According to a new market research report titled, ‘Software-Defined Wide Area Network Market by Component, Organization Size, Deployment Mode, End User (Communication Service Providers, Data Centers, and Enterprises), and Geography - Global Forecast to 2029.’, the global SD-WAN market is projected to reach $18.2 billion by 2029, at a CAGR of 23% from 2022 to 2029.
A software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) is a virtualized service that connects and extends enterprise networks over large geographical distances. This technology solution brings unparalleled agility and costs savings to networking. With SD-WAN, enterprises can deliver more responsive and predictable applications at lower cost in less time than the managed MPLS services traditionally used by enterprises.
Software-defined wide area network is gaining traction due to their increased implementation by data centers, communication services providers, and enterprises for their notable benefits, such as reduced WAN costs, enhanced WAN performance, improved WAN agility, simplified WAN management, increased WAN availability, enhanced and automated connectivity, improved network security, end-to-end visibility into applications and infrastructure, and increased reliability and responsiveness.
The growth of this market is driven by the increasing number of cloud solutions, the rising demand for internet broadband connections to replace more expensive solutions, the increasing demand for improved security, and the high demand for network agility and visibility.
However, the reliability issues in SD-WAN may restrain the market’s growth. The increasing proliferation of SD-WAN solutions to automate operations to simplify workflows and the rising demand for connecting data centers and multiple offices are expected to offer significant growth opportunities for the stakeholders in the software-defined wide area network market.
Furthermore, the concerns over SD-WAN security and the lack of standards for software-defined networking are expected to pose challenges to the growth of the software-defined wide area network market.
The latest trends in the global software-defined wide area network market are the move to hybrid or multi-cloud environments, firewall as a service, and secure access service edge.

Impact of COVID-19 on the SD-WAN Market
The COVID-19 pandemic adversely affected several economies globally. Several preventive measures, including lockdowns, social distancing, and quarantines, were implemented worldwide to curb the spread of infection, negatively impacting several markets, including the SD-WAN market. The impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the global SD-WAN market started in early 2020 in China, one of the world's largest producers of endpoint and connected devices, viz. smartphones, computers & tablets, network sensors, routers, firewalls, and modems. China temporarily closed production plants for a few months in 2020, and restrictions were imposed on the export and import of SD-WAN hardware solutions, which affected the supply chain and impacted the production, sales, and operations of the software-defined wide area network market.
However, several companies started focusing on providing uninterrupted support services to their customers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, several industries launched initiatives to bring the software-defined wide area network market back on track. In addition, local governments are also launching several relief steps to mitigate the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. These initiatives are expected to enable the recovery of the software-defined wide area network market over the forecast period.
The global software-defined wide area network market is segmented by component (solutions [hardware, software], services [professional services, managed services]), organization size (large enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises), deployment mode (on-premise deployment, and cloud-based deployment), and end user (communication service providers, data centers, and enterprises [IT & telecommunication, manufacturing, government & public sector, retail, BFSI, healthcare and life science, education, energy and utilities, media & entertainment, and other end users]). The study also evaluates industry competitors and analyzes the market at the regional and country levels.
Based on component, the global SD-WAN market is segmented into solutions and services. In 2022, the solutions segment is expected to account for the largest share of the global software-defined wide area network market (SD-WAN market). The large market share of this segment is attributed to the rising investments in R&D activities by prominent SD-WAN players to launch new SD-WAN solutions, the increasing demand for dynamic connectivity by communication service providers, and the rising need for a wide range of integrated security features, such as NGFW, IPS, encryption, and sandboxing capabilities.
However, the services segment is projected to register the higher CAGR during the forecast period due to the growing requirement for network integration functions, the increasing emphasis on the launch of SD-WAN professional services, and the rising need for reducing manual IT operations.
Based on organization size, the global software-defined wide area network market is segmented into large enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises. In 2022, the large enterprises segment is expected to account for the larger share of the global software-defined wide area network market. The large market share of this segment is attributed to the rising demand for SD-WAN solutions by large telecommunication service providers and the increasing demand from large data centers and campus environments to solve challenges such as operational complexity, slow service delivery, and lack of visibility across both physical and virtual networks.
However, the small and medium-sized enterprises segment is projected to register the higher CAGR during the forecast period. The growth of this segment is driven by factors such as the increasing demand to create an agile, secure, and efficient work environment and the growing demand for SD-WAN solutions from SMEs to enable controlled network infrastructure.
Based on deployment mode, the global software-defined wide area network market is segmented into on-premise deployment and cloud-based deployment. In 2022, the on-premise deployment segment is expected to account for the larger share of the global software-defined wide area network market (SD-WAN market). The large market share of this segment is attributed to the high acceptance rate of SD-WAN solutions among large enterprises, the rising demand for comprehensive security and control, and the increasing deployment of SD-WAN solutions across on-premise data centers.
However, the cloud-based deployment segment is projected to register the higher CAGR during the forecast period. The growth of this segment is driven by factors such as the rising need to manage complex network requirements and the need to reduce initial and working expenses for infrastructures.
Based on end user, the global software-defined wide area network market is segmented into communication service providers, data centers, and enterprises. In 2022, the data centers segment is expected to account for the largest share of the global software-defined wide area network market. The large market share of this segment is attributed to the increasing need to automate routine workflows and processes of data centers, the growing need to reduce repetitive or mundane tasks and speed up processes and drive down overhead, and the rising need to control the connectivity, management, and services between data centers, remote offices, and cloud resources.
However, the enterprises segment is projected to register the highest CAGR during the forecast period. The growth of this segment is driven by factors such as the rising demand for SD-WAN solutions that integrate with multiple vendors and environments, the increasing demand for automated IT infrastructure across the BFSI sector, and the growing demand for SD-WAN solutions from IT enterprises to connect disparate data and systems and free IT teams from manual workloads.
Based on geography, the global software-defined wide area network market / SD-WAN market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East & Africa. In 2022, North America is expected to account for the largest share of the global software-defined wide area network market. North America’s major market share is attributed to the well-established network infrastructure in the U.S. and Canada, the presence of a large and established sales force for SD-WAN solutions, service providers’ initiatives to promote network automation, and the increasing demand for data center and IT infrastructure automation through SD-WAN solutions. Furthermore, North America is technologically developed and heavily invests in technologies such as 5G, network security, radio access networks (RAN), and secure access, contributing to this regional market's growth.
However, Asia-Pacific is projected to register the highest CAGR during the forecast period due to the rising demand for network automation solutions for reducing infrastructure and operational costs and the growing demand for SD-WAN solutions by mobile phone operators across emerging economies, such as China, Japan, and India.