Legionella Testing Market Size & Share Analysis - Emerging Trends, Growth Opportunities, Competitive Landscape, and Forecasts (2025 - 2032)

Legionella Testing Market Growth Factors

Technological Advancements in Testing Methods Are Key Trend

• The development of new techniques, such as PCR and UAT, which can give results in hours rather than days, are making routine testing more feasible and thus more popular.
• Advanced tests can identify low bacteria concentrations, maximizing the sensitivity of the tests to reduce the occurrence of false negatives.
• Rapid and reliable testing contributes to the high standards of health and safety, which are the key priorities for patients and governments.
• Real-time monitoring technologies enable testing centers to reveal an outbreak at its initial stages and prevent an epidemic, which drives the demand for them in healthcare, hospitality, and building management.
• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded a USD 150,000 SBIR grant to develop a faster test for detecting Legionella bacteria.
• Current methods take up to two weeks, but this new assay aims to speed up detection and improve outbreak response.
• The simplicity and portability of these kits allow testing outside the laboratory and at distant locations, which further expands the customer base.
• Automated and high-throughput systems reduce manual work in diagnostic labs, improving cost-efficiency and scalability.
• In April 2023, Townsville City Council’s laboratory in Australia was officially approved by the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) to test water samples for Legionella pneumophila and other subspecies of Legionella bacteria.

Rising Incidence of Legionnaire’s Disease Is Major Growth Driver

• As per the EU CDC, the incidence of Legionnaire’s disease in the EU is around 2.5 per 100,000 people.
• The OSHA reports an annual incidence of around 6,000 in the U.S.
• The increase in the reported cases of Legionnaires disease worldwide is compelling healthcare providers and facility managers to adopt more regular testing.
• The increasing awareness on waterborne diseases is promoting upstream testing at public and privately owned buildings.
• Populations that are more prone include the elderly, immunocompromised, and individuals in care homes, resulting in the increasing testing in health care and elder care facilities.
• As per the World Health Organization (WHO), up to 80% of the cases diagnosed around the world are in people over the age of 50, especially men.
• An increasing population residing in urban areas with old plumbing systems poses a greater risk of Legionella, and therefore, routine surveillance is required.
• In November 2024, the NSW government provided a AUD 500,000 grant to NSW Health Pathology in Westmead Hospital.
• The funds support a project to enhance the speed and accuracy of the detection of outbreaks of Legionnaires disease through a genomic system, to enable health officials identify and respond to clusters of infections more rapidly.

Legionella Testing Market Segmentation Analysis

Test Type Analysis

The PCR category held the largest market share, of 35%, in 2024, PCR is the most-common method used for detecting legionella bacteria as it shows the results in one day and is highly accurate, specific, and sensitive. Moreover, PCR may be superior to urinary antigen testing in the detection of this pathogen. Moreover, a positive PCR for the specific sequence found in the 5S rRNA of legionella indicates the presence of its DNA. Additionally, PCR is the most-sensitive and specific method developed for Legionella pneumophila testing.

Therefore, companies are offering rapid PCR methods to detect legionella. For instance, in January 2023, EMSL Analytical Inc. launched rapid PCR and conventional culturing methods to detect legionella in the environment, to prevent the spread of Legionnaires’ disease.

The urine antigen testing will grow at the highest CAGR, approx. of 9%, during the forecast period. This is because UAT is widely used in the lab for the detection of Legionella pneumophila and several other respiratory infections, such as Streptococcus pneumoniae and Histoplasma capsulatum. Urine antigen assays for legionella detect it by capturing the antibodies specific to L. pneumophila serogroup 1, which is the cause of most of the legionella infections, with a clinical specificity and sensitivity of 99% and 74%, respectively. The biggest advantage of UAT is that it produces results within 15 minutes, is easy to perform, and costs relatively low.

The urine antigen test and lower respiratory secretion culture on selective media are the primary diagnostic procedures for Legionnaires' disease. Serological assays are typically not advised since they can be nonspecific. The best method is to simultaneously collect urine for the UAT and sputum for the culture. Although sputum should ideally be obtained before starting antibiotics, antibiotic therapy should not be postponed. In certain instances, the urine antigen test can still identify legionella infections days to weeks following therapy.

The test types analyzed here are:

• Culture Media
• Urine Antigen Testing (Fastest-Growing Category)
• PCR (Largest Category)
  • Motorized devices
  • Non-Motorized devices
• Direct Fluorescent Antibody

Application Analysis

The water testing category held the larger market share, of 80%, in 2024, because it is regarded a valid and standard method. It requires that water samples be collected at such places as cooling towers, plumbing systems, and industrial water supplies, and the bacteria be cultivated in a laboratory in order to validate the presence of Legionella. It is extensively utilized because it has all the requisite regulatory approvals and is capable of detecting live bacteria, which is of utmost importance for risk assessment and meeting health and safety legislations. Governments, medical institutions, and managers of large buildings regularly test their water for the bacterium to ensure it is safe for human consumption, and prevent outbreaks.

The applications analyzed here are:

• Water Testing (Larger Category)
  • Microbial Culture
  • DFA Stain
  • PCR
• IVD Testing (Faster-Growing Category)
  • Blood Culture and Sputum Tests
  • Urinary Antigen Test
  • DFA Stain
  • PCR

End User Analysis

The diagnostic centers category held the largest market share, of 35%, in 2024. This is because of the rising awareness of the early diagnosis of the disease, which is increasing in prevalence. Apart from diagnostic centers, the demand for the associated products among water treatment agencies is expected to grow at a rapid rate, because of the burgeoning need for onsite testing methods, itself on account of the stringent guidelines on the inspection of water before it is supplied to households.

The end users analyzed here are:

• Hospitals and Clinics (Fastest-Growing Category)
• Diagnostic Labs (Largest Category)
• Water Treatment Industry

Legionella Testing Market Regional Growth Dynamics

North America accounted for the largest share, of 40%, in 2024, due to the increasing number of patients with legionella infection and the development of the healthcare system in this region. An estimated 8,000–18,000 people in the U.S. are admitted to hospitals each year with Legionnaire’s disease, and 10% of the global cases are diagnosed here.

In December 2022, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control investigated Legionnaire’s disease cases in Darlington County. There have been 13 cases of the disease identified as part of the outbreak so far.

Similarly, the legionella bacteria were identified in water samples collected from 30 homes in October 2022, the New Jersey Department of Health announced. The samples were collected from houses in Trenton, Ewing, and parts of Lawrence and Hopewell Township served by Trenton Water Works.

In August 2022, a Canada-based company, named Genomadix Inc., announced that it has entered into an agreement with Mayo Clinic to enhance its point-of-care portable PCR-based diagnostics system, named CubeTM, which gives results in around one hour.

The Europe region will grow at the highest CAGR, of 9.5%, during the forecast period, due to the approvals/accreditation of testing kits and governments’ awareness programs, both of which drive the demand for the associated products. For instance, in November 2022, SPIE UK announced that it has received the ISO/IEC 17020 accreditation from the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) for its legionella risk management practices.

The regions and countries analyzed in this report are:

• North America (Largest Region)
  • U.S. (Larger Country)
  • Canada (Faster-Growing Country)
• Europe (Fastest-Growing Region)
  • Germany (Largest Country)
  • U.K.
  • France
  • Italy (Fastest-Growing Country)
  • Russia
  • Rest of Europe
• Asia-Pacific
  • China (Largest Country)
  • India (Fastest-Growing Country)
  • Japan
  • South Korea
  • Australia
  • Rest of APAC
• Latin America
  • Brazil (Largest Country)
  • Mexico (Fastest-Growing Country)
  • Rest of LATAM
• Middle East and Africa
  • Saudi Arabia (Largest Country)
  • South Africa
  • U.A.E. (Fastest-Growing Country)
  • Rest of MEA

Legionella Testing Market Share Analysis

The market is fragmented in nature because of the presence of many regional and international participants providing diverse solutions to diagnostic laboratories, environmental testing services and biotechnology. These companies have various customers in the healthcare, hospitality, and industrial facilities, which have diverse testing requirements. Moreover, there are various testing procedures, such as microbial culture, PCR, and urinary antigen test, depending on application. This enables various companies to compete on technologies and in various geographies. Different countries also have varying regulations, and therefore, local laboratories are usually in a strategic position to serve their localities.

Legionella Testing Market Developments

• In June 2025, MyMichigan Medical Center detected low Legionella levels in its water system, after a former patient was diagnosed with Legionnaire’s disease.
• In June 2025, WearCheck launched advanced solutions for detecting and quantifying Legionella pneumophila.
• In June 2025, Pace teamed up with Omega Environmental Services Inc. to hold a training session on the Legionella Law of the State of New Jersey.
• In March 2025, the Legionella bacterium was found at the Veterans Affairs Loma Linda Healthcare System.
• In September 2024, LuminUltra Technologies Ltd. acquired several Legionella testing tools from Genomadix Inc., including the Genomadix Cube qPCR device. This portable machine can detect Legionella in less than an hour with high accuracy, similar to lab tests.
• In August 2024, Legionella was detected in the Federal Trade Commission’s Washington, DC headquarters, following which the organization allowed employees to work from home.