Router and switch market to top $83.13 billion by 2030

The global router and switch market is forecast to cross $83.13 billion by 2030, driven by cloud-first network upgrades, hyperscale data center demand and energy-efficiency mandates. Asia-Pacific is set to lead regions, while the U.S. is projected to be the largest country market and service provider core routers the biggest product segment.

Why it matters: - The router and switch market is moving toward a bigger role inside telecom and enterprise infrastructure as traffic growth, cloud migration and AI workloads push network upgrades. - The market is expected to reach $83.13 billion by 2030, equal to about 81% of the projected $102 billion telecom infrastructure equipment market. - The market is also projected to represent nearly 1% of the $13,788 billion global information technology industry by 2030.

What happened: - The Business Research Company published its "Router And Switch Market Report 2026 – Market Size, Trends, And Global Forecast 2026-2035." - The report projects 8% CAGR for the global router and switch market through 2030. - Asia-Pacific is forecast to be the largest region in 2030, at $26 billion, up from $18 billion in 2025. - The U.S. is forecast to be the largest country market in 2030, at $20 billion, up from $14 billion in 2025.

The details: - Asia-Pacific growth is tied to data center expansion, hyperscale cloud infrastructure, 5G deployment, fiber broadband buildouts, SDN and NFV adoption, smart city expansion, industrial IoT growth and telecom modernization across China, India, Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia. - U.S. growth is linked to enterprise cloud migration, hybrid and remote work infrastructure, high-capacity campus networking, edge computing, zero-trust architecture adoption and ongoing IT upgrades in data-intensive sectors. - By product, service provider core routers are expected to be the largest segment in 2030 at 28% of the market, or $23 billion. - Other product categories in the report include internet exchange routers, multiservice edge routers, ethernet service edge routers, ATM switches and other products. - Service categories include ethernet aggregation, internet data center or collocation or hosting, ethernet access and broadband remote access server. - Application categories include residential and commercial. - The report says service provider core routers will benefit from backbone traffic growth, IPv6 deployment, ultra-low-latency routing needs, fiber backbone expansion, submarine cable networks, intent-based networking and infrastructure upgrades by telecom operators and large enterprises. - The report identifies internet exchange routers, multiservice edge routers, ethernet service edge routers, service provider core routers, ATM switches and other products as the biggest growth opportunities. - Those segments are projected to add more than $26 billion in market value by 2030. - Over the next five years from 2025 to 2030, the report projects growth of $4 billion for internet exchange routers, $5 billion for multiservice edge routers, $5.2 billion for ethernet service edge routers, $7 billion for service provider core routers, $2 billion for ATM switches and $2.4 billion for other products. - The company says its 2026 market reports now include market attractiveness scoring, TAM analysis, company scoring matrix graphics and tables, Excel-based forecasting dashboards, market hotspots infographics, key technologies and future trend analysis, plus updated graphics and tables. - Request a free sample of the report. - Access the detailed report.

Between the lines: - The growth drivers point to a market shaped less by consumer demand and more by enterprise and carrier infrastructure spending. - Cloud-first WAN modernization and SD-WAN adoption are expected to contribute 2.4% annual growth as firms replace legacy MPLS networks. - Hyperscale demand for 400G and 800G silicon-photonics switches is projected to contribute about 2.3% annual growth as AI, machine learning and big data traffic rise. - Energy-efficiency mandates for network equipment are projected to contribute about 2.0% annual growth as buyers face carbon and cost pressure. - The report’s emphasis on programmable networking, deterministic networking and AI-driven automation suggests the next upgrade cycle will favor higher-performance and more flexible gear.

What's next: - The market is expected to keep expanding through 2030 as telecom operators, cloud providers and enterprises upgrade networks for speed, latency and power efficiency. - Asia-Pacific and the U.S. are likely to remain the main demand centers, while service provider core routers should stay the largest product category. - The report’s forecast implies continued spending on hyperscale infrastructure, edge deployments, private 5G and modern WAN architectures.

The bottom line: - Router and switch demand is being pulled by the same forces reshaping global networking: cloud, AI, 5G and energy efficiency.