2026 Industry Intelligence Report
🔥 Fire Department Software Market
The Data Behind America's
Fire Service Digital Transformation
A consolidated, fact-checked look at the fire department software market, firefighter workforce trends, incident data, and technology adoption shaping emergency response in 2026 — researched and visualized by 9CV9.
01
Market Size & Growth
$3.23B
Projected global fire department software market value in 2026, up from $2.89B in 2025.
13%
CAGR forecast for the fire department software market between 2026 and 2030.
$4.96B
Projected market size by 2030 as smart-city and AI investment accelerates adoption.
38%
North America's share of the global fire department software market in 2025.
62%
Share of the market held by cloud-based deployment models over on-premises systems.
$51.4B
Size the broader public safety software market (police, fire, EMS) will reach by 2034.
02
The U.S. Fire Service Workforce
29,452
Total number of fire departments across the United States, per NFPA's national profile.
64%
Share of U.S. fire departments that are all-volunteer — the largest single agency segment.
1.04M
Total U.S. firefighters: 364,300 career and 676,900 volunteer, a roughly 2-to-1 split.
−25%
Decline in volunteer firefighter numbers since NFPA began tracking the figure in 1984.
30%
Share of the U.S. population protected primarily by volunteer fire departments.
26%+
Vacancy rate for federal wildland firefighter positions during the 2025 fire season.
A fire is reported in the United States roughly every 23 seconds — and 64% of all fire department calls are actually EMS or rescue responses.
This dual reality — high call volume and a shrinking, aging volunteer base — is the core structural driver behind fire departments' accelerating adoption of dispatch, records management, and workforce scheduling software.
03
Incidents, Fatalities & Wildfire Trends
1.39M
Total fires recorded across the U.S. in the most recent full reporting year, per NFPA.
$23.2B
Estimated total U.S. property damage from fire in the most recent full reporting year.
62
On-duty firefighter fatalities in 2024, down 31% from 90 deaths recorded in 2023.
77.9K
Wildfires recorded nationally in 2025 — the highest count of the past five years.
5.13M
Acres burned by U.S. wildfires in 2025, per National Interagency Fire Center data.
18,385
Structures destroyed by wildfires in 2025, including 12,773 residential properties.
2021
7.13M ac
2022
7.60M ac
2023
2.69M ac
2024
8.92M ac
2025
5.13M ac
04
Technology Adoption & AI
Public Safety Analytics Market
- 2026 Market Value $14.57B
- 2033 Projected Value $52.20B
- CAGR (2026–2033) 20.0%
- Descriptive Analytics Share 43.1%
Compliance & Reporting Shift
- NFIRS Decommissioned Feb 2026
- Successor System NERIS
- DHS AI/Analytics Initiative $200M
- Pre-Plan Market by 2030 $1.2B
40%
Reported reduction in urban navigation errors from AI-assisted mobile pre-plan systems, per vendor case data.
95%
User adoption rate achieved within weeks of deploying vendor-led pre-plan software training programs.
05
The Capterra Buyer Landscape
First Due — Reviewer Profile
- Small Agency Reviewers 88%
- Public Safety Industry 78%
- Government Admin Use 14%
EPR FireWorks — Reviewer Profile
- Small Business Reviewers 81%
- Public Safety Industry 68%
- Built-in Compliance Reports 300+
9CV9 Research
Sources: Technavio, Precedence Research, Grand View Research, The Business Research Company, NFPA, U.S. Fire Administration, National Interagency Fire Center, DHS, Capterra. Full source list available in the accompanying report. Data compiled and verified July 2026.