Global K12 education market is charging out of the pandemic in a big way

Decreases in government funding could be a drag, but North America will be the most lucrative region due to "massive spending" on edtech.

The global K12 education market will be generating $525.7 billion in revenue by 2031, with online learning, personalized learning and “dynamic school experiences” driving significant growth, the latest analysis finds.

The global K12 education market, led by the North American region, is set to grow by 17.7% through 2031—from $103.5 billion in 2021—with artificial intelligence providing yet more opportunities for new revenue, according to this spring’s Research Dive report. But decreases in government funding could be a drag on growth, say the analysts who also broke the K12 market into several subsegments:

  • Type: Public and private
  • Region: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA (Latin America, Middle East and Africa)
  • Application: High school, middle school, pre-primary school and primary school
  • Spend analysis: Hardware and software
  • Deployment mode: Cloud and on-premise

While the private K12 sector was slightly bigger in 2021, the global public schools market will grow faster through 2031 as administrators work to further personalize instruction, particularly via online programs staffed by certified teachers. “However, the public school system has significant obstacles, such as a lack of proper infrastructure, insufficient budget, a staff deficit, and limited facilities,” the report warns.

The North American market is predicted to be the most lucrative, due to “massive spending” on edtech while high school will be the most dominant sub-segment by 2031. Growth in the latter will again be driven by technology spending aimed at increasing the quality of instruction.

Software will be more profitable than hardware by 2031 as schools rely more heavily than ever on applications that manage student information, help teachers prepare instruction, facilitate student collaboration, and simplify administrative operations. Finally, when it comes to deployment, cloud computing will show the strongest growth as schools look to minimize data storage costs and boost access and mobility.


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Matt Zalaznick
Matt Zalaznick
Matt Zalaznick is a life-long journalist. Prior to writing for District Administration he worked in daily news all over the country, from the NYC suburbs to the Rocky Mountains, Silicon Valley and the U.S. Virgin Islands. He's also in a band.

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