Acrylate Esters Market Significant Growth at 7.1%

Overview

New York, NY – Dec 11, 2025 – The global acrylate esters market is projected to grow steadily, reaching around USD 19.5 billion by 2034, up from USD 9.8 billion in 2024. This reflects a CAGR of 7.1% during the forecast period from 2025 to 2034, supported by rising demand from coatings, adhesives, and polymer applications.

Acrylate esters are important chemical intermediates made by reacting acrylic acid with alcohols such as methanol, ethanol, butanol, or 2-ethylhexanol. These esters are widely used as building blocks for acrylate and methacrylate polymers, where they help improve adhesion, flexibility, weather resistance, and optical clarity. In the value chain, crude acrylic acid derived from propylene oxidation is partly converted into acrylate esters, while the rest is refined into glacial acrylic acid for other downstream products.

Market growth is largely driven by stricter environmental regulations aimed at reducing volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions. This is pushing coatings manufacturers to adopt water-based and high-solids acrylic systems. At the same time, sustainability goals are encouraging the development of bio-based acrylic acid and ester production routes. Investments in integrated acrylic complexes are also enhancing supply security and cost efficiency.

• For example, India recently commissioned a large integrated acrylic acid and oxo-alcohol facility with an investment of Rs 5,894 crore (over USD 700 million). The plant produces acrylic acid, butyl acrylate, and related products, strengthening domestic supply chains and reducing reliance on imports.

From an environmental perspective, the chemical industry is the world’s largest industrial energy consumer and the third-largest source of direct CO₂ emissions. Electricity accounts for roughly 14% of total energy use in chemicals.

• According to the International Energy Agency, primary chemical production is expected to rise from about 719 million tonnes in 2022 to nearly 861 million tonnes by 2030, increasing pressure to control emissions. Overall, the chemical sector contributes around 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, creating long-term regulatory and carbon-related challenges for acrylate ester producers.

Key Takeaways

• Acrylate Esters Market size is expected to be worth around USD 19.5 Billion by 2034, from USD 9.8 Billion in 2024, at a CAGR of 7.1%
• Methyl Acrylate held a dominant market position, capturing more than a 43.9% share of the global acrylate esters market.
• Surface Coatings held a dominant market position, capturing more than a 48.6% share of the global acrylate esters market.
• Asia-Pacific (APAC) region emerged as the dominant market for acrylate esters, capturing a substantial 43.9% share, equating to an estimated value of USD 4.3 billion.

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Key Market Segments

By Type Analysis – Methyl Acrylate

In 2024, methyl acrylate emerged as the leading product type in the global acrylate esters market, accounting for around 43.9% of total share. Its dominance is mainly supported by widespread use in adhesives, coatings, and textile applications, where properties such as strong adhesion, surface hardness, clarity, and chemical resistance are critical. Methyl acrylate also offers stable and efficient polymerization behavior, which makes it a reliable raw material for manufacturers producing high-performance acrylic polymers.

Demand for methyl acrylate continues to rise in line with growth in construction and automotive activities, especially in developing regions. Its ability to perform well in modern formulations, including water-based and UV-curable systems, has strengthened its adoption as industries shift toward more sustainable solutions. These factors collectively reinforce methyl acrylate’s position as the largest and most established segment in 2024 and support its continued relevance going into 2025.

By Application Analysis – Surface Coatings

In 2024, surface coatings represented the largest application segment in the acrylate esters market, capturing approximately 48.6% of overall demand. The segment’s leadership is driven by growing requirements for coatings that offer durability, visual appeal, and long-term protection in sectors such as construction, automotive, and furniture manufacturing. Acrylate esters enable coatings with strong adhesion, flexibility, and resistance to UV exposure, chemicals, and wear.

Rising global investments in infrastructure, along with increased renovation and refurbishment activities, have further boosted the use of acrylate-based surface coatings. At the same time, tighter environmental regulations are encouraging a shift toward low-VOC and eco-friendly coating systems, where acrylate esters play a key role. This combination of performance advantages and regulatory alignment has sustained the segment’s strong growth in 2024 and is expected to support continued demand in 2025.

List of Segments

By Type

• Methyl Acrylate
• Ethyl Acrylate
• Butyl Acrylate
• 2-EH Acrylate
• Others

By Application

• Surface Coatings
• Adhesives & Sealant
• Plastic Additives
• Textiles
• Others

Regional Analysis

In 2024, Asia-Pacific stood out as the leading regional market for acrylate esters, accounting for about 43.9% of global demand, with a market value estimated at USD 4.3 billion. This strong share highlights the region’s central role in shaping global consumption patterns. Rapid industrial growth, ongoing urbanization, and large-scale infrastructure investments have collectively positioned Asia-Pacific as the most dynamic and influential market.

Growth across the region is closely linked to expanding end-use industries, especially construction, automotive, and consumer goods manufacturing. Rising construction activity, supported by new housing, commercial projects, and public infrastructure development, is increasing demand for acrylate esters in coatings, adhesives, and sealants. At the same time, steady growth in vehicle production and related manufacturing activities is reinforcing the need for acrylate esters as essential chemical inputs, sustaining Asia-Pacific’s market leadership.

Top Use Cases

Paints and Coatings Resins: Acrylate esters are core building blocks for acrylic resins used in decorative, industrial, and automotive coatings. Acrylic acid is first converted into esters such as methyl, ethyl, butyl and 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, which are then polymerized to make durable, weather-resistant coating resins. Suppliers note that these esters are “key monomers” for acrylic polymers in paints, coatings and adhesives used on buildings, cars and industrial equipment. The coatings industry itself is large: global paints and coatings sales were around USD 167.6 billion in 2020, even after a 3% COVID-related decline, showing how big the downstream demand pool is for acrylate-based resins.

Water-Based Adhesives and Sealants: Acrylate esters are widely used to produce water-based and pressure-sensitive adhesives (PSAs) for labels, tapes, hygiene products, packaging and construction. Ethyl acrylate, for example, is a major monomer in acrylic copolymers for water-based PSAs and latex adhesives, while 2-ethylhexyl acrylate is used in resins for pressure-sensitive adhesive formulations and latex systems. In Europe alone, the adhesives and sealants industry reached about 4.8 million tonnes and €19.9 billion in 2022, with polymer dispersions and emulsions (a key home for acrylate chemistry) representing over 45% of volume. This scale underlines how strongly acrylate esters are tied to modern bonding solutions.

Flexible Plastics, Films and Construction Polymers: Another major use case is in flexible plastics and construction polymers. When acrylate esters such as ethyl or 2-ethylhexyl acrylate are copolymerized with other monomers, they give films and plastics better flexibility, impact resistance and weatherability. Technical notes highlight their role in flexible films, surface coatings and construction products, especially where low-temperature flexibility and outdoor durability are needed in sealants, membranes and modified plastics.

Textiles, Leather and Non-woven Materials: Acrylate esters are also used to modify the feel and performance of textiles, leather and non-woven materials. Ethyl acrylate-based copolymers are applied in textile finishing to bring water repellency, improved softness and wrinkle resistance, while similar acrylic dispersions are used to coat leather for better appearance and durability. Industrial fact sheets further note that ethyl acrylate is used in non-woven fibers and textile finishes where it improves adhesion and flexibility, particularly in hygiene and technical textile applications.

Paper Coatings, Printing Inks and Packaging: In paper and packaging, acrylate esters are used in binders for paper coatings, overprint varnishes and printing inks. Technical databases and supplier literature describe ethyl acrylate and related esters as key monomers in ink binder resins and paper coatings, where they provide good film formation, gloss and adhesion on paper and board. These acrylic binders support the large global printing and packaging sector, which consumes millions of tonnes of coated paper, board and flexible packaging every year. As brands push for lower-solvent, water-based systems, demand for acrylate-ester-based emulsions in ink and coating formulations remains structurally strong.

Recent Developments

In 2024, Dow launched its PRIMAL™ AC-2024 acrylic-emulsion series, targeting architectural coatings and adhesives — a clear move to expand its footprint in the acrylic-ester value chain. Despite overall company net sales of US $43.0 billion in 2024, and GAAP net income rising to US $1.2 billion, the broader downturn in chemical demand in 2025 pressured volumes and margins globally. Dow’s continued emphasis on high-performance coatings and polymer emulsions signals its commitment to maintaining leadership in the acrylate-ester segment under shifting market conditions.

SIBUR remains a key player in acrylate esters through its ownership of a dedicated ester-production plant (formerly “Acrylate”) in Dzerzhinsk, Russia — with nameplate capacities of roughly 34,000 tonnes per year for heavy acrylic ethers (e.g. butyl acrylate) and 10,000 tonnes for light esters (methyl/ethyl acrylate). In 2025, SIBUR advanced further by producing 2-ethylhexyl acrylate (2-EHA) fully from its in-house feedstock, highlighting vertical integration and strengthening its supply reliability in acrylic paints and coatings markets. This strategy underlines SIBUR’s role as a strategic supplier of acrylic esters in its regional and global customer base.

Arkema S.A. — In 2024–2025, Arkema strengthened its position in the acrylate-esters segment by securing ISCC+ certification for acrylic monomer production at its Taixing (China) and other global sites, enabling supply of bio-attributed acrylic esters and supporting sustainability goals. Their 2024 results showed sales of €9.5 billion and an EBITDA of €1.53 billion (margin ~16.1%), with growth in high-performance polymers and adhesive solutions — signaling continued investment in acrylics, coatings, and sustainable ester-based solutions.

BASF SE — In 2024–2025, BASF advanced its acrylics portfolio by committing to a new large-scale complex at its Zhanjiang (China) Verbund site, planned to start by 2025 with annual capacity of roughly 400,000 metric tons of butyl acrylate (BA) and 100,000 metric tons of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate (2-EHA). By mid-2024, BASF also began offering over 60 acrylic, alcohol and glycol ether products with sustainability attributes such as “Low-PCF,” “Zero-PCF,” “bio-based” or “chemically recycled,” underlining its push towards environmentally friendly acrylic ester supply.

LG Chem Ltd. — In 2025, LG Chem began commercial-scale prototype production of 100% bio-acrylic acid, with an initial capacity of about 100 metric tons/year, aiming to supply sustainable feedstock for coatings, adhesives, and super-absorbent polymers. This move reflects a strategic shift toward eco-friendly acrylic raw materials, positioning LG Chem as a forward-moving supplier of acrylate-ester precursors amidst growing demand for low-carbon chemicals.

Nippon Shokubai Co. Limited — By mid-2025, Nippon Shokubai’s U.S. group secured ISCC PLUS certification for acrylic acid and superabsorbent polymers, allowing global supply of biomass-derived acrylic acid and esters with reduced carbon footprint. The company continues to offer a full lineup of acrylate esters (like methyl, ethyl, butyl, and 2-ethylhexyl acrylate) used in coatings, adhesives, acrylic fibers, and molded resins — reinforcing its position as a diversified, sustainability-aware supplier in the global acrylic esters market.

Momentive Specialty Chemicals Inc. — As of 2024–2025, Momentive is listed among the global companies active in the acrylic acids & esters industry. While Momentive is primarily known for silicones and specialty chemicals rather than bulk acrylate-ester monomers, its inclusion among key players suggests it may supply related specialty resins or additives that support acrylate-derived coatings, adhesives or sealants.

Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation — In 2025, Mitsubishi Chemical Group reaffirmed focus on profitability and a shift toward “greener operations,” which may influence its petrochemicals and acrylic-related portfolio. While the group cancelled a proposed methyl-methacrylate (MMA) plant in Louisiana in early 2025, citing market challenges, indicating caution in expanding acrylic monomer capacity. Their broader strategy emphasizes restructuring petrochemical business and exploring more sustainable products — a signal that their acrylate/ester activities likely prioritize environmental compliance and selective production.

Conclusion

In summary, acrylate esters remain foundational to a wide range of industrial and consumer-facing applications because of their unique combination of performance, versatility, and economic value. As part of the broader Acrylic Acid value chain, acrylate esters continue to feed robust demand from sectors such as coatings, adhesives & sealants, textiles, plastics, and packaging — all of which are growing globally.

Going forward, the outlook for acrylate esters appears favourable. Continued growth in construction, automotive production, infrastructure build-out, and packaging — especially in fast-growing regions — will keep driving demand for high-performance acrylic-based materials. Meanwhile, increasing regulatory focus on low-VOC, weather-resistant, and durable coatings will likely reinforce the position of acrylate esters in formulations for paints, sealants, and advanced adhesives.

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