Global recorded music pulled in $28.6 billion in 2023, and streaming now drives 67% of that total. At the same time, big-screen box office climbed to $33.9 billion, still sitting under the pre-pandemic high of $42 billion. Together, these shifts across film, TV, publishing, and live performance reveal how fast arts spending is rebalancing in practice.
Key Takeaways
- Global box office revenues reached $33.9 billion in 2023, up 47% from 2022 but still below pre-pandemic $42 billion
- Streaming video-on-demand (SVOD) subscribers worldwide hit 1.5 billion in 2023, generating $111 billion in revenue
- Hollywood's Big Five studios earned $25.8 billion in 2023, with Disney at $11.9 billion
- Global book publishing market revenue was $143 billion in 2022, projected to $162 billion by 2030
- US trade book sales reached $29.6 billion in 2023, up 1.2%, audiobooks grew 25% to $2.3 billion
- E-book sales in the US were $2.9 billion in 2023, representing 10% of total trade sales
- Global recorded music revenues reached $28.6 billion in 2023, up 10.2% from 2022, led by streaming at 67% share
- Streaming accounted for 67% of global music industry revenue in 2023, totaling $19.3 billion
- The US music market generated $17.1 billion in 2023, with 119.5 billion on-demand streams
- The Broadway theater industry generated $1.8 billion in gross revenue during the 2022-2023 season, with 12.3 million attendees
- In 2022, US dance companies saw attendance reach 15 million, generating $1.2 billion in earned revenue
- Global theater market size was valued at $52.4 billion in 2023, projected to grow to $78.9 billion by 2030 at a CAGR of 6%
- In 2022, the global art market reached a total sales value of $65 billion, with contemporary art accounting for 53% of sales by value, sourced from the UBS Global Art Market Report 2023
- The average price for a painting sold at auction in 2022 was $12,500, up 8% from 2021, driven by post-war and contemporary segments
- In the US, there were 2.9 million arts-related jobs in 2021, representing 1.8% of total employment
Streaming and global media markets surged in 2023, driving record revenues across film, music, TV, and books.
Related reading
01 · Category
Film & Television18 stats
01
Global box office revenues reached $33.9 billion in 2023, up 47% from 2022 but still below pre-pandemic $42 billion
02
Streaming video-on-demand (SVOD) subscribers worldwide hit 1.5 billion in 2023, generating $111 billion in revenue
03
Hollywood's Big Five studios earned $25.8 billion in 2023, with Disney at $11.9 billion
04
Global TV drama production market valued at $250 billion in 2023, Asia-Pacific leading at 40% share
05
Netflix had 260 million paid subscribers at end of 2023, with content spend of $17 billion
06
India's film industry generated ₹12,000 crore ($1.45 billion) in box office in 2023, Bollywood contributing 45%
07
US home video revenue (digital + physical) was $7.9 billion in 2023, digital at 89%
08
Anime market globally reached $28.3 billion in 2023, up 15% YoY, streaming key driver
09
Advertising video on demand (AVOD) revenue grew to $20 billion globally in 2023
10
Nollywood (Nigeria) produced over 2,500 films in 2023, generating $6.4 billion in revenue
11
Global box office for 2023 was $33.6 billion, China $7.7 billion, US $9 billion
12
Disney+ had 150 million subscribers in 2023
13
Global VOD market revenue $123 billion in 2023, SVOD 83%
14
South Korean films grossed $1.2 billion internationally in 2023, Parasite effect continues
15
US cable TV subscribers fell to 62.5 million in 2023, down 6.8%
16
Bollywood box office $1.1 billion in 2023 domestically
17
FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV) channels reached 1,000 globally in 2023, 68 billion hours viewed
18
European film market revenue €25.3 billion in 2022, cinemas €14.6 billion
Interpretation
Film & Television Interpretation
For Film & Television, 2023 showed rapid audience shift and market concentration as global SVOD reached 1.5 billion subscribers generating $111 billion while global box office grew 47% to $33.9 billion yet remained below the $42 billion pre pandemic level.
02 · Category
Literature & Publishing17 stats
01
Global book publishing market revenue was $143 billion in 2022, projected to $162 billion by 2030
02
US trade book sales reached $29.6 billion in 2023, up 1.2%, audiobooks grew 25% to $2.3 billion
03
E-book sales in the US were $2.9 billion in 2023, representing 10% of total trade sales
04
Global comic book and graphic novel market hit $15.5 billion in 2023, manga at 45% share
05
Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing authors earned over $520 million in royalties in 2023
06
UK physical book sales grew 1% to £2.9 billion in 2023, children's books up 5%
07
Audiobook market globally valued at $7.4 billion in 2023, CAGR 26% since 2019
08
Self-published books accounted for 30% of US e-book sales in 2023
09
Chinese book market revenue reached ¥350 billion ($50 billion) in 2023, digital books 25%
10
Global publishing revenues $26.5 billion for educational books in 2022
11
Romance novels generated $1.44 billion in US sales 2023, top fiction genre
12
Global e-book market $18.1 billion in 2023, Asia-Pacific fastest growing at 8.5% CAGR
13
Print books outsold e-books 4:1 in US 2023, 767 million units vs 191 million
14
France book market €2.7 billion in 2023, up 2.5%, bande dessinée strong
15
Children's/YA books $3.1 billion US sales 2023, up 6.5%
16
Global literary agents represented 150,000 authors, deals worth $4 billion in 2023
17
Spanish-language book sales in US $900 million 2023, up 10%
Interpretation
Literature & Publishing Interpretation
For Literature and Publishing, the market is steadily expanding with global book revenue rising from $143 billion in 2022 to a projected $162 billion by 2030, while US audiobooks surged 25% to $2.3 billion and e books accounted for 10% of $29.6 billion in 2023 trade sales.
03 · Category
Music19 stats
01
Global recorded music revenues reached $28.6 billion in 2023, up 10.2% from 2022, led by streaming at 67% share
02
Streaming accounted for 67% of global music industry revenue in 2023, totaling $19.3 billion
03
The US music market generated $17.1 billion in 2023, with 119.5 billion on-demand streams
04
Vinyl sales in the US hit 43 million units in 2023, up 14.2% YoY, marking 17th straight year of growth
05
Live music industry generated $30 billion globally in 2023, recovering to 91% of pre-pandemic levels
06
Spotify paid out $9 billion to rights holders in 2023, with independent labels receiving 32%
07
K-pop exports reached $1.24 billion in 2023, up 49% YoY, driven by groups like BTS and Blackpink
08
Sync licensing revenue in the US grew 8% to $457 million in 2023, fueled by TV and ads
09
Global music publishing revenues hit $6.8 billion in 2023, with performance rights at 42%
10
Latin music streams grew 26% to 140 billion in 2023, largest genre by streaming volume
11
Global music publishing revenues increased 12.4% to $6.6 billion in 2022
12
Paid music subscriptions grew 17.8% to 667 million globally in 2023
13
US recorded music revenue up 7.4% to $15.8 billion in 2023
14
Prog rock and metal vinyl sales surged 50% in 2023, niche genres booming
15
Taylor Swift's Eras Tour grossed $1.04 billion in 2023, highest ever for a single tour
16
Ad-supported streaming revenue hit $1.8 billion in US 2023, up 55%
17
Japan's music market $2.9 billion in 2023, physical sales 51%, highest globally
18
Songwriter royalties from streaming totaled $2.5 billion globally in 2023
19
Hip-hop/R&B was top US streaming genre with 30.7% share in 2023
Interpretation
Music Interpretation
In the Music industry, streaming is the clear driver of growth with 67% of global revenue in 2023 totaling $19.3 billion and Spotify paying $9 billion to rights holders, showing how digital distribution is reshaping where music money goes.
More related reading
04 · Category
Performing Arts18 stats
01
The Broadway theater industry generated $1.8 billion in gross revenue during the 2022-2023 season, with 12.3 million attendees
02
In 2022, US dance companies saw attendance reach 15 million, generating $1.2 billion in earned revenue
03
Global theater market size was valued at $52.4 billion in 2023, projected to grow to $78.9 billion by 2030 at a CAGR of 6%
04
In the UK, live music and performing arts contributed £5.6 billion to the economy in 2022, supporting 173,000 jobs
05
US nonprofit theaters had operating expenses of $8.9 billion in 2019, with 80% from earned and contributed revenue
06
Ballet performances in the US attracted 5.2 million attendees in 2022, up 25% from 2021
07
The global circus and performing arts market was worth $15.7 billion in 2022, expected to reach $24.3 billion by 2030
08
In 2023, Off-Broadway shows grossed $250 million with 2.5 million tickets sold
09
Australian performing arts sector employed 67,000 people in 2022, contributing AUD 7.2 billion to GDP
10
Regional theaters in the US saw a 40% increase in attendance post-COVID, reaching 30 million in 2022
11
During 2019-2022 Broadway season, 14.8 million people attended 29,369 performances, generating $1.9 billion
12
US symphony orchestras had budgets totaling $2.2 billion in 2022, with attendance at 14 million
13
Global performing arts market projected to grow from $47.5 billion in 2023 to $72.1 billion by 2030 at 6.2% CAGR
14
In Europe, performing arts festivals generated €10.2 billion in 2022, employing 300,000 FTEs
15
US modern dance companies reported $850 million in expenses in FY2021, 55% from contributions
16
London's West End theaters grossed £1.1 billion in 2023, with 12 million visitors
17
Community theaters in US number over 7,000, serving 55 million attendees annually pre-COVID
18
Opera attendance in US reached 6.6 million in 2022, revenue $800 million
Interpretation
Performing Arts Interpretation
Broadway’s 12.3 million attendees and $1.8 billion in 2022 to 2023 show that performing arts demand is still strong and momentum is building, reinforced by US ballet growing 25% in 2022 to 5.2 million attendees.
05 · Category
Visual Arts20 stats
01
In 2022, the global art market reached a total sales value of $65 billion, with contemporary art accounting for 53% of sales by value, sourced from the UBS Global Art Market Report 2023
02
The average price for a painting sold at auction in 2022 was $12,500,up 8% from 2021, driven by post-war and contemporary segments
03
In the US, there were 2.9 million arts-related jobs in 2021, representing 1.8% of total employment
04
Contemporary art sales at auction grew by 35% in value terms in 2022 compared to 2021, totaling $2.1 billion
05
The number of art galleries worldwide decreased by 4% in 2022 to approximately 35,000, amid economic pressures
06
In 2022, online art sales accounted for 24% of total global art market turnover, up from 9% pre-pandemic
07
US visual artists earned a median income of $25,000from art in 2019, with only 42% deriving more than half their income from art
08
The global market for sculptures grew 12% in 2022 to $4.8 billion, led by modern and contemporary works
09
In 2021, 78% of US nonprofit arts organizations reported revenue losses due to COVID-19, totaling $7.4 billion
10
Chinese buyers accounted for 24% of global art auction sales by value in 2022, second only to the US at 42%
11
In 2022, the global art market reached a total sales value of $65 billion, marking a 3% decline from the previous year but still 11% above pre-pandemic levels
12
Contemporary art represented 53% of total auction sales by value in 2022, with sales totaling $2.1 billion
13
The number of lots offered at auction increased by 6% in 2022 to 295,000, but sell-through rates dropped to 84%
14
US buyers dominated dealer sales with 37% share by value in 2022, followed by UK at 17%
15
Art fair sales fell 27% in 2022 to $4.4 billion, with Art Basel fairs generating 45% of total
16
Women artists' share of auction turnover was 6% by value in 2022, despite representing 2% of total lots
17
The market for Old Masters declined 24% in value to $1.2 billion in 2022
18
High-value lots over $10 million accounted for 40% of total auction value in 2022
19
In 2021, arts and cultural production added $1.2 trillion to US GDP, 4.2% of total
20
NYC's visual arts sector employed 275,000 people in 2021, contributing $25 billion to local economy
Interpretation
Visual Arts Interpretation
For the visual arts sector, online sales surged to 24% of global market turnover in 2022 up from 9% pre pandemic while contemporary art remained dominant at 53% of sales by value, signaling a clear shift toward digital channels and modern tastes.
report visual · Key figures
Arts Industry Snapshot (2021–2023)
Key media and performing-arts markets show growth and shifting revenue mixes in recent years.
47%
Global box office revenues reached $33.9 billion in 2023, up 47% from 2022 but still below pre-pandemic $42 billion
83%
Global VOD market revenue $123 billion in 2023, SVOD 83%
91%
Live music industry generated $30 billion globally in 2023, recovering to 91% of pre-pandemic levels
4.2%
In 2021, arts and cultural production added $1.2 trillion to US GDP, 4.2% of total
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Min-ji Park. (2026, February 13). Arts Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/arts-industry-statistics
MLA
Min-ji Park. "Arts Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/arts-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Min-ji Park. 2026. "Arts Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/arts-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
51 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
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