After a two-year wobble, the number of architects employed by the world’s top 100 architectural practices has decisively shot up and is now higher than ever. The WA 2019 survey reveals that there are 37,787 architects working in the top 100, a 6.45% increase on 2018. This is higher in absolute terms than the last peak in 2016, when numbers increased by 15%. Since 2016 there has been a steady decline, averaging 2.5% a year.

The number of architects at the top ten firms has also leapt by 7.3%, to a total of 13,129 – nearly 35% of the overall number. This is the first significant rise since 2016, and a new record.

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