Electronic Warfare Market - Global Industry Size, Share, Trends, Opportunity, and Forecast, Segmented By Capability (Support, Attack, Protection), By Equipment (Jammers, Antennas, Radar Warning Receiver, Anti-Radiation Missiles, Directed Energy Weapon, CMDS, DIRCM, Others), By Platform (Air, Land, Naval, Space), and By Region 2021-2031F

Forecast Period	2027-2031
Market Size (2025)	USD 30.67 Billion
CAGR (2026-2031)	7.63%
Fastest Growing Segment	Directed Energy Weapon
Largest Market	North America
Market Size (2031)	USD 47.68 Billion

Market Overview

The Global Electronic Warfare Market will grow from USD 30.67 Billion in 2025 to USD 47.68 Billion by 2031 at a 7.63% CAGR. Electronic warfare involves the strategic use of the electromagnetic spectrum to detect, deceive, and disrupt adversary operations while protecting friendly forces. The Global Electronic Warfare Market is expanding due to intensifying geopolitical instability and a universal push for military modernization. Governments are prioritizing investments in electromagnetic spectrum operations to ensure information superiority against peer adversaries. According to the Aerospace, Security and Defence Industries Association of Europe, in 2024, defense turnover for the sector increased by 13.8 percent amid these growing security concerns. This financial commitment fuels the development of advanced jamming systems and threat detection capabilities required for contemporary battlefields.

A major challenge impeding market growth is the fragmentation of the industrial base and supply chain. Divergent national standards and regulatory hurdles often complicate cross-border collaboration, leading to duplication of effort and delayed program implementation. Such inefficiencies can slow the delivery of critical electronic warfare assets and strain the resources of defense manufacturers.

Key Market Drivers

Escalating geopolitical instability and regional territorial conflicts are the primary forces accelerating the demand for electronic warfare systems. As conventional and asymmetric threats rise, nations are compelled to upgrade their spectral dominance capabilities to disrupt adversary communications and radar systems. This security environment has precipitated a surge in defense budgets worldwide. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, April 2024, in the 'Trends in World Military Expenditure, 2023' Fact Sheet, global military expenditure grew by 6.8 percent in real terms. This capital influx directly benefits defense contractors who are witnessing record demand for sensor and jamming technologies. According to Saab, in 2024, order bookings for the first half of the year increased by 85 percent, underscoring the urgent global requirement for advanced defensive systems.

The integration of artificial intelligence and cognitive EW capabilities represents the second critical driver reshaping the market landscape. Modern battlefields are characterized by agile frequency-hopping signals that legacy systems cannot effectively counter. Consequently, defense agencies are shifting focus toward cognitive systems capable of autonomous threat identification. This technological pivot forces substantial investment into machine learning algorithms that manage the electromagnetic spectrum. According to the U.S. Department of Defense, March 2024, in the 'fiscal year 2025 budget request', the department allocated $1.8 billion specifically for the adoption of artificial intelligence and machine learning to sustain a competitive military advantage. These advancements allow electronic warfare suites to learn from enemy signatures during engagement, enhancing survivability and effectiveness in dense signal environments.

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Key Market Challenges

The fragmentation of the industrial base and supply chain constitutes a primary obstacle hampering the growth of the Global Electronic Warfare Market. Divergent national standards and complex regulatory frameworks frequently obstruct cross-border collaboration, forcing manufacturers to duplicate efforts and navigate inconsistent compliance requirements. In the electronic warfare sector, where systems rely on highly specialized components and synchronized integration, these inefficiencies create severe logistical bottlenecks. The resulting strain on resources delays the production and delivery of critical jamming and threat detection assets, preventing companies from fulfilling contracts within anticipated timelines.

This structural fragility significantly restricts market expansion by reducing the resilience and capacity of the manufacturing ecosystem. According to the National Defense Industrial Association's 'Vital Signs 2024' report, private sector respondents reported losing 26 percent of critical suppliers over the preceding three years. This contraction in the supplier network exacerbates vulnerability to disruptions, extending lead times for advanced electronic warfare capabilities. Consequently, the inability to rapidly scale production to meet rising global demand directly limits revenue realization and slows the overall development of the market.

Key Market Trends

The convergence of cyber and electronic warfare capabilities is fundamentally altering the tactical landscape, forcing defense strategies to treat the electromagnetic spectrum and cyberspace as a unified maneuver space. This trend involves the deployment of integrated systems that can simultaneously jam radio frequencies and inject malicious code into adversary networks, thereby multiplying the effect of offensive operations. As navigation and communication systems become increasingly digitized, the overlap between jamming signals and cyber intrusions necessitates a holistic approach to spectral dominance. According to CACI International, July 2024, in the 'CACI Awarded $450 Million Contract to Provide Support to U.S. Space Command’s Joint Navigation Warfare Center' press release, the company secured a $450 million contract to support operations that specifically address threats spanning space, cyber, and electronic warfare domains.

The transition to software-defined and open architecture standards is fast becoming the industrial norm to mitigate the rapid obsolescence of legacy hardware. By adopting frameworks such as the Modular Open Systems Approach, manufacturers are decoupling hardware from software to allow defense forces to update electronic warfare libraries with new threat profiles efficiently. This shift significantly reduces lifecycle costs and accelerates the deployment of countermeasures against agile frequency-hopping adversaries. According to Army Recognition, June 2024, in the 'BAE Systems Wins Major Contract for Electronic Warfare Pods on US Navy P-8A Aircraft' report, BAE Systems secured a $95 million contract to provide systems featuring a flexible, open architecture designed to facilitate rapid modernization and the incorporation of third-party techniques.

Segmental Insights

The Directed Energy Weapon segment represents the fastest-growing category within the Global Electronic Warfare Market due to the rising demand for effective counter-drone and missile defense systems. Defense agencies, including the U.S. Department of Defense, are prioritizing the integration of high-energy lasers and high-power microwaves to neutralize aerial threats with greater precision. This shift is primarily motivated by the operational advantage of significantly lower engagement costs compared to traditional kinetic interceptors. Consequently, military forces are increasingly deploying these systems to enhance base protection and naval defense capabilities against evolving aerial threats.

Regional Insights

North America holds the leading position in the Global Electronic Warfare Market primarily due to extensive defense spending by the United States. The region benefits significantly from the strong presence of established defense contractors and continuous government funding dedicated to research and development. The U.S. Department of Defense actively allocates resources to upgrade legacy systems and integrate new electronic warfare capabilities across naval, airborne, and ground platforms. This consistent financial support, combined with a robust industrial base, ensures North America maintains a dominant role in the global landscape.

Recent Developments

• In December 2024, Raytheon announced the completion of a critical Delta Design Review for its Advanced Electronic Warfare prototype intended for the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet. The review assessed the integration of weapons replaceable assemblies and validated that the hardware system met the U.S. Navy’s specifications for electronic attack and support measures. This milestone demonstrated the effectiveness of the company's multi-function approach, which consolidates legacy systems into a consolidated "one-box" solution. The prototype utilizes digital and model-based systems engineering to enhance survivability and streamline the integration process for the carrier-based aircraft.
• In September 2024, L3Harris Technologies was awarded a contract worth up to $587.4 million by the U.S. Navy to advance the Next Generation Jammer Low Band program. The agreement focused on the engineering and manufacturing development phase of this new electronic warfare solution, which is intended to replace legacy tactical jamming pods on the EA-18G Growler aircraft. The company committed to delivering operational prototype pods to the Naval Air Systems Command for fleet assessment and design verification. The system features a modular, open-system architecture designed to address emerging threats through digital, software-based jamming capabilities.
• In September 2024, BAE Systems successfully conducted the inaugural flight of the European Common Radar System Mark 2 aboard a Typhoon test aircraft. This breakthrough development milestone involved a prototype radar designed to provide both traditional search and targeting functions as well as advanced electronic warfare capabilities. The new system enables pilots to locate, identify, and suppress enemy air defenses using powerful electronic jamming attacks while remaining outside the range of threats. The project involved collaboration with Leonardo UK and aims to equip the Royal Air Force with sovereign capabilities for operating in contested environments.
• In July 2024, Lockheed Martin secured a contract modification from the U.S. Department of Defense to commence production of the Viper Shield electronic warfare suite. This agreement expanded an existing long-lead materials contract to cover the manufacturing of the system for F-16 Block 70/72 aircraft designated for foreign military sales partners. The Viper Shield technology features a digital radar warning receiver and a jamming capability based on digital radio frequency memory, designed to provide virtual electronic shields for pilots. The system’s software-defined architecture allows for simplified upgrades to counter evolving threats in modern battlespaces.

Key Market Players

• Lockheed Martin
• Raytheon Technologies
• Northrop Grumman
• BAE Systems
• Thales Group
• Saab AB
• Leonardo S.p.A.
• Elbit Systems
• L3Harris Technologies
• Israel Aerospace Industries

By Capability	By Equipment	By Platform	By Region
Support Attack Protection	Jammers Antennas Radar Warning Receiver Anti-Radiation Missiles Directed Energy Weapon CMDS DIRCM Others	Air Land Naval Space	North America Europe Asia Pacific South America Middle East & Africa

Report Scope:

In this report, the Global Electronic Warfare Market has been segmented into the following categories, in addition to the industry trends which have also been detailed below:

• Electronic Warfare Market, By Capability:

• Support
• Attack
• Protection

• Electronic Warfare Market, By Equipment:

• Jammers
• Antennas
• Radar Warning Receiver
• Anti-Radiation Missiles
• Directed Energy Weapon
• CMDS
• DIRCM
• Others

• Electronic Warfare Market, By Platform:

• Air
• Land
• Naval
• Space

• Electronic Warfare Market, By Region:

• North America
• United States
• Canada
• Mexico
• Europe
• France
• United Kingdom
• Italy
• Germany
• Spain
• Asia Pacific
• China
• India
• Japan
• Australia
• South Korea
• South America
• Brazil
• Argentina
• Colombia
• Middle East & Africa
• South Africa
• Saudi Arabia
• UAE