Wellness spending spans a defined global economy, consumer categories, travel, personal care, and employer programs. The figures below distinguish estimates, forecasts, surveys, and official U.S. consumer-unit data across the measurement periods provided.
Key Wellness Spending Statistics
The most broadly useful wellness spending statistics are:
- In 2023, the global wellness economy reached $6.3 trillion worldwide as a Global Wellness Institute estimate.
- From 2020 to 2023, the global wellness economy grew 11.1% annually worldwide.
- From 2020 to 2023, wellness grew faster than global GDP, which grew 7.1% annually.
- In 2023, the global wellness economy was 26% larger than its 2019 pre-pandemic level.
- In 2023, wellness represented 6.03% of global GDP, compared with 5.75% in 2019.
- In 2027, the wellness economy was forecast to reach $8.5 trillion globally.
- In 2022, healthy eating, nutrition, and weight loss was a $1 trillion global market.
- In 2022, the global physical-activity market reached $976 billion.
- In 2022, fitness technology reached $64 billion globally after growing 15% annually from 2020 to 2022.
- In 2022, wellness tourism reached $651 billion worldwide.
- In 2022, wellness travelers made 819.4 million domestic and international trips globally.
- In 2022, wellness trips represented 18.7% of global tourism expenditure.
- In 2022, the global spa market reached $104.5 billion across 181,175 spas.
- In 2023, U.S. personal-care products and services increased 9.7% year over year among consumer units.
- In 2024, 82% of surveyed U.S. consumers called wellness a top or important everyday priority.
- In 2025, 84% of surveyed U.S. consumers called wellness a top or important priority.
- In 2025, Gen Z and millennials represented 36% of U.S. adults but drove more than 41% of annual wellness spending.
- In 2022, about 339 million workers globally benefited from some form of workplace wellness program.
Contents
- Global wellness economy size and post-pandemic growth
- Wellness spending by sector
- Wellness tourism, spa, and thermal-bathing data
- U.S. household wellness-related spending
- Consumer wellness priorities and spending intent
- Wellness spending by age and workplace participation
Global Wellness Spending Statistics: Economy Size and Post-Pandemic Growth
The Global Wellness Institute’s definition covers a set of wellness-economy sectors, so its totals are not interchangeable with McKinsey’s consumer-wellness market estimates or with national household accounts.
| Measure | Period | Global result |
|---|---|---|
| Wellness economy size | 2023 | $6.3 trillion |
| Annual wellness-economy growth | 2020–2023 | 11.1% |
| Wellness economy versus 2019 | 2023 | 26% larger |
| Share of global GDP | 2019 / 2023 | 5.75% / 6.03% |
| GWI forecast | 2027 | $8.5 trillion |
Source: Global Wellness Economy Monitor 2024 and Global Wellness Economy Monitor 2023 – Global Wellness Institute.
GWI estimates that the wellness economy grew 11.1% annually from 2020 to 2023, while global GDP grew 7.1% annually over the same period. The GDP comparison uses IMF data cited by GWI and is macroeconomic context, not a consumer-only measure.
The 2023 wellness economy was 26% above its 2019 pre-pandemic level, and its estimated GDP share increased from 5.75% in 2019 to 6.03% in 2023. GWI also reports that the wellness economy contracted by more than three times as much as global GDP in 2020, without giving a single ratio in the cited passage.
Global consumer spending fell 4.6% in 2020, then grew 13.1% in 2021, 4.5% in 2022, and 5.4% in 2023. These Euromonitor figures are presented by GWI as macro context and describe total consumer spending rather than wellness purchases alone.
The 2023 monitor forecast an $8.5 trillion global wellness economy in 2027, with 8.6% annual wellness-economy growth through 2027. This is a forecast, not an observed outcome, and later conditions or revisions may change it.
Wellness Spending by Sector: Nutrition, Activity, and Mental-Wellness Markets
GWI’s 2022 sector estimates show how wellness spending is distributed across food-related categories and physical activity. These categories use GWI definitions and do not automatically measure health outcomes.
- Healthy eating, nutrition, and weight loss was a $1 trillion global market in 2022, including foods, beverages, vitamins, and supplements.
- The healthy-eating, nutrition, and weight-loss sector grew 6.7% annually from 2020 to 2022.
- GWI projected this sector to reach $1.5 trillion globally in 2027, a forecast that does not mean consumers necessarily ate healthier foods.
- The global physical-activity market reached $976 billion in 2022 and grew 14.3% annually from 2020 to 2022.
- Fitness was a $121 billion segment in 2022, while mindful movement such as yoga and Pilates was a $39 billion segment.
- Sports and active recreation spending reached $265 billion globally in 2022; GWI reported participation rates were still below pre-pandemic levels.
- Fitness technology reached $64 billion in 2022 after growing 15% annually from 2020 to 2022, covering wearable devices and digital workout platforms.
Source: Global Wellness Economy Monitor 2023 – Global Wellness Institute.
These figures describe market size and growth, not a single measure of individual adoption. The supplied GWI sector groupings also do not provide a standalone global mental-wellness market total in these facts.
Wellness Tourism, Spa, and Thermal-Bathing Spending Statistics
Wellness travel combines international and domestic trips in GWI’s definition. Trips are not unique travelers, and regional recovery was not necessarily uniform.
| Wellness-tourism measure | 2022 global estimate |
|---|---|
| Market size | $651 billion |
| Annual growth, 2020–2022 | 36% |
| Level versus 2019 | 90% |
| Wellness trips | 819.4 million |
| Share of all tourism trips | 7.8% |
| Share of tourism expenditure | 18.7% |
Source: Global Wellness Economy Monitor 2023 – Global Wellness Institute.
Wellness tourism reached $651 billion in 2022 and grew 36% annually from 2020 to 2022 during the recovery from pandemic travel restrictions. It was at 90% of its 2019 level, while 819.4 million wellness trips represented 7.8% of all tourism trips.
Wellness trips represented 18.7% of all tourism expenditures in 2022. The expenditure share applies to GWI-defined wellness tourism and uses the Euromonitor tourism base.
The global spa market reached $104.5 billion in 2022, with 181,175 spas operating worldwide. Hotel and resort spas generated $49 billion in revenue across 80,423 establishments, specifically within that broader spa-market estimate.
U.S. Household Wellness-Related Spending Statistics
The Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey reports consumer-unit spending, not a pure wellness category. Healthcare, food, entertainment, and personal care are useful budget context but include purchases outside wellness.
| U.S. consumer-unit category | 2023 result |
|---|---|
| Healthcare year-over-year change | +5.3% |
| Medical supplies year-over-year change | +27.8% |
| Personal-care products and services year-over-year change | +9.7% |
| Personal care share of total spending | 1.2% |
| Healthcare share of total spending | 8.0% |
| Food share of total spending | 12.9% |
| Food away from home share | 5.1% |
| Housing share | 32.9% |
| Entertainment share | 4.7% |
Source: Consumer expenditures in 2023.
U.S. consumer-unit healthcare spending grew 5.3% in 2023, while medical-supplies spending rose 27.8%. Medical supplies are a BLS healthcare subcategory, not a pure wellness measure.
Personal-care products and services increased 9.7% in 2023 and represented 1.2% of average consumer-unit spending. Healthcare represented 8.0%, food 12.9%, food away from home 5.1%, housing 32.9%, and entertainment 4.7%.
These percentages should not be added together as a wellness total. The BLS categories overlap conceptually with wellness but do not identify healthy-food purchases, preventive spending, spa use, or other wellness-oriented transactions.
Consumer Wellness Priorities and Spending-Intent Statistics
McKinsey’s 2024 research estimated the U.S. wellness market at $480 billion and estimated annual growth at 5% to 10%. Its consumer survey covered more than 5,000 consumers across China, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
- 82% of U.S. consumers surveyed in 2024 considered wellness a top or important everyday priority.
- The corresponding 2024 shares were 73% in the United Kingdom and 87% in China.
- McKinsey estimated $480 billion for the U.S. wellness market in 2024, using a consumer-wellness definition different from GWI’s wellness-economy total.
- The U.S. wellness market was estimated to grow 5% to 10% annually in 2024, a range rather than a single observed rate.
Source: The trends defining the $1.8 trillion global wellness market in 2024.
These are self-reported priorities and market estimates, not verified transactions or official national accounts. The country percentages are survey results and are not a global population estimate.
Wellness Spending by Age, Income, and Workplace Participation
McKinsey’s 2025 survey estimated U.S. annual wellness spending above $500 billion and annual category growth of 4% to 5%. The estimate uses McKinsey’s consumer-wellness definition and should not be compared as if it were the same accounting measure as GWI’s global total.
| U.S. group or measure | 2025 result |
|---|---|
| Estimated annual wellness spending | Above $500 billion |
| Estimated annual category growth | 4%–5% |
| Consumers calling wellness important | 84% |
| Gen Z and millennials: adult share | 36% |
| Gen Z and millennials: spending share | More than 41% |
| Adults aged 58+: adult share | 35% |
| Adults aged 58+: spending share | 28% |
Source: The Future of Wellness trends survey 2025.
McKinsey reported that 84% of U.S. consumers in its 2025 survey called wellness a top or important priority. The corresponding shares were 79% in the United Kingdom and 94% in China, based on self-reported responses from a survey covering more than 9,000 consumers across four countries.
Gen Z and millennials represented 36% of U.S. adults but drove more than 41% of annual wellness spending in McKinsey’s modeled estimate. Adults aged 58 and older represented 35% of adults but 28% of wellness spending.
Nearly 30% of U.S. Gen Z and millennial respondents said they prioritized wellness a lot more than a year earlier, compared with up to 23% of older generations. Forty percent of U.S. Gen Z respondents reported being almost always stressed, versus 23% overall; stress is a self-reported outcome, not a spending measure.
Workplace programs provide another participation lens:
- About 339 million workers globally benefited from some form of workplace wellness program in 2022.
- Workplace-wellness participation represented 10.1% of all employed workers globally in 2022.
Source: Global Wellness Economy Monitor 2023 – Global Wellness Institute.
“Some form” includes varied employer programs, and access and program definitions differ by country and employer. McKinsey figures are estimates or survey results rather than official national accounts, while GWI revised its 2019–2022 series because sector definitions and underlying country data changed; pandemic-era figures may be revised again.