Dive Industry Market Data | Scuba Diving Statistics
Scuba Diving Certifications 2017–2022 USA: Still in Decline
Open water diver certifications were flat in 2022 compared to the prior year and remained significantly lower than pre-pandemic levels.
Darcy Kieran is the author of the reference book “Scuba Diving Industry Market Size & Statistics.”
The numbers are in for scuba diving certifications in the USA in 2022. So are we out of the pandemic yet? It seems like we are. But it simply means the dive industry is back on its slowly declining line.
We will look at quarterly and yearly results from 2017 to the end of 2022.
Open water scuba diving certification numbers matter because the dive industry continues to operate under an old business model highly dependent on new people learning to dive.
COVID Recap: Scuba Diving Certifications — USA
After being hit hard during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic (2020), with a drop of 42% in open water certifications, the number of entry-level scuba diving certifications rebounded in 2021 but remained 14% below pre-pandemic levels.
Now, let’s look at 2022.
2017 to 2022 Scuba Diving Certifications — USA
In the first quarter of last year, we witnessed a growth of 24.6% in entry-level scuba diving certifications issued to Americans compared to 2021. However, the number of certs remained 17.6% lower than pre-pandemic levels (2019).
Unfortunately, this growth rate didn’t continue in the following quarter.
In the second quarter of 2022, the number of entry-level open water diver certifications was barely above the prior year, with a growth of 0.6%, which means that certs remained 13.3% below pre-pandemic (2019) levels.
And it got worse in the third quarter (July to September)
Not only did open water scuba certifications remain lower than pre-pandemic levels (-9.8%), but they were also lower (-4.9%) than the prior year.
Finally, the last quarter of 2022 came in almost flat (-1.6%) and still significantly below pre-pandemic levels (-10.8%).
As an end result, we got a relatively flat 2022 compared to 2021 (+1.6%) while remaining well below pre-COVID numbers (-12.4%).
In other words, the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021 are behind us in the dive industry in the USA. Still, scuba diving continues to slowly and steadily decline if we measure it by the number of new Americans entering the sport.
How Does Scuba Diving Compare to Other Outdoor Activities?
The trends in scuba diving certification numbers are similar to what we saw in the outdoor activity participation rates we analyzed earlier this year.
While both the outdoor industry and water sports as a whole have been growing during the pandemic, scuba diving has been going downhill, along with its cousin, snorkeling.
The State of The Industry — A Market Study
To further understand where the scuba diving industry stands and where we are heading, the Business of Diving Institute is currently conducting a “State of The Industry” survey in collaboration with InDepth Magazine.
If you haven’t answered the survey yet, please do so today!
How are the open-water scuba diving certification numbers generated?
The quarterly reports on entry-level open water scuba certifications issued to American residents are produced by DEMA, the Diving Equipment & Marketing Association, using data received from dive training agencies PADI, NAUI, and SDI. An average estimate of non-reporting dive certification agencies is added to generate the final numbers.
Also from Darcy Kieran:
- Handbook: Your Career and/or Life as a Scuba Diving Instructor: How to Make a Good Living Out of Your Passion for Scuba Diving.
- Logbook: Advanced Scuba Diving Logbook with Checklists for certified scuba divers, divemasters & dive instructors.
- Handbook: Advanced Guide to SPF Scuba Diving for Scuba Divers, Divemasters & Dive Instructors: Develop Better Scuba Diving Skills, Dive Safer, Save Money & Have More Fun!
- Handbook: The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide To Scuba Diving: How to Increase Safety, Save Money & Have More Fun!
- Logbook: STARTER Scuba Diving Logbook with Checklists while getting your open water diver certification!
- Reference book: Scuba Diving Industry Market Reports, Data & Statistics.
Side note: During your surface intervals, have a look at my novels with a scuba diving twist, starting with “Mystery of The Blue Dragon” and “Shadows on Ocean Drive.”
You could help the dive industry by taking part in ongoing dive industry surveys. You will also find results from our past scuba diving market studies here.
Don’t be left out! Subscribe to Scubanomics: The Dive Industry Compass to be the first to know about new dive industry market data & insights. Otherwise, be our “dive business buddy” on LinkedIn, Facebook, and elsewhere.
What now? Have a look at the complete Scubanomics Table of Contents.
