The influencer marketing industry reached about $24 billion in 2024 and was projected to hit about $32.55 billion in 2025, according to Influencer Marketing Hub. About 86% of US marketers were estimated to use influencer marketing in 2025, per eMarketer, up from 64.5% in 2020. The wider creator economy could approach $480 billion by 2027, according to Goldman Sachs. Every figure below is current for 2025 to 2026 and attributed to its named source, so you can cite it and plan budgets against it.
Market size and growth
The global influencer marketing industry grew to about $24 billion in 2024 and was forecast to reach about $32.55 billion in 2025, according to Influencer Marketing Hub. That is more than triple the roughly $9.7 billion the same source recorded for 2020, which puts the five-year run at double-digit average annual growth.
Zoom out to the full creator economy and the numbers get larger. Goldman Sachs valued the creator economy at about $250 billion in 2023 and projected it to approach $480 billion by 2027, at a compound annual growth rate of 10% to 20%.
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Industry market size 2024 | about $24 billion | Influencer Marketing Hub |
| Industry market size 2025 (projected) | about $32.55 billion | Influencer Marketing Hub |
| Creator economy by 2027 (projected) | about $480 billion | Goldman Sachs |
| US marketers using influencer marketing 2025 | about 86% | eMarketer |
| Average return per $1 spent | about $5.78 | Influencer Marketing Hub |
| Instagram adoption among US marketers | 80.8% | Statista |
| Global creators | about 50 million | Goldman Sachs |
Spend and budgets
Adoption is now mainstream. About 86% of US marketers were estimated to use influencer marketing in 2025, up from 64.5% in 2020, according to eMarketer.
Budgets are still climbing. In Influencer Marketing Hub's benchmark survey, 87.49% of brands said they expected their influencer marketing budgets to increase, and 72.22% expected increases of 50% or more.
Influencer marketing is also taking a bigger share of the overall marketing mix. Per Statista, 26.3% of respondents said they put 10% to 20% of their marketing budget into influencer marketing, and 11.9% allocated more than 50%.
ROI and performance
The headline return has held up for years. Influencer Marketing Hub's widely cited benchmark puts the average return at about $5.78 for every $1 spent.
Brands also expect that return quickly. In Influencer Marketing Hub's survey, 65.9% of brands expected payback within one month and 48.4% expected it within two weeks.
Measurement remains the hard part. Linqia found that 53% of marketers say determining ROI is their biggest influencer marketing challenge, which is why attribution tooling and clean payout records matter as programs scale.
Platforms
Instagram still leads for reach and adoption. Statista reports that 80.8% of US marketers use Instagram for influencer campaigns, more than any other platform.
TikTok is the fastest riser. According to eMarketer, 57.7% of US marketers at companies with more than 100 employees use TikTok for influencer marketing. In Influencer Marketing Hub's benchmark survey, TikTok topped forward-looking platform plans, named by 31% of respondents.
The practical takeaway is that most brand programs now run across several platforms at once, which multiplies the number of creators and the number of separate payments behind a single campaign.
Creators and the creator economy
The supply side is large and uneven. Goldman Sachs estimates about 50 million global creators, but only about 4% earn more than $100,000 a year and count as full-time professionals. Brand deals make up about 70% of creator income, per the same source, which means most creator revenue flows directly from the brand and agency budgets covered above.
That mix explains the operational shape of modern programs. A single campaign can involve a long tail of nano and micro creators across many countries, each expecting to be paid in their own currency and on their own preferred method. We covered that structural gap in why the creator economy is still behind.
The operational challenge behind the numbers
As spend and creator counts grow together, the work that decides whether a program runs smoothly is paying every creator reliably at scale. That is what Talentir handles. Talentir runs global payouts for businesses, carries the liability as Merchant of Record and makes those payouts profitable. It reaches more than 180 countries and 24 currencies, plus two stablecoins, USDC and EURC. Recipients pick their own method and currency, and payouts land within seconds for stablecoins, instantly for PayPal and Venmo and in one to two business days for bank transfers.
As Merchant of Record, Talentir handles invoicing, VAT and reconciliation automatically, so a growing creator roster does not turn into a growing back-office. Onboarding pairs you with a dedicated payout engineer and a first test in your own environment within 24 hours. For how payout reliability feeds campaign results, see how better payouts compound into better influencer marketing and, for the day-to-day mechanics, how to manage hundreds of small-scale creator payments every day.
FAQ
How big is the influencer marketing industry in 2026?
The global influencer marketing industry was projected to reach about $32.55 billion in 2025, up from about $24 billion in 2024, according to Influencer Marketing Hub. The wider creator economy could approach $480 billion by 2027, per Goldman Sachs.
What is the ROI of influencer marketing?
Influencer Marketing Hub's widely cited benchmark puts the average return at about $5.78 for every $1 spent. In the same survey, 65.9% of brands expected payback within one month. Measurement is still the main hurdle, with 53% of marketers naming ROI attribution as their biggest challenge, according to Linqia.
How much do brands spend on influencer marketing?
Budgets are rising. Influencer Marketing Hub found that 87.49% of brands expected their influencer budgets to increase and 72.22% expected increases of 50% or more. Per Statista, 26.3% of respondents put 10% to 20% of their marketing budget into influencer marketing and 11.9% allocate more than 50%.
How many brands use influencer marketing?
About 86% of US marketers were estimated to use influencer marketing in 2025, up from 64.5% in 2020, according to eMarketer. Instagram leads adoption at 80.8% of US marketers, per Statista.
How big is the creator economy?
Goldman Sachs valued the creator economy at about $250 billion in 2023 and projected it to approach $480 billion by 2027, at a 10% to 20% compound annual growth rate. It estimates about 50 million creators globally, of whom about 4% earn more than $100,000 a year.
