
Robot density also differed by region in 2024. Asia reached 204 robots per 10,000 manufacturing employees, with a 12% average annual growth rate from 2019 through 2024. Europe reached 148 robots per 10,000 employees, with 7% average annual growth, while the Americas had 131 robots per 10,000 employees, with 6% average annual growth. Executive summary World Robotics 2025 Industrial Robots
U.S. manufacturing productivity in 2025
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported labor-productivity results for 80 covered four-digit manufacturing industries in 2025. Productivity increased in 39 of those 80 industries. Among the 47 covered durable-manufacturing industries, 25 recorded increases; among 33 covered nondurable-goods industries, 14 recorded increases.
The largest four-digit manufacturing productivity gain was 14.9% in other transportation equipment manufacturing. Textile and fabric finishing mills recorded the largest nondurable-manufacturing gain, at 16.1%. Among manufacturing industries with more than 350,000 workers, motor vehicle parts manufacturing recorded a 4.6% productivity gain, while bakeries and tortilla products recorded a 4.4% decline.
At the broader three-digit level, labor productivity declined in 14 of 20 covered U.S. manufacturing industries in 2025. U.S. manufacturing output decreased in 17 three-digit industries, and seven of those declines exceeded 3.0%. Miscellaneous manufacturing had the largest three-digit productivity decline, at 5.8%.
The industry coverage matters when comparing these figures. Four-digit results identify narrower manufacturing activities, while three-digit results aggregate them into broader groups. The two levels are therefore complementary rather than interchangeable. Productivity and Costs by Industry: Manufacturing and Mining Industries - 2025
Labor costs and work hours
Unit labor costs increased in all 20 covered three-digit U.S. manufacturing industries in 2025, at an average rate of 4.5%. Electrical equipment and appliances recorded the largest three-digit increase, at 10.3%. Miscellaneous manufacturing had a 10.1% increase, and beverages and tobacco products had an 8.5% increase.
At the four-digit level, unit labor costs increased in 71 of 80 covered manufacturing industries. Hours worked decreased in 50 of those 80 industries. Textile and fabric finishing mills recorded the largest four-digit decline in hours worked, at 17.3%.
Only seven of the 85 covered manufacturing and mining industries increased both output and hours worked in 2025. Six of those seven also increased labor productivity. This combination is a narrower outcome than any one of the individual measures: it identifies industries where output and labor input both rose and productivity also improved.
The 2025 labor-cost figures are reported for U.S. industries and should be read alongside the stated coverage. They do not establish that industrial robots caused a particular productivity or cost result. Productivity and Costs by Industry: Manufacturing and Mining Industries - 2025
Longer-run technology-linked performance
From 2019 through 2025, labor productivity decreased in 54 of 80 covered four-digit U.S. manufacturing industries. The industries with the strongest reported gains included computer and peripheral equipment manufacturing, where productivity increased at an average 5.5% per year, and audio and video equipment manufacturing, where it increased 5.1% per year.
Beverage manufacturing had the largest four-digit productivity decline over the same period, decreasing 6.3% per year. These are annual rates over 2019–2025; they are not single-year changes and should not be compared directly with the 2025-only figures without keeping the measurement period explicit.
Output performance also varied considerably. Audio and video equipment manufacturing had the largest four-digit output gain, at 3.7% per year from 2019 through 2025. Textile and fabric finishing mills recorded an 8.5% annual output decline, while spring and wire products recorded a 7.5% annual decline.
Work hours showed another pattern. Apparel knitting mills had the largest four-digit decline in hours worked, at 7.7% per year. Hours worked grew at least 3.0% per year in two named industries: other food products, at 3.3%, and beverages, at 3.0%.
Taken together, these U.S. figures describe a manufacturing technology landscape with no single industry-wide trajectory. Robotics deployment is expanding globally, but national and regional installation totals moved differently in 2024. Within the United States, productivity, output, unit labor costs, and hours worked also diverged across industries and measurement periods. Productivity and Costs by Industry: Manufacturing and Mining Industries - 2025