Estimating the Global QA Workforce: How Many Testers Are There Worldwide?

When I began researching this topic, I found that reliable data was surprisingly scarce. There weren’t many solid sources I could confidently reference. So, I decided to take a different approach.

Instead of looking for direct QA counts, I started with the number of software developers globally and scaled down using a set of filtration techniques based on industry benchmarks and ratios.

Let me walk you through how I arrived at an estimated between 6 to 9 million, using the following data points and supporting statistics.

1. Use the Developer-to-Tester Ratio

Most industry benchmarks cite a developer-to-tester ratio of 3:1 to 5:1, depending on the industry and maturity.

Based on the research I conducted as of 2024, there are an estimated 27 to 30 million software developers worldwide (source: Evans Data, Stack Overflow surveys).

Using a conservative 4:1 ratio, that would imply:

30 million developers / 4 = ~7.5 million QA testers globally

So we can safely estimate somewhere between 6 to 9 million testers worldwide based on upper and lower limits, including:

• Manual testers
• Automation engineers
• SDETs
• Performance/security testers
• QA Managers and Directors
• Test architects
• Quality Officers

2. ISTQB Certification Data

As of May 2025, the ISTQB (International Software Testing Qualifications Board) has:

• Administered 1.4 million exams globally
• Issued over 1 million certifications across more than 130 countries

We should understand that ISTQB offers multiple certification exams, not just one. As a result, a single QA professional may hold more than one certification. While we don’t have access to exact data on unique certified individuals, we can make a general assumption.

If we estimate that approximately 10% of the global QA/testing population is certified by ISTQB, that would translate to around 750,000 certified testers worldwide, based on a median global estimate of 7.5 million testers.

Of course, one could argue that the actual percentage may be higher and they might be right. This certification figure is based on a personal, conservative assumption, not on officially verified statistics.

3. LinkedIn Data

I believe one of the best sources for estimating the global number of testers is LinkedIn, though not through a regular user search. LinkedIn has the ability to run internal reports by filtering profiles with keywords like "QA" and "Testing" in job titles, across its 1.1 billion user base. While not the entire QA population is represented on LinkedIn, I’d estimate that around 80% of QA professionals are likely present on the platform. So perhaps we should ask LinkedIn to publish that data, I believe it would provide one of the closest data points to reality.

Worldwide QA Professionals Estimation (My own prediction - I could be wrong):

• India: ~3 million (largest pool of QA professionals)
• United States: ~1 million
• Europe (combined): ~2 million
• Asia-Pacific (excluding India): ~1 million
• Latin America & Africa: ~0.5 million

The real question is by 2030; will the number of QA professionals grow or decline? What’s your take? What is your prediction? Please state your reasoning.