2023 Executive Summary

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study 

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study 

Disclaimer and Copyright

NOTE: The ﬁgures presented in this report are based on survey responses and therefore rely on the accuracy of the data

provided by the survey respondents.

This document contains proprietary information of the International Coaching Federation (ICF). No disclosure or use of any

portion of the contents of this material may be made without the express written consent of ICF. For permission to reproduce

any material contained in this publication, please email your request to icfpr@coachfederation.org or call +1.859.219.3580. If

2023 Executive Summary

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study 

Executive Summary

2023 Executive Summary

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study 

Executive Summary

Introduction

This is a summary of the ﬁndings from the 2023 ICF Global Coaching Study. The study was commissioned by

the International Coaching Federation (ICF).

The 2023 ICF Global Coaching Study represents the ﬁfth of ICF’s major research projects on the size and scope of

the coaching profession. The inaugural study was published in 2007 with follow-up studies in 2012, 2016, and 2020.

The full report is primarily focused on coach practitioners and the business of coaching, including annual

revenue/income from coaching, fees per one-hour coaching session, number of coaching clients, and weekly

hours spent working on coaching activities.

A coach practitioner is deﬁned as someone who provides an ongoing partnership designed to help clients

produce fulﬁlling results in their personal and professional lives. The coach’s job is to provide support to

enhance the skills, resources, and creativity that the client already has.

Methodology

The survey ﬁeldwork phase commenced on October 26, 2022. The survey ran for six weeks and closed on

December 2, 2022.

A number of approaches were deployed to reach out and engage worldwide with coach practitioners and

managers/leaders using coaching skills, including:

• The use of ICF’s extensive contacts lists to circulate personalized invitations and survey links.

• ICF members were asked to share a generic link to the online survey registration site with their wider

networks of coaches; the intention of which was to initiate a “snowball” effect that would attract more non-

ICF coaches.

• The survey was made available online in nine languages.

• The survey was designed so that it could be completed using a range of mobile devices.

Survey Outcomes

With a total of 14,591 valid responses from 157 countries, the study is large in scale and global in reach. More

than 100 survey returns were received from 27 countries across all major world regions with a further 19

countries providing 50-99 returns. Notwithstanding a shorter survey period of six weeks, compared with a

six-month survey period for previous studies, the global spread of the 2023 study sample is comparable with

the reach achieved in the 2020 study (161 countries) and wider than the 2012 and 2016 studies (117 and 137

countries respectively). That is testimony to the success of the methods deployed to reach the global coaching

community and facilitate participation in the study.

Of the 14,591 responses:

• 11,202 were provided by ICF members, (i.e., 77% of the total). The remaining 3,389 responses were received

from non-ICF members.

• 13,146 (90%) were provided by coach practitioners. Respondents who self-identiﬁed as managers/leaders

using coaching skills accounted for 1,445 returns (10%). The survey results for managers/leaders who use

coaching skills will be separately reported.

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study 

Structure of the Final Report

The report is structured as follows:

Section 1 Introduction.

Section 2 The Size and Scope of the Profession. This section presents estimates for the number of coach

practitioners, globally and by world region.

Section 3 Summary Business Indicators. This section examines linkages between the key business indicators

(annual revenue/income, hourly fee rates, hours working as a coach and number of active clients) and attributes

of the coach (e.g., years’ experience, main coaching specialty), as well as the nature of the engagement with the

client (e.g., position of the client served, the proportion of clients who are sponsored).

Section 4 Coach Practitioners. This section presents a proﬁle of coach practitioners, under the following

headings: demographics, coaching services, training and credentialing, and the client.

The full report also contains a Technical Appendix, which provides further information on the approach to the

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study, including an explanation of the methodology for estimating the number of

coaches worldwide and by region.

Size and Scope of the Profession

The following are the key points from the analysis of the size and scope of the profession:

• Notwithstanding the COVID-19 pandemic, between 2019 and 2022, the coaching profession continued to

expand at a robust pace. In 2022, the estimated number of coach practitioners exceeded 100,000 for the

ﬁrst time, reaching 109,200, representing a 54% increase on the 2019 global estimate.

• The number of coach practitioners grew in all regions, most notably in the emerging regions of Asia (+86%),

the Middle East and Africa (+74%), and Eastern Europe (+59%).

• With an estimated 54% increase, Latin America and the Caribbean grew in line with the global average.

• The more established regions also registered solid growth rates, from 42% in Oceania to 51% in Western

Europe, with North America posting a 47% expansion.

• Over nine in 10 coach practitioners (91%) said they currently have active clients, giving an estimated 99,100

active coach practitioners, representing a 55% increase compared with the position in 2019.

• In 2022, active coach practitioners generated an estimated annual revenue/income from coaching of

$4.564 billion U.S. dollars (USD), representing a 60% increase over the 2019 estimate.

• The estimated 55% increase in active coach practitioners was the main factor driving the increase in total

annual revenue from coaching.

• In addition, the average annual revenue/income from coaching is estimated to have risen by 12% between

2019 and 2022, to $52,800 U.S. dollars.

• Reﬂecting the diversity of coaches, annual revenue/income from coaching varies widely. Globally, more

than one in two coaches (53%) reported less than $30,000 annual revenue/income from coaching.

The size and scale estimates for numbers of coach practitioners and revenue/income from coaching are

summarized in the table on the next page.

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study 

The coaching profession: Size and scale

Coach practitioners Active

Annual revenue

/ income from

coaching

Total revenue

# % USD USD million

Asia 8,600 88% $33,900 $248

Eastern Europe 10,000 89% $18,700 $161

Latin America and

the Caribbean

16,900 87% $22,900 $332

Middle East and

Africa

4,900 85% $29,600 $118

North America 34,200 93% $67,800 $2,088

Oceania 3,700 92% $58,800 $195

Western Europe 30,800 92% $52,400 $1,421

Global 109,200 91% $52,800 $4,564

The key ﬁndings in relation to revenue drivers are as follows:

• The overall average fee per one-hour coaching session in 2022 was $244 U.S. dollars, representing a 9%

increase compared with 2019.

• Average fees reported per one-hour coaching session vary widely, ranging from $277 in Western Europe to

$114 in Latin America and the Caribbean.

• In 2022, the average active coach practitioner had 12.2 clients, representing a 4% increase on the 2019

average (11.7 clients).

• In 2022, coach practitioners spent an average of 11.9 hours per week working as a coach, only slightly lower

(2%) than the average of 12.1 hours reported for 2019.

The key revenue drivers are summarized in the table below.

Summary of revenue drivers

Average fee

reported per one-

hour session

Average hourly

revenue recovered

Hours per week

(average)

Active clients

currently coaching

(average)

USD USD # #

Asia $226 $70 9.2 11.5

Eastern Europe $138 $47 7.7 8.4

Latin America and

the Caribbean

$114 $38 11.4 10.2

Middle East and

Africa

$165 $62 9.1 11

North America $272 $98 13.3 13.5

Oceania $259 $85 13.3 13.8

Western Europe $277 $84 12 11.5

Global $244 $85 11.9 12.2

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study 

Looking ahead, coach practitioners are optimistic regarding the business outlook for coaching in 2023. Almost

three in four (73%) expect to see an increase in their annual revenue/income, driven by a majority of coaches

anticipating growth in coaching sessions (61%) and the number of clients (70%).

Summary Business Indicators

The following are the key points from the survey ﬁndings for business indicators (annual revenue/income from

coaching, fee per one-hour session, clients and hours):

• On average, years of coaching experience is positively linked to the drivers of coaching revenue.

Typically, the more experienced the coach, the higher the reported average fee per one-hour coaching

session, the greater the number of clients, and the more weekly hours spent working as a coach.

• Consequently, more experienced coaches have higher annual income/revenue from coaching.

• Coaches specializing in business coaching tend to have above-average revenue/income from coaching,

primarily reﬂecting a higher average level of fees per one-hour coaching session.

• The position held by the coach’s clients exerts an important inﬂuence on fees per one-hour session, with

those coaches who mainly serve executives commanding the highest hourly fees and also earning the

highest annual revenue/income from coaching.

• Revenues and fees are positively related to the proportion of clients whose coaching is sponsored (i.e.,

coaching is paid for by someone other than the client). On average, the higher the proportion of clients who

are sponsored, the higher the hourly fee and annual revenue/income from coaching.

• The factors linked to annual revenue/income and reported fees per one-hour session tend to overlap.

• The proportion of clients who are sponsored tends to be higher among those with a business coaching

specialty compared with non-business specialties.

• Similarly, the more experienced coaches are also more likely to have a business coaching specialty. They

are also more likely to have a majority of clients who are in an executive position.

• These linkages, in turn, help to explain the higher fees and annual revenues earned by more experienced

coaches and those with a business Coaching specialty.

Coach Practitioners

The following are the key ﬁndings from the proﬁle of coach practitioners.

Demographics

• Almost one in two coach practitioners (48%) are in the Generation X age cohort, ranging from 40% in

North America to 62% in Eastern Europe.

• The proportion of coach practitioners who are Baby Boomers ranges from 16% in Eastern Europe to 49%

in North America. North America and Oceania are the only regions where Baby Boomers outnumber

Generation X coaches.

• Globally, Millennials account for one in 10 coach practitioners, ranging from 21% in Eastern Europe to 8%

in North America and 7% in Oceania.

• The female share of coach practitioners has been edging steadily upward, reaching 72% in 2022, up from

70% in 2019 and 67% in 2015.

• Compared with the position in 2019, the largest increase in the female share was in the Middle East and

Africa, up from 66% to 72% in 2022.

• The female share of coach practitioners ranges from 59% in Asia to 78% in Eastern Europe.

• The vast majority of coaches hold a degree-level qualiﬁcation or higher, including 30% with a bachelor’s

degree and 65% with a more advanced degree.

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study 

Coaching Services

• Coaching experience is positively linked to the age of the coach practitioner.

• The percentage of coach practitioners with less than ﬁve years’ experience is higher in the younger age

groups. Almost two in three Millennials (66%) have less than ﬁve years’ experience compared with 40% of

Generation X coaches and 22% of Baby Boomers.

• Leadership was the main area of coaching most frequently mentioned in the 2022 survey (34%), followed by

executive coaching (17%) and business/organizations (13%). Along with small business (3%), those four areas

of coaching are referred to collectively as business coaching throughout the report.

• The proportion identifying business coaching as their main specialty has been steadily rising, up from 62%

in 2015 to 65% in 2019 and 67% in 2022.

• A little under one in ﬁve coach practitioners (16%) work as both an internal and external coach. On average,

they devote a majority of their time to internal coaching duties (56%).

• Almost all coach practitioners (93%) offer services in addition to coaching. Most frequently, coaches also

offer consulting (59%), training (58%), and/or facilitation services (55%). On average, coach practitioners offer

almost three (2.8) services in addition to coaching. That is unchanged from 2015 and 2019.

The Client

• In 2022, a little over one in two coach practitioners said their clients are mostly managers (31%) or executives

(25%). The combined total of 56% represents an increase compared with 2019 (52%).

• The mix of clients varies with the coaches’ attributes, including the region in which they live, their main

area of coaching, years of experience, age, gender, and whether they work as an external or internal

coach practitioner.

• On average, coach practitioners said that 57% of their clients are sponsored and 43% are primary clients.

Compared to 2019, the sponsored share has increased (up from 52%) while the primary share has fallen

(from 48%).

• The majority of coaching clients (58%) are female. When compared with 2019, the average female share of

clients has not changed signiﬁcantly (57% in 2019).

• Clients aged between 35 and 44 years (37%) are most frequently in receipt of coaching services, followed

by clients in the 45 to 54 age range (32%). Around one in ﬁve (21%) are aged under 35 years. The age

composition of coaching clients in 2022 was very similar to the position in 2019.

Membership and Credentials

• The overwhelming majority of coaches (80%) agree that their clients expect coaches to be certiﬁed/

credentialed, including 42% strongly agreeing and 38% somewhat agreeing.

• More than eight in 10 coach practitioners (86%) said they are a member of one or more coaching

organizations, up from 79% in 2015 and 82% in 2019.

• An increasing proportion of coach practitioners hold a certiﬁcation/credential from a coaching organization.

In the 2022 survey, 85% said they currently hold a certiﬁcation/credential from a coaching organization, up

from 69% in 2015 and 74% in 2019.

2023 ICF Global Coaching Study 

Disclaimer and Copyright

NOTE: The ﬁgures presented in this

report are based on survey responses

and therefore rely on the accuracy

of the data provided by the survey

respondents.

This document contains proprietary

information of the International

Coaching Federation (ICF). No

disclosure or use of any portion of

the contents of this material may be

made without the express written

consent of ICF. For permission to

reproduce any material contained

in this publication, please email your

request to icfpr@coachfederation.

org or call +1.859.219.3580. If consent

is granted, attribution to ICF and to

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP should be