M&A in Software: Total Deal Volumes, 2013 \u2013 Aug 2026<\/p><\/clipPath><\/clipPath><\/clipPath><\/clipPath><\/defs>Source: Aventis Advisors deal database (Mergermarket, press releases, news, annual reports)<\/text>11.6% CAR<\/text><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/g>1,518<\/text><\/g>1,755<\/text><\/g>1,868<\/text><\/g>1,930<\/text><\/g>2,267<\/text><\/g>2,870<\/text><\/g>3,250<\/text><\/g>3,239<\/text><\/g>4,148<\/text><\/g>3,863<\/text><\/g>3,070<\/text><\/g>3,506<\/text><\/g>3,892<\/text><\/g>2,335<\/text><\/g>727<\/text><\/g>889<\/text><\/g>1,016<\/text><\/g>1,267<\/text><\/g>1,426<\/text><\/g>2,005<\/text><\/g>2,563<\/text><\/g>2,868<\/text><\/g>3,327<\/text><\/g>3,014<\/text><\/g>2,909<\/text><\/g>3,664<\/text><\/g>3,526<\/text><\/g>1,900<\/text><\/g>474<\/text><\/g>599<\/text><\/g>776<\/text><\/g>837<\/text><\/g>919<\/text><\/g>1,309<\/text><\/g>1,447<\/text><\/g>1,472<\/text><\/g>2,197<\/text><\/g>3,067<\/text><\/g>2,480<\/text><\/g>2,740<\/text><\/g>2,759<\/text><\/g>1,588<\/text><\/g>2,719<\/text><\/g>3,243<\/text><\/g>3,660<\/text><\/g>4,034<\/text><\/g>4,612<\/text><\/g>6,184<\/text><\/g>7,260<\/text><\/g>7,579<\/text><\/g>9,672<\/text><\/g>9,944<\/text><\/g>8,459<\/text><\/g>9,910<\/text><\/g>10,177<\/text><\/g>5,823<\/text><\/g>2013<\/text><\/g>2014<\/text><\/g>2015<\/text><\/g>2016<\/text><\/g>2017<\/text><\/g>2018<\/text><\/g>2019<\/text><\/g>2020<\/text><\/g>2021<\/text><\/g>2022<\/text><\/g>2023<\/text><\/g>2024<\/text><\/g>2025<\/text><\/g>As of Aug<\/text><\/g>2026<\/text><\/g><\/g>North America<\/text><\/g><\/g>Europe<\/text><\/g><\/g>Rest of the World<\/text><\/g>Total<\/text><\/g>11.6%<\/text>CAGR<\/text><\/g>Deal volumes are back at record levels while valuations sit well below the last cycle, and ongoing innovation in areas like cloud computing, data infrastructure, and artificial intelligence suggests the sector will keep evolving quickly. As new technologies emerge and enable transformative business models, dealmaking will likely remain vibrant over the long term across the software industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
M&A transactions in the software market grew at an 11.6% CAGR from 2013 to 2025, with annual deal volumes rising almost four-fold from 2,719 to a record 10,177. Key growth drivers included accelerating digital transformation, favorable market conditions with abundant capital, increasing financial investor interest, and a general rise in the number of software products, particularly SaaS, hence potential targets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The industry was not immune to the slowdown that followed. Facing rising rates, inflation, war in Ukraine, and chip shortages, growth stalled in 2022 at 9,944 deals, and volumes then fell 14.9% to 8,459 in 2023 amid widespread tech layoffs. The recovery was quick. Volumes rebounded to 9,910 deals in 2024 and set a new record of 10,177 in 2025. Through August 2026 the market has recorded 5,823 deals, running slightly below the 2025 pace, although the most recent months typically fill in as transactions are reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
M&A activity by country<\/h3>\n\n\n\n Unsurprisingly, the United States recorded the most software mergers and acquisitions between 2013 and August 2026, given its dominance as a tech hub and home to major financial investors like venture capital and private equity firms. Total US deal flows reached 36,349, growing steadily year after year until peaking at 3,789 in 2021, with 2025 close behind at 3,625.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As the largest European economies, the UK, Germany, and France also performed remarkably well, collectively accounting for 51.0% of European software acquisitions. The Nordic countries of Sweden, Finland, Denmark, and Norway saw substantial M&A interest, too, with 5,053 deals in total. Europe has steadily closed the gap on North America over the period, and in 2024 it recorded more software deals than North America for the first time, 3,664 against 3,506.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Elsewhere, Japan, China, India, and Israel also stood out for deal volumes, benefiting from cutting-edge technologies and abundant talent pools. Japan is now the largest Asian market in our data with 5,787 deals, ahead of China at 4,083 and India at 2,524.<\/p>\n\n\n\nM&A in Software: Deals by Targets\u2019 Country, 2013 \u2013 Aug 2026<\/p>Source: Aventis Advisors deal database (Mergermarket, press releases, news, annual reports)<\/text>North America<\/text>Europe<\/text>Asia<\/text>Rest of the World<\/text>USA 36,349<\/text>Canada 2,981<\/text>United Kingdom 7,415<\/text>Germany 4,739<\/text>France 3,723<\/text>Netherlands 1,907<\/text>Sweden 1,759<\/text>Spain 1,332<\/text>Denmark<\/text>1,255<\/text>Italy 1,247<\/text>Norway 1,079<\/text>Switzerland<\/text>1,050<\/text>Finland 960<\/text>Ireland<\/text>760<\/text>Belgium 720<\/text>Austria<\/text>535<\/text>Other 2,646<\/text>Japan 5,787<\/text>China 4,083<\/text>India 2,524<\/text>Israel 1,897<\/text>South Korea<\/text>1,077<\/text>Singapore 886<\/text>