PFAS Testing Market Size (2025 – 2030)

The PFAS Testing Market was valued at USD 2.5 Billion and is projected to reach a Market size of USD 5.8 Billion by the end of 2030. Over the forecast period of 2025-2030, the Market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 15.07%.

The PFAS Testing segment in environmental monitoring has become more crucial nowadays as concern has increased in various ways due to their poisonous effects on human health. PFAS or the "forever chemicals," have become popular due to their high usage in the manufacturing industry and other fields including production, fire protection, and clothing. However these per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances' persistence in the environment and the human body raised alarms concerning the potential connections with cancers, liver damage, and developmental issues. Governments across the globe are establishing new regulations and standards to control the contamination of PFAS in water, soil, and air. This regulatory push is thus triggering a great need for testing services that can provide accurate detection and quantification of PFAS levels. Increased public awareness and demand from industries to comply with environmental laws have also fueled the market. The need for precise, reliable results is met with advanced testing technologies, including mass spectrometry and chromatography. This trend will continue to raise public and private sectors' concerns about the contamination caused by PFAS, driving up investments in research, testing, and mitigation efforts in the market for PFAS testing throughout the next several years.

Key Market Insights:

• The United States and the European Union have tightened PFAS regulations in 2024. The EPA, (the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency), has continued to push forward with enforceable drinking water standards for PFOA and PFOS. Therefore, the testing services demand has heightened.

• PFAS testing is being expanded beyond just water to include soil, air, and food products. This comprehensive approach is necessary because of increasing concerns over widespread contamination from industrial processes and firefighting foam.

• High-resolution mass spectrometry and other new chemical detection methods have been developed in 2024 that significantly improve the sensitivity and accuracy of PFAS detection, ensuring more reliable assessment in complex matrices such as soil and sediments.

• Researchers found shockingly high levels of PFAS contamination in rivers and lakes around the world in 2024, prompting an international outcry to standardize testing methodologies for PFAS in water supplies around the world.

• Public awareness of PFAS contamination continues to build upon media coverage and through the advocacy efforts of groups involved in raising awareness. These campaigns promote information provided by the local authorities and look for more knowledge about testing PFAS, and their consequences upon public health.

 PFAS Testing Market Drivers:

Stricter regulations and new standards are driving the PFAS testing market.

PFAS Testing market growth is driven significantly by more stringent regulations. The U.S. EPA is closing in on its goal to have enforceable limits set for PFAS in drinking water for 2024, an event that would trickle down across all industries looking to meet such requirements. Similarly, the European Union has established new regulations that limit the use of PFAS in various consumer goods and track their presence in the environment. To ensure compliance, these regulatory measures require extensive testing, and therefore, municipalities, industries, and organizations are forced to invest in PFAS testing to avoid penalties and protect public health. This has resulted in the need for high-quality testing services, hence fueling the growth of the market.

Rising public awareness about PFAS harms.

With increased awareness regarding the adverse health effects of PFAS, demand for thorough environmental testing is increasing. Media coverage of studies associating PFAS with severe medical conditions, such as cancers, liver damage, and developmental issues, has only amplified public concerns. Increased awareness translates into pressure from consumers and advocacy groups on governments and companies to act more rapidly in cleaning up contamination. With increased investment in testing for PFAS by industries to keep up with regulations and also customer expectations regarding safety and environmental friendliness, there is an upward trend in the PFAS testing market.

PFAS Testing Market Restraints and Challenges:

High cost of PFAS Tests.

One of the main challenges in the PFAS testing market is the high cost related to advanced testing technologies. They include high-resolution mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography, which are accurate methods with high instrumentation and human resource requirements, making them unaffordable to smaller businesses or municipalities. This can lead to less accessibility of testing services for those locations that have small budgets. The financial pressure due to the increased requirements of continuous monitoring and testing following emergent regulations is another significant obstacle toward comprehensive adoption, especially for smaller entities that cannot easily be able to make necessary financial provisions for their huge environmental testing.

Complexity in sampling and analysis processes.

PFAS testing is a complex process that involves sampling and analysis, which can be challenging to standardize across different environments. PFAS compounds are highly diverse, with over 4,000 variations, each requiring different testing approaches to detect them accurately in water, soil, air, and other media. This complexity complicates the process of developing universal testing methods and creates challenges for laboratories and testing facilities to maintain consistent, reliable results. This often happens at low concentrations, so detection methods require high sensitivity. This complicates the testing process further, leading to inconsistent results or incomplete detection of PFAS compounds. Thus, this will undermine the effectiveness of environmental assessments and compliance efforts, thereby limiting market growth.

PFAS TESTING MARKET REPORT COVERAGE

PFAS Testing Market Segmentation: by Consumable Type

• Sample Preparation

• Chromatography Columns

Sample Preparation is one of the major consumables in the testing of PFAS. It refers to the preparation and extraction of PFAS compounds from environmental material, be it water, soil, or air. This stage is very important to ensure accurate results in subsequent testing processes. High demand is forecasted for the sample preparation segment as the complexity and volumes of samples increase, primarily because regulatory standards are starting to become stricter. As increased efforts are made by industries and municipalities toward compliance and public health, this segment would constitute about 35-40% of the market share and will continue to rise with scaled testing efforts.

Chromatography Columns represent another critical segment in PFAS analysis, through which most of the PFAS compounds are separated during analysis. Their demand is linked with liquid and gas chromatography which are increasingly used for PFAS detection throughout different environments. Chromatography columns account for about 25-30% of the market share since they are part of the critical steps in the identification and quantification of PFAS. With the increasing demand for PFAS testing, the chromatography column market is expected to grow steadily in tandem with technological developments that improve separation efficiency.

PFAS Testing Market Segmentation: by Technique

• LC-MS-MS

• GC/MS

• NMR

• ELISA

The PFAS testing market is dominated by LC-MS-MS, as it is a very sensitive technique and detects even very low levels of PFAS compounds in water, soil, and air. This method can identify and quantify a wide range of PFAS substances with accuracy, making them the preferred method for regulatory testing, thus capturing about 45% to 50% of the market share. With increasing demand for precise and reliable PFAS testing, LC-MS-MS will continue to be the leading and most fundamental method.

GC-MS is also among the preferred methods, especially for volatile PFAS compounds. Although not comparable to LC-MS-MS, the use of GC-MS is vital in specific applications, especially in air quality testing and in complicated sample analysis, which account for about 20% to 25% of the market share. It might complement the former one where GC-MS remains imperative.

There's Nuclear Magnetic Resonance simply known as NMR, a rather rarely seen technique for specialized PFAS investigations; mainly regarding molecular-level descriptions. Though too infrequent in many such analyses, it contributes a scant portion, i.e. perhaps at best up to 10% or 15%.

ELISA, or Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay, is used for screening and quick testing of PFAS, offering a more economical, high-throughput preliminary evaluation. While less sensitive than LC-MS-MS and GC-MS, ELISA can be useful in field testing and comprises around 5-10% of the market share, primarily in non-regulatory environments or first contamination screenings.

PFAS Testing Market Segmentation: by Analyte Type

• PFOS

• PFOA

• PFNA

• PFHxS

The PFOS analyte is one of the most widely tested PFAS compounds, mainly because of its persistence in the environment and its association with significant health risks. PFOS has long been the focal point of regulatory actions, particularly in water quality testing, and it accounts for approximately 40% to 45% of the analyte market share. Due to high scrutiny and wide dissemination, it forms a prime site for PFAS testing programs.

PFOA is an analyte whose environmental persistence lasts for a long, and potential effects on health are also in the eye of the observer. With a surge in regulating PFOA exposure, around 25% to 30% of the analyte market comes under this category with PFOS next in line.

PFNA (Perfluorononanoic Acid) is increasingly being considered in research and testing on PFAS as a compound that deserves concern due to its bioaccumulation in the environment and its health risks. So far, it occupies about 10-15% of the market but will grow as the awareness of its effects continues to increase.

Lastly, PFHxS, Perfluorohexane Sulfonate, is slowly gaining importance due to its persistence and potential health effects. The market share in this category accounts for only about 5-10%, yet the demand for it is supposed to grow further with the regulatory expansion to an increasingly wider range of PFAS compounds.

PFAS Testing Market Segmentation: by Application

• Drinking Water

• Wastewater

• Air

• Soil

The Drinking Water segment is the largest and most critical application area for PFAS testing, driven by increasing regulatory pressure and public concern over water safety. As regulatory bodies like the U.S. EPA continue to establish enforceable limits for PFAS in drinking water, this segment accounts for approximately 40% to 45% of the total market share. Municipalities, industrialists, as well as ecological agencies, continue to invest in PFAS analysis to be better prepared in the face of the upcoming standards and safety of the masses.

The Market for the Wastewater segment shall grow to about 25% to 30%. This is further due to heavy regulations over waste discharge by factories and also treating the contaminated wastewater containing PFAS. Testing wastewater for PFAS is critical in preventing contamination from industrial processes and municipal treatment facilities, especially with governments implementing policies that require more stringent monitoring.

Air quality testing for PFAS contamination is gaining attention as industrial emissions, particularly from the use of firefighting foam, contribute to airborne PFAS presence. This segment has about 15% to 20% market share, which is believed to grow more in the times to come when air monitoring is expected to widen to include compounds of PFAS.

Finally, Soil testing with an approximate share of 10% to 15% helps in establishing the level of contamination from runoff agricultural waste and industrial waste. Demand for soil testing is expected to increase as consumers demand more information on PFAS in the food supply, especially in areas with intensive industrial activity or near contaminated water sources.

PFAS Testing Market Segmentation: Regional Analysis

• North America

• Europe

• Asia-Pacific

• South America

• Middle East and Africa

In 2024, North America continues to hold a significant share of the global testing market for PFAS, totaling around 40% to 45% of the worldwide market. Its share is promoted by strict environmental regulations in the U.S., such as enforcement of PFAS limits in water by the U.S. EPA, and greater concerns over general contamination of both water, earth, and airborne PFAS compounds.

Europe has captured a market of about 25% to 30%. This is because there is a progressive approach by the European Union towards regulatory control of PFAS and ongoing demand to test in these countries, given the tightening nature of environmental regulations in Germany, France, or the UK, for example.

Asia-Pacific accounts for 15% to 20% of the market share. With growing awareness and regulatory moves in countries such as Japan, South Korea, and Australia, the region is still in its nascent stage of comprehensive PFAS monitoring, far behind North America and Europe.

South America accounts for a smaller share of about 5% to 10%, since PFAS testing is still in the nascent stages of adoption, with some countries just starting to adopt testing due to growing environmental concerns.

The Middle East and Africa have the smallest share, about 5% to 10%, as regulations and testing infrastructure are not yet developed in this region, though the region is starting to consider environmental monitoring, especially in regions affected by industrial activities.

COVID-19 Impact Analysis on the PFAS Testing Market:

The COVID-19 pandemic had a mixed impact on the PFAS Testing market. The pandemic caused disruptions in laboratory operations, research activities, and regulatory procedures. Many testing laboratories either reduced their capacity or temporarily closed due to lockdown measures and social distancing requirements. This led to delays in PFAS testing and the processing of samples, especially during the peak of the pandemic. The pandemic also led to supply chain disruption. Shortages in specialized equipment and chemicals had further slowed down the testing process and increased costs for testing laboratories.

At the same time, the pandemic changed the perspective of people and made them aware of their health and the effects of chemicals on health. It also highlighted the importance of public health, which likely contributed to heightened attention to chemicals like PFAS and the need for better monitoring and regulation.

Latest Trends/ Developments in the PFAS Testing Market:

Stringent regulatory implementations and advancements in PFAS detection technologies are the key developments in this market. High-sensitivity mass spectrometry techniques are improving the detection. There has been growth in the development of portable, on-site testing solutions for quick screening of PFAS contamination, particularly in water samples.

Innovations in filtration methods, like granular activated carbon (GAC) and ion exchange resins, continue to improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness. Researchers are also looking into the potential of newer technologies, such as electrochemical oxidation and photolytic degradation, to break down PFAS compounds.

There is an increasing focus on biomonitoring to track PFAS levels in human populations and connect exposure with potential health outcomes.  Standards organizations like ASTM International and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) are working to establish global testing protocols to ensure consistency in PFAS measurement techniques.

Key Players:

1. Eurofins Scientific

2. ALS Limited

3. SGS S.A.

4. Intertek Group

5. TestAmerica (Element Materials Technology)

6. PerkinElmer

7. Maxxam Analytics (Bureau Veritas)

8. ToxServices

9. AquaBlok

10. Eurofins Environment Testing USA