Healthcare consulting market seen hitting $91.54 billion by 2035

Market Research Future projects the global healthcare consulting services market will more than double from 2026 to 2035, driven by value-based care, cybersecurity risk and digital health mandates. The report says hospitals, governments and payers will keep outsourcing transformation work as regulation and technology pressure intensify.

Why it matters: - Healthcare providers, payers and governments are spending more on outside advisers as they move to value-based care, modernize IT and respond to cyber risk. - The market’s growth points to a longer-running shift in how health systems buy expertise, with consulting becoming part of core operating change rather than a one-off expense.

What happened: - Market Research Future projected the global healthcare consulting services market will rise from USD 40.45 billion in 2026 to USD 91.54 billion by 2035, representing a 9.5% CAGR. - The market base was estimated at USD 36.94 billion in 2025. - The report was published July 17, 2026. - The firm posted a sample request and a full report.

The details: - Value-based payment migration is the largest structural growth driver, especially as CMS’ ACO REACH program now serves more than 2.2 million Medicare beneficiaries. - Healthcare cybersecurity demand is rising as ransomware attacks on hospitals increased 74% from 2022 to 2024. - The healthcare sector’s average breach cost has reached USD 10.93 million for 14 straight years. - Cloud EHR migration and interoperability mandates are adding consulting work tied to vendor selection, data migration and workflow redesign. - ONC’s HTI-1 rule requires certified EHR vendors to provide FHIR-based APIs by December 2025. - OECD nations are expected to spend about USD 18 billion annually on EHR modernization initiatives. - The World Bank committed more than USD 5 billion to health-system-strengthening programs in 2024, with consulting included in many projects.

Between the lines: - The report frames demand as durable because the main drivers are structural: reimbursement reform, regulatory compliance and digital infrastructure change. - IT consulting remains the largest service category, while digital transformation consulting is the fastest-growing as AI, telehealth and enterprise data projects expand. - Government agencies are the fastest-growing end-user group, reflecting public-sector digitization and preparedness planning. - Remote and virtual consulting is gaining share because it lowers delivery costs and expands access to scarce expertise. - North America remains the largest regional market, but Asia-Pacific is the fastest growing, signaling where new volume is likely to come from through 2035. - The competitive field is moderately concentrated, with the top five firms holding an estimated 38% to 44% share.

What's next: - Consulting demand is likely to stay tied to value-based care adoption, EHR modernization and cybersecurity programs through the rest of the decade. - The report expects AI governance and algorithm-validation work to create a new advisory niche by 2030. - It projects that 40% of newly deployed clinical AI tools will undergo independent validation, bias auditing or regulatory-submission consulting by 2030. - Worldwide healthcare AI spending is expected to exceed USD 45 billion in 2030, creating more downstream advisory work around monitoring, retraining and liability frameworks.

The bottom line: - Healthcare consulting is shifting from a support service to a core enabler of health-system transformation, and the report expects that shift to keep driving double-digit-sized market gains over the next decade.