Patent Applications
Global patent applications reached a record 3.7 million in 2024, capping five straight years of growth. China's CNIPA alone received 1.8 million filings, almost half the world total, dwarfing the patent offices of the United States, Japan, Korea and Europe. Computer technology remains the single most-filed field.
Key Patent Insights
Five years of record growth
Worldwide patent applications climbed to 3.7 million in 2024, a 4.9% rise over 2023 and the fastest growth since 2018. Filings have risen for five consecutive years after a 3% dip in 2019, more than tripling from roughly 1 million in 1995.
China dominates global filings
China's CNIPA received about 1.8 million patent applications in 2024, up 9% on the year and nearly half of all filings worldwide. It has out-filed every other office for over a decade and is the main engine of global patent growth.
Five offices, 85% of the world
The top five offices, CNIPA, the USPTO (603,194), Japan's JPO (306,855), Korea's KIPO (246,245) and the EPO (199,402), together accounted for about 85% of all 2024 applications, four points more than a decade earlier.
Computer technology leads fields
Computer technology was the most-filed field in published applications in 2023 at 13.2% of the world total, ahead of electrical machinery (7.2%), measurement (6.2%), digital communication (5.8%) and medical technology (4.9%).
Worldwide Patent Applications Over Time
Total patent applications filed globally each year, in millions, showing the long upward trend from about 1 million in 1995 to a record 3.7 million in 2024.
Key Finding: Filings more than tripled since 1995 and have grown for five consecutive years to a 2024 record of 3.7 million.
Patent Applications by Office (2024)
Applications received by the five largest patent offices in 2024. China's CNIPA dwarfs the rest of the field.
Key Finding: CNIPA's 1.8 million filings are roughly three times those of the USPTO, JPO, KIPO and EPO combined.
Patent Applications by Origin (2023)
Applications attributed to the country of residence of the applicant in 2023, capturing where the inventors and firms are based rather than where they file.
Key Finding: Applicants based in China filed about 1.64 million applications, more than the US, Japan, Korea and Germany combined.
Top Technology Fields (2023)
Share of published patent applications worldwide by technology field in 2023, with computer technology the single largest area.
Key Finding: Computer technology alone accounted for 13.2% of published applications, the most of any field.
Patent Applications by Region (2023)
Share of world patent applications by region of office in 2023, showing Asia's commanding lead over North America and Europe.
Key Finding: Asia accounted for 68.7% of world applications in 2023, up more than 10 points from a decade earlier.
Understanding Patent Data
Applications versus grants
A patent application is a request for protection filed at a patent office, while a grant is a patent actually issued after examination. The two differ widely: worldwide there were about 3.7 million applications but only roughly 2.1 million grants in 2024. Application counts measure filing activity and intent, not the number of inventions that survive examination.
Resident versus abroad filings
WIPO distinguishes resident filings, made by applicants at their home office, from abroad (non-resident) filings made in foreign jurisdictions. In 2023 roughly 71% of filings worldwide were resident and 29% non-resident. The same invention filed in several countries is counted once per office, so global totals reflect filings rather than unique inventions.
Filing counts are not innovation quality
A high number of applications does not by itself measure the quality or economic value of innovation. Many filings are never granted, lapse early for non-payment of fees, or cover incremental improvements. Patent families, utility models and citation data give a fuller picture; raw application counts simply show activity at patent offices.
China-driven totals require care
Much of the recent growth in world totals reflects surging domestic filings in China, where CNIPA received about 1.8 million applications in 2024 and accounts for nearly half the world total. Because Chinese filings are overwhelmingly resident and subject to different filing incentives, year-to-year world growth should not be read as a uniform global trend.