SONAR System Market Size, Share, Trends, Growth, Forecast, 2025–2032

According to Fortune Business Insights™, the SONAR system market is experiencing steady growth, driven by the increasing demand for advanced underwater surveillance, navigation, and communication technologies. SONAR is a highly sophisticated technique that utilizes sound wave propagation to detect, locate, and communicate with objects beneath the water's surface. The expanding application of SONAR across naval defense operations, commercial maritime activities, and deep-sea exploration is significantly contributing to the global market's growth trajectory.

The global SONAR system market was valued at USD 2.09 billion in 2021 and is projected to grow from USD 2.20 billion in 2022 to USD 3.76 billion by 2029, exhibiting a CAGR of 7.96% during the forecast period. North America led the market in 2021, accounting for a 31.84% share, driven by strong defense investments and technological advancements. In the United States, the SONAR system market is expected to experience significant growth, with its value projected to reach approximately USD 1,087.3 million by 2032. This growth is largely attributed to the U.S. government's proposed 30-year shipbuilding plan, which includes the procurement of aircraft carriers, small and large surface combatants, attack submarines, combat logistics force ships, amphibious warfare vessels, and support ships—bolstering the nation’s naval capabilities and demand for advanced SONAR technologies. 

List of Key Market Players-

• ASELSAN A.Ş. (Turkey)

• ATLAS ELEKTRONIK INDIA Pvt. Ltd. (India)

• DSIT Solutions Ltd. (Israel)

• EdgeTech (U.S.)

• FURUNO ELECTRIC CO., LTD. (Japan)

• Japan Radio Co. (Japan)

• KONGSBERG (Norway)

• Lockheed Martin Corporation (U.S.)

• L3Harris Technologies, Inc. (U.S.)

• NAVICO (Norway)

• Raytheon Technologies Corporation (U.S.)

• SONARDYNE (U.K)

• Teledyne Technologies Incorporated. (U.S.)

• Thales Group (France)

• Ultra (U.K)

Information Source-

https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/sonar-system-market-101830

Segments-

By Product Type
The market is segmented into hull-mounted, stern-mounted, sonobuoy, and diver detection systems (DDS). The hull-mounted segment held the largest market share in 2021 and is expected to gain momentum during 2022–2029. This growth is driven by rising adoption of forward-looking SONAR systems in defense vessels, used primarily for Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) and vessel traffic management to enhance operational efficiency.

By Application
The market is bifurcated into defense and commercial segments. The defense segment dominated the market in 2021, supported by increasing deployment of SONAR systems for mine detection and countermeasure (MCM) operations. The commercial segment is projected to grow at the fastest CAGR, driven by the expanding use of SONARs in oil & gas exploration, hydrographic surveys, fishery management, and ship retrofitting.

By Platform
Based on platform, the market is divided into ship-based and airborne systems. The ship type segment led the market in 2021 due to the growing use of SONARs on various vessels such as gas tankers, bulk carriers, research vessels, aircraft carriers, and amphibious ships. The airborne segment is anticipated to witness robust growth, with increasing deployment of sonobuoys and dipping SONARs for early submarine detection and threat prevention.

Report Coverage-

The research report provides a thorough examination of the market. It focuses on key aspects such as leading companies, various platforms, product types, solutions, and SONAR system applications. Apart from that, the report provides insights into market trends and highlights important industry developments. In addition to the aforementioned factors, the report includes a number of factors that have contributed to the development of the developed market in recent years.

Drivers & Restraints-

Tactical Defense Operations are Surging the Demand for Sonobuoys

A sonobuoy is a sophisticated underwater acoustic research system that naval ships drop or eject. Sonobuoys use a sophisticated transducer and a radio transmitter to record and transmit underwater sounds. Other environmental data, such as wave height and water temperature, are also provided by special-purpose buoys. The market is expected to expand as the use of sonobuoys in military vessels expands. However, the steep cost associated with SONAR development may impede the SONAR system market growth.

Regional Insights-

North America to be a Dominant Region of the Global Market

North America dominated the market in 2021, with market size of USD 665.5 million. North America's dominance is owing to the rise in naval shipbuilding in the U.S. 82 new ships costing up to USD 147 billion will be added in the U.S. between 2022 - 2026, according to a shipbuilding plan announced in 2020.

Asia Pacific will experience remarkable growth as a result of increased naval spending and an increase in domestic ship manufacturing in China and South Korea. Ship deliveries in Japan have grown and various South Korean shipbuilding players have integrated automation into ship systems to drive the market development.

As the SONAR system market share increases in Europe, this is largely driven by the introduction of a new generation of threat detection and identification capabilities in ships and the retrofitting of vessels with autonomous engineering systems. Increased investment in marine system upgrades is anticipated to fuel the market in the U.K.

Report Coverage-

The global SONAR system market report provides a comprehensive overview of the industry, covering key players, platform types, product categories, and major applications in both defense and commercial sectors. It highlights current market trends, recent industry developments, and regional insights. The report also examines critical growth drivers such as rising demand for maritime security and underwater exploration, offering valuable information to support strategic decision-making.

Competitive Landscape-

The dominant factor responsible for these key market players' dominance is a diverse product portfolio combined with R&D activity. Impact Subsea will launch the ISS360 SONAR, the world's tiniest imaging SONAR, in March 2020. It has a capacity of up to 90 meters/295 feet and provides excellent image quality.

Key Industry Development-

February 2022: Leonardo SpA awarded ELAC SONAR a USD 58 million contract to supply SONAR systems for two new submarines supplied by Fincantieri for the Italian Navy.