Martin Placek
Research expert covering transportation and electronics
Equipment rental market in the U.S. - statistics & facts
The equipment rental market has experienced consistent growth globally over the last ten years. Between 2010 and 2019, the market increased by almost 60 percent. In 2019, the global equipment rental market generated 87.5 billion U.S. dollars in revenue. After dropping to 53.2 billion U.S. dollars in 2020, the North American equipment rental market is projected to reach the 2019 level by 2023. Declining sharply by 9.1 percent in 2020, the North American market grew by four percent in 2021 and should grow by 10 percent in 2022.
The United States dominated the North American market with market size of 47.8 billion U.S. dollars in 2021, representing a market share of over 89 percent. The U.S. equipment rental market is projected to grow to an estimated 59.5 billion U.S. dollars by 2024.
The United States dominated the North American market with market size of 47.8 billion U.S. dollars in 2021, representing a market share of over 89 percent. The U.S. equipment rental market is projected to grow to an estimated 59.5 billion U.S. dollars by 2024.
What types of equipment are rented in the U.S.?
The rental of construction and industrial equipment was the largest segment of the U.S. equipment rental market in 2021, with a market size amounting to 32.5 billion U.S. dollars. In 2022, 62 percent of respondents said their main reason for renting equipment is the flexibility in returning it. Thirty percent of respondents also declared they rented out more construction equipment to contractors compared to 2021.Largest equipment rental companies in the U.S.
Connecticut-based United Rentals ranked as the largest equipment rental company in the United States, with a market share of 16 percent. In 2021, United Rental generated over 9.7 billion U.S. dollars in revenue. United Rentals was also the leading tractor rental carrier in this period, with a fleet size of over 2,000. Coming second after United Rentals, the U.K.-based Sunbelt recorded total rental revenue of nearly eight billion euros through Sunbelt Rentals.
