Natural Refrigerants Market Size & Share 2026-2035

Natural Refrigerants Market Size

The global natural refrigerants market was valued at USD 1.9 billion in 2025. The market is expected to grow from USD 2 billion in 2026 to USD 2.7 billion in 2035, at a CAGR of 3.3% according to latest report published by Global Market Insights Inc.

• Natural refrigerant markets move from a compliance-based niche to a primary source for new, refrigeration and cooling system design because of regulatory certainty, energy efficiency measures, and sustainability goals. Technological developments such as low charge systems, packaged solutions, improved leak detection, and digital monitoring will help to reduce the safety concerns associated with natural refrigerants therefore allowing for increased use in commercial and urban areas.
• Ammonia (R717) continues to be the leading refrigerant type accounting for a 37.6% share in 2025 and a projected CAGR of 2.5% from 2025-2035, with an anticipated large scale proliferation due to its excellent suitability for large scale refrigeration. CO2 based refrigerants are seeing increased penetration and are growing at a rate greater than the average growth rate of all refrigerants. Hydrocarbon based refrigerants are forecasted to achieve $476.1 million in revenue during 2026; this is supported by a significant period of constant demand. Air (R729) is anticipated to have the largest growth potential from a very low starting baseline with an anticipated CAGR of 5.1%.
• Among the natural refrigerant applications, cold storage constitutes the largest segment within that market with 30.6% of the natural refrigerant market size by 2025. As cold storage application demand continues to increase due to expanding food supply chains and logistics infrastructure that require efficient and sustainable refrigeration systems, the cold storage market value grew from USD 514.9 million in 2022 to a projected total of approximately USD 925.3 million by 2035, at a CAGR of 4.3% throughout the forecast period. This growth is attributable to an increasing number of investments being made in cold chain infrastructure including cold storage facilities and healthcare product warehouses.
• While the industrial sector is the largest end user of natural refrigerants in 2025, generating USD 890.9 million in revenues from their usage, it will continue to grow and reach USD 1.1 billion by 2035, which translate to a CAGR of 2.8% between 2026 and 2035. The Asia Pacific region will dominate the natural refrigerant market, with revenues of USD 645.5 million by 2025, primarily driven by rapid increases in both industrialization and cold chain infrastructure development.

Natural Refrigerants Market Trends

Natural refrigerants are now being used as the default option in all new refrigeration and air conditioning projects rather than just being an option chosen to meet regulations and requirements. More often than not, natural refrigerants are specified in the design phase of the refrigeration and air conditioning system due to being a long-term regulatory certainty, allowing for energy efficient solutions, and aligning with an organization’s sustainability objectives.

Many of the historical barriers associated with using natural refrigerants in refrigeration and air conditioning systems have been addressed by advances in system engineering. Low-charge systems, packaged systems, better leak detection and digital monitoring have all improved the usability and safety of natural refrigerants. These new innovations have decreased the perceived level of risk associated with natural refrigerants, have decreased the installation footprint of natural refrigerants, and have simplified compliance with safety requirements.

Natural Refrigerants Market Analysis

Based on refrigerant type, the market is segmented into ammonia (R717), carbon dioxide (CO2), hydrocarbons, air (R729), and water (R718). Ammonia (R717) dominated the market with an approximate market share of 37.6% in 2025 and is expected to grow with a CAGR of 2.5% by 2035.

• The ammonia market will make up the largest piece of the overall market by continuing to grow steadily between 2022 to 2035. The steady growth trends suggest strong and uninterrupted demand due to the large-scale and continuous refrigeration uses of ammonia.
• CO2 will continue to be shown in the data with increasing acceptance beyond just the early adopters. The percentage of growth for CO2 is higher than that for the total market providing evidence of CO2's increased share within the entire category of natural refrigerants and continues to grow and contribute to the overall growth of the marketplace.
• In 2026, Hydrocarbons are projected to achieve USD 476.1 million. This category has been growing at a predictable rate and does not seem to be accelerating, so we expect steady demand for hydrocarbons throughout the forecast period. Air (R729) is showing the highest percentage rate of growth, with a four-year compound annual growth rate of 5.1%. Air is starting from a relatively small base but showing increasing and accelerating growth throughout the entire forecast period. This indicates that some users will be recognizing air as a feasible refrigerant option for use in certain applications.

Based on application, the natural refrigerants market is segmented into cold storage, freezers, food processing, air conditioners, and others. Cold storage held the largest market share of 30.6% in 2025 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.3% during 2026-2035.

• Cold Storage has been identified as one of the largest and fastest growing natural refrigerants applications, projected to increase from its current 514.9 to 925.3 by 2035, with its global market share rising from 29.7% to 33.8%, all improving with a 4.3% F-CAGR.
• Freezers as a mature application segment offer many well-documented natural refrigerant options due to their reliability and predictable performance, although growth is mainly driven by replacement and efficiency efforts due in part to long replacement cycles and standardized system designs.
• Food processing applications depend on using natural refrigerants, not only for precise temperature control and hygiene compliance, but also for reliable continuous operation. Most of the demand arises from process optimization versus expanding the capacity in food processing facilities. Therefore, food processing applications have been stable, efficient-oriented, and less susceptible to short-term demand volatility.
• In 2026 air conditioning is expected to have a value of USD 308.9 million, however the proportion of air conditioning will continue to decline. Other than air conditioning, there are various new and niche applications, including, but not limited to, district cooling, data centers and specialized industrial processes. Growth has been limited, project specific and requires customized solutions, as well as applicable infrastructure to determine overall economic feasibility.

Based on end use, the natural refrigerants market is segmented into industrial sector, commercial sector, residential sector, utility and infrastructure sector. Industrial sector represent the largest segment, accounting for USD 890.9 million in 2025 and expected to reach USD 1.1 billion by 2035, growing at a CAGR of 2.8%.

• In the commercial sector, there is a large amount of forward movement as a result of increasing the availability of refrigeration in retail, grocery stores, and C&I facilities. Because these types of commercial applications utilize natural refrigerants, they allow for natural refrigerants to be used more widely and in larger volumes.
• In the residential sector, it is estimated that in 2026, the size of this market will reach USD 277.3 million because of the continued growth of appliances using sustainable cooling technologies, driven by compliance with regulations, improvement in efficiencies, and the increasing awareness and demand from consumers.

The North America natural refrigerants market is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 3.7% during the analysis timeframe.

• North America has a mature but growing natural refrigerant market that exhibits steady growth due to the need to reduce the use of high-GWP refrigerants through regulation and a high demand for replacement products. Commercial refrigeration, cold storage, and industrial refrigeration contribute significantly to this market. In addition, it is becoming more common in residential and small business applications due to improved efficiency standards, environmental responsibility, and proven technologies.

The Europe natural refrigerants industry is growing rapidly on the global level with a market share of 28.3% in 2025.

• Europe shows widespread deployment across supermarkets, food processing, and industrial refrigeration. Continued investment in CO₂ and ammonia systems, along with skilled service networks, supports stable growth and reinforces Europe’s role as a technology and standards benchmark.

Asia Pacific natural refrigerants market leads the industry with revenue of USD 645.5 million in 2025 and is anticipated to show lucrative growth over the forecast period.

• Growth in Asia Pacific is driven by rapid urbanization, industrialization, and the modernization and expansion of cold chain systems. Continued increases in food consumption, improvements in production capacities, and increases in infrastructure investments are pushing the growth of Asia Pacific's natural refrigerant industry. Further, because of a societal shift in recognizing the negative impact on the environment and an incremental tightening of regulations, Asia Pacific is experiencing greater adoption of natural refrigerants for all applications commercial, industrial, and developing residential across all major economic countries.

Latin America natural refrigerants accounted for 7.5% market share in 2025 and is anticipated to show highest growth over the forecast period.

• The Latin American region will continue to see a gradual, project-based implementation of natural refrigerants as a new product line. The growth of natural refrigerants is driven by the need to export food, continue to expand cold storage facilities, and modernize commercial refrigeration systems. The evolution of regulatory frameworks will continue to inflate demand along with the increase in technical capabilities and costs, which will drive selective but consistent use of natural refrigerants in certain business uses.

Middle East & Africa natural refrigerants accounted for 5.8% market share in 2025 and is anticipated to show lucrative growth over the forecast period.

• Middle East and Africa is a developing market for natural refrigerants, influenced by climate conditions and infrastructure investment cycles. Due to the focus of Most Developed Countries on large scale, industrial uses, district cooling and logistics development; there is a lot of opportunity for natural refrigerants. The demand for natural refrigerants will be positively influenced by energy efficiency goals; however, there are limited regulations governing this industry's growth, as well as very high entry costs and limited resources available to The MEA region.

Natural Refrigerants Market Share

The top 5 companies in natural refrigerants industry include Carrier Company, Daikin Industries, Johnson Controls, Danfoss, and Emerson. These are prominent companies operating in their respective regions covering approximately 41.2% of the market share in 2025. These companies hold strong positions due to their extensive experience in market. Their diverse product portfolios, backed by robust production capabilities and distribution networks, enable them to meet the rising demand across various regions.

• Carrier, is globally known for being one of the leading companies for Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) and refrigeration. Carrier is focused on natural refrigerants (including CO₂) across commercial as well as industrial and transport applications. They emphasize natural refrigerants and low‑GWP system designs by leveraging their large installed base and their advanced controls and service capabilities to create scalable, regulation‑ready cooling solutions.
• Daikin Industries is a vertically integrated manufacturer of HVAC, compressors, and refrigerants, which gives them a great deal of influence on the current transition toward using natural refrigerants. They actively develop CO₂ and common HC options, combined with their leadership in technology and manufacturing scale, which then allows them to align their product strategies with long‑term environmental goals and energy efficiency goals.
• Johnson Controls has a leadership position within the natural refrigerant market. Johnson Controls integrates low GWP refrigerants with building automation, energy management systems, and lifecycle service offerings through their large commercial HVAC systems, large industrial refrigeration systems, and chiller solutions in order to become a preferred partner for complex, sustainability focused infrastructure projects.
• Danfoss supplies compressors, valves, drives and controls that have been developed specifically for CO₂, ammonia and hydrocarbons, making it an essential component of the natural refrigerants industry. Instead of directly supplying refrigerants, Danfoss is focused on the development of system performance, safe operations and energy efficiency, giving it a significant level of influence throughout the value chains of both commercial and industrial refrigeration.
• Emerson is an integral part of the natural refrigerant industry by offering Copeland equipment such as compressors and controls, as well as digital tools for control and monitoring CO₂ and hydrocarbon systems used by food retailers, cold-chain users and large scale industrials; thus providing these users the ability to transitioning to natural refrigerants with adequate service and continued stability during operation.

Natural Refrigerants Market Companies

Major players operating in the natural refrigerants industry include:

• Carrier Corporation
• Daikin Industries
• Johnson Controls
• Danfoss
• Emerson
• Gree
• Midea
• LG
• Samsung
• A-Gas International
• Linde plc
• Air Liquide
• Honeywell

Natural Refrigerants Industry News

• In March 2023, Danfoss announced that it acquired BOCK GmbH, a carbon dioxide and low-GWP compressor manufacturer. BOCK GmbH has one of the largest portfolios of compressors for natural refrigerants such as hydrocarbons, CO2 (R744), and other low-GWP refrigerants. The deal will accelerate energy efficiency and the global transition to natural and low-GWP refrigerants.
• In February 2023, Linde signed a long-term agreement and invested around USD 1.8 Billion to supply clean hydrogen and nitrogen to OCI’s new world-scale blue ammonia plant located in Beaumont, Texas. The Beaumont facility aims to build and strengthen the world-leading blue ammonia and clean fuels platform.

This natural refrigerant market research report includes in-depth coverage of the industry, with estimates & forecasts in terms of revenue (USD Million) and volume (Kilo Tons) from 2025 to 2035, for the following segments:

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Market, by Refrigerant Type

• Carbon Dioxide (CO2/R744)
• Ammonia (R717)
• Hydrocarbons
• Water (R718)
• Air (R729)

Market, by Application

• Cold storage
• Freezers
• Food processing
• Air conditioners
• Others

Market, by End Use

• Industrial Sector
• Commercial Sector
• Residential Sector
• Utility and Infrastructure Sector

The above information is provided for the following regions and countries:

• North America

• U.S.
• Canada

• Europe

• Germany
• UK
• France
• Spain
• Italy
• Rest of Europe

• Asia Pacific

• China
• India
• Japan
• Australia
• South Korea
• Rest of Asia Pacific

• Latin America

• Brazil
• Mexico
• Argentina
• Rest of Latin America

• Middle East and Africa

• Saudi Arabia
• South Africa
• UAE
• Rest of Middle East and Africa