3D Printing Market Reaches $3.45B in Q2 2024, Marking 8.4% Year-Over-Year Growth

The global 3D printing market continued its upward trajectory in the second quarter of 2024, totaling $3.45 billion—a year-over-year increase of 8.4%. Despite a slight sequential decline from $3.47 billion in Q1 2024, the industry demonstrated resilience, with growth in additive manufacturing (AM) services offsetting a slowdown in hardware sales.

Additive Manufacturing Research (AM Research) has published its Q2 2024 3D printing data and forecast, along with its comprehensive Market Insights report. This quarterly publication offers the most thorough and accurate data available worldwide, tracking markets by vendor, print technology, geography, and application.

In metal hardware, directed energy deposition (DED) emerged as the only technology to witness year-over-year growth in Q2 2024, according to AM Research. In this image, Jens Ertel, Head of BMW Additive Manufacturing and Karol Virsik, Head of BMW Group Vehicle Research, hold a WAAM metal part made using MX3D technology. 

Valued at $1.4 billion in Q2 2024, the metal AM sector experienced a 10.0% year-over-year growth, even with a 2.2% decline in printer sales. Similarly, the polymer AM market reached $2.05 billion, growing by 7.4% year-over-year despite a 0.5% decrease in printer sales. The AM services segment also showed robust performance, totaling $1.87 billion and reflecting a 12% year-over-year growth.

“Most publicly traded AM companies have struggled since early 2023, especially on the hardware side amidst increased interest rates. This has persisted long enough now that it has started to impact the sale of AM materials, even while utilization of installed AM equipment is higher than ever. There are still positive results and optimistic sentiments outside of the visible public markets from the likes of EOS, DMG Mori, Nikon SLM Solutions, and some Chinese providers such as Farsoon and BLT,” said Scott Dunham, Executive Vice President at AM Research.

Despite current challenges, AM Research sees a path to achieving 30% market growth in printer sales by 2025, driven by anticipated decreases in interest rates and a rebound from this year’s depressed levels. The report highlights several significant developments in the industry. The dental sector, the largest market for polymer 3D printing, achieved a historic milestone in Q2 2024. Align Technologies, the industry’s largest customer, began a significant transition from indirect to direct production of its flagship product—the clear dental aligner. This shift marks a major advancement in the application of 3D printing technology within dentistry.

In metal hardware, directed energy deposition (DED) emerged as the only technology to witness year-over-year growth in Q2 2024. This uptick was driven by increased traction from wire-based DED and the expanded use of powder DED for coating components like brake rotors. These developments underscore the versatility and growing adoption of DED technology in industrial applications.

The Market Insights report includes data from a wide range of industry leaders, including 3D Systems, Stratasys, Markforged, Desktop Metal, Velo3D, Nikon SLM Solutions, EOS, GE Additive, TRUMPF, Farsoon, BLT, HBD, Eplus, Optomec, BeAM, HP, Formlabs, Prodways, DWS, and Carbon.

AM Research’s “Core Metals” and “Core Polymers” market data products offer nearly a decade of historical quarterly data and provide 10-year forward forecasts. The reports are available for one-time purchase or via subscription and can be customized to meet specific needs. The “3DP/AM Market Insights: Q2 2024” report combines in-depth analysis with proprietary charts and graphs, providing context to the core market data. It is also available as a standalone product or through a subscription.

For more information on these reports and other specialty market analyses, visit the AM Research website.