Retail Robotics Market Size, Share, Trends, Growth 2032

Retail Robotics Industry Prospective:

The global retail robotics market size was worth around USD 21.93 billion in 2023 and is predicted to grow to around USD 229.12 billion by 2032 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of roughly 34.20% between 2024 and 2032.

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Retail Robotics Market: Overview

Retail robotics deals with the development of automated advanced robots, especially for the global retail industry. These novel robots are capable of delivering all types of functions carried out in a retail store or warehouse.

Some of the common job responsibilities of retail robots include checking out services, inventory management, customer management, and billing. Retail robots aim to improve the overall operational efficiency of warehouses and retail centers by delivering enhanced customer service along with managing inventory more accurately.

During the forecast period, the industry for retail robotics is expected to grow at a rapid rate especially as major e-commerce companies worldwide have shown greater interest in leveraging the advantage of retail robots.

Furthermore, the growing cost of labor in the retail sector may also contribute to the industry’s overall growth rate during the forecast period. One of the major drawbacks of the retail robotics industry is the high cost of developing, operating, and maintaining retail robotics. The growing advancements in technologies related to retail robotics focusing on improving their performance and extending final applications will create market growth opportunities in the coming years.

Key Insights:

• As per the analysis shared by our research analyst, the global retail robotics market is estimated to grow annually at a CAGR of around 34.20% over the forecast period (2024-2032)
• In terms of revenue, the global retail robotics market size was valued at around USD 21.93 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach USD 229.12 billion by 2032.
• The retail robotics market is projected to grow at a significant rate due to the increasing cost of labor in the retail industry.
• Based on the type, the mobile robots segment is growing at a high rate and will continue to dominate the global market as per industry projections.
• Based on the deployment, the cloud/web-based segment is anticipated to command the largest market share.
• Based on region, Asia-Pacific is projected to dominate the global market during the forecast period.

Retail Robotics Market: Growth Drivers

Increasing cost of labor in the retail industry to drive market demand rate during the forecast period

The global retail robotics market is expected to generate higher market revenue due to the increasing cost of labor in the retail sector. One of the major reasons for increasing labor expenses is the rising inflation rate worldwide and the escalating cost of living.

For instance, Germany witnessed skyrocketing inflation rates in 2022 and 2023. Similarly, a large number of countries witnessed exceptional increases in prices of everyday essentials such as vegetables, food grains, and other items. Some of the economies faced severe shortages of food and basic necessities either due to frequent natural calamities or social-political turmoil in the region. The global retail industry is one of the largest employers of human resources.

Manual labor is a part of all operational segments of retail stores starting from inventory management to final customer relationship. Human labor also contributes to a major part of the retail operational expenses.

According to market research, the cost of employing human resources accounts for more than 50% of the overall business expense of a retail company. These factors are likely to promote the use of retail robots in the coming years as companies seek novel ways to mitigate economic volatility registered worldwide.

Rising adoption in the e-commerce segment to emerge as a significant revenue generator for the industry

The demand for retail robotics is expected to be further affected by the growing adoption of automated solutions in the global e-commerce industry.

According to recent market analysis, e-commerce giants such as Alibaba and Amazon are investing heavily in deploying retail robots on large-scale across major warehouses. The e-commerce industry players are building state-of-the-art and technologically rich warehouses to ensure smooth delivery of the products sold on the official websites. The operations of the complex ecosystem of these large-scale warehouses can be optimized using robots built for retail stores.

In October 2023, Amazon announced the launch of two novel ways of using advanced robotics in its warehouses. The new solutions offered by the company include Digit and Sequoia. They are meant to not only improve workplace safety but also enhance customer delivery experience, thus contributing to the global retail robotics market growth rate.

Retail Robotics Market: Restraints

High initial cost of investment and expenses associated with technology management will limit the industry’s growth rate

The global industry for retail robotics is expected to be restricted due to the high initial cost of investment associated with the solutions. For instance, the average cost of a basic robotic arm for retail applications may range between USD 4000 and USD 6000, depending on the final offerings of the tool.

On the other hand, robotic arms with larger applications can cost more than USD 350,000. In addition, the cost of maintaining and repairing the robotic systems is significantly high. The estimated cost of maintaining industrial robots is around USD 12,000 per year.

Retail Robotics Market: Opportunities

Expanding the launch of new solutions in the market to create more growth opportunities for further extension

The global retail robotics market is expected to generate more growth opportunities due to the rising launch of new and improved solutions in the market. Industry players are increasingly offering new solutions in the market with improved performances and extended applications delivering unique capabilities.

In January 2025, Lenovo, a China-based multi-technology company, announced the launch of Retail Robotics in partnership with Yunji Technology. The new range is equipped with Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven robots that are meant to automate customer interactions and deliveries. In the initial experiment, the robots were employed in a 400-room hotel which handled more than 90% of takeout-related requests and services.

According to official reports, Yunji provides robotic solutions that are used in more than 30,000 hotels including some of the most popular hospitality chains. In November 2024, Addverb Technologies Ltd, an Indian emerging company in the robotics & automation sector, announced that it would introduce the company’s first humanoid robot in 2025. The new solutions will have applications in the retail, fashion, and energy sectors.

In October 2024, the United Robotics Group (URG) announced the launch of a new series of robots that are uClean, uLog, and Userve. The company has developed new products to mitigate labor shortages in growing industries such as cleaning and logistics segments.

Retail Robotics Market: Challenges

Risk of hacking and concerns over human job replacements will challenge the market expansion trends

The global retail robotics industry is expected to be challenged by the growing risk of automated solutions being hacked by cybercriminals. The interconnected network of retail robotic solutions is highly vulnerable to external digital attacks.

Furthermore, the industry also faces opinions related to retail robotic solutions replacing job opportunities for human labor, which can affect the overall economic growth of a country. Industry players must maintain a balance between growth opportunities for human skilled resources and integration possibilities for retail robotics.

Retail Robotics Market: Report Scope

Retail Robotics Market: Segmentation

The global retail robotics market is segmented based on type, application, deployment, and region.

Based on the type, the global market segments are semi-autonomous, stationary robots, and mobile robots. In 2023, the highest demand was listed in the mobile robots segment. These solutions are more versatile and offer higher cost-efficiency since they can be employed in a large section of retail-based operations.

Furthermore, they are more commonly used for cleaning-related tasks, managing customer queries, and tracking inventory. The average cost of mobile robots for the retail industry is around USD 10,000.

Based on the application, the global retail robotics industry is divided into delivery management, inventory management, in-store services, and others.

Based on the deployment, the global market divisions are third-party deployment servers, cloud/web-based, on-premises, and others. In 2023, the highest demand was listed in the cloud/web-based solutions. The new-age method of deployment is more user-friendly as it allows higher scalability.

Furthermore, the end-users do not have to make significant investments in developing infrastructure since the technological architecture is taken care of by the service providers. In 2023, the global cloud robotics and automation markets were valued at around USD 5 billion.

Retail Robotics Market: Regional Analysis

Asia-Pacific to emerge as the highest revenue generator during the forecast period

The global retail robotics market is expected to be led by Asia-Pacific during the forecast period. Countries such as China, South Korea, Japan, and Singapore will be driving the regional demand rate, according to recent statistics. South Korea, for instance, is currently the largest employer of industrial robots.

As per data obtained from official channels, South Korea has more than 1000 robots per 10,000 human labor. In addition, the growing shortage of skilled human resources in some of the major Asian economies, such as Japan, will create demand for retail robotic solutions. Japan is witnessing a decline in the population of working groups as the aging population continues to rise. The regional demand rate will be further affected by the growing investments in robotics & automation industries across Asia-Pacific.

The International Federation of Robotics has estimated that China will have introduced around 470 robots per 10,000 workers on an industrial scale by the end of 2023. China is offering lucrative subsidies to companies operating in the automation industry further encouraging research and innovation. In January 2024, the Beijing government announced a new fund of USD 1.38 billion to encourage innovation in the robotics sector.

Retail Robotics Market: Competitive Analysis

The global retail robotics market is led by players like:

• Brain Corp
• Locus Robotics
• Kivnon Robotics
• Knightscope
• Fetch Robotics
• F&P Robotics
• Aethon
• RoboCV
• Bear Robotics
• Frictionless Retail
• Simbe Robotics
• Starship Technologies
• Bossa Nova Robotics
• Televic
• Savioke

The global retail robotics market is segmented as follows:

By Type

• Semi-Autonomous
• Stationary Robots
• Mobile Robots

By Application

• Delivery Management
• Inventory Management
• In-Store Services
• Others

By Deployment

• Third Party Deployment Server
• Cloud/Web-Based
• On-Premises
• Others

By Region

• North America
  • The U.S.
  • Canada
• Europe
  • France 
  • The UK
  • Spain
  • Germany
  • Italy
  • Rest of Europe
• Asia Pacific
  • China
  • Japan
  • India
  • South Korea
  • Southeast Asia
  • Rest of Asia Pacific
• Latin America
  • Brazil
  • Mexico
  • Rest of Latin America
• Middle East & Africa
  • GCC
  • South Africa
  • Rest of Middle East & Africa