Home Security Camera Statistics 2016

~20% of US homes use security cameras, according to an IPVM survey of 2,000 consumers.

Inside this note, we break down the stats, share full statistic reports and examine the trends over the past 3 years and the factors driving growth.

Statistics

The ~20% statistic comes from 2 surveys IPVM run using Google consumer surveys (note: click on each chart below to access full survey report)

We asked it in 2 ways, first with yes or no:

And then with an additional option for 'don't know / not sure'

Factoring in that some people may not know (i.e., a spouse or parent or child at home might have the camera and that this survey excludes people without Internet), ~20% is a solid estimate for American homes with security cameras.

2013 Comparison

Home camera use for Americans is up significantly from 2013. Here is our 2013 results, with 15.1% yes respondents compared to 2016's 27.3%:

We estimate ~20% compounded annual growth rate in homes using security / surveillance cameras since over the past 3 years (2013 - 2016), rising from the low teens to ~20% total usage.

Units / Numbers

With ~120 million US households, this works out to ~24 million households with cameras. Of course, the number of cameras per house is likely low (generally between 1 and 4), but that still works out to be a fairly sizable number of total cameras.

There are clearly many millions, if not 10+ million, of cameras being sold to US consumers / households. Just looking at Swann, Lorex/FLIR, QSee, those 3 combined are probably selling a few million by themselves.

Growth Drivers

There are 3 clear growth drivers for the home security / surveillance market:

• Falling prices: Even 4 camera kits are now in the few hundred dollar range, making it a viable purchase for most middle class Americans. This will accelerate further as Dropcam knockoffs like the $30 Walmart camera are rolled out and Hikvision Ezviz expands.
• Easier network / mobile access: Almost all consumer equipment is now coming with automatic / 'phone home' / remote access that simplifies the customer install process and allows the user to get more use of their system (i.e., checking in from the road, etc.)
• Higher resolution: SD analog is dead, even at big box retailers. Now, 720p and even 1080p systems (via HD analog) are commonplace in consumer outlets and at SD analog prices.

Outlook Positive

On the negative side, the consumer security / surveillance space is hyper competitive and it is going to be hard to make money (sorry crowdfunding camera startups).

On the positive side, the prices are now so low, the setup so simple and the resolution so much better, that we see the next few years as being a revolution in the use of security / surveillance cameras where they have the real probability of becoming a mainstream / majority used offering by the end of this decade.