Miniature Painting and Wargaming Statistics 2026
By BrushBench . 9 min read . Updated June 2026
Miniature painting and tabletop wargaming have moved from niche hobby to mainstream business, and the numbers are unusually solid because the category leader is publicly traded. This page collects more than 30 fully sourced statistics for 2026: how much money the hobby generates, how large the miniatures and hobby-paint markets are, how big the community is, what the hobby costs to get into, and where it is heading. Every figure names its source and year. The data draws on Games Workshop financial filings, market researchers, and reputable hobby coverage.
The short answer
Games Workshop, the Warhammer maker and now a FTSE 100 company, posted record revenue of 617.5 million pounds and pre-tax profit of 262.8 million pounds for its 2024-25 year, up 29.5 percent. Licensing revenue jumped to 52.5 million pounds on the Amazon and Henry Cavill Warhammer deal, and the Space Marine 2 game has sold 7 million copies.
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The business of the hobby: Games Workshop
Games Workshop, the maker of Warhammer 40,000 and Age of Sigmar, is the bellwether for the entire hobby, and in December 2024 it became a FTSE 100 company. For its 2024-25 financial year, ending 1 June 2025, it reported record revenue of 617.5 million pounds, up from 525.7 million, and pre-tax profit of 262.8 million pounds, a 29.5 percent increase.
The scale is built on a wide retail and trade footprint: 570 stores worldwide after 30 new openings, North American sales up 14.6 percent to 51.7 million pounds, and a staff profit-share pool of about 20 million pounds shared equally among roughly 3,600 employees.
The miniatures and paint markets
Beyond Games Workshop, market researchers size the broader category in the billions, though these are estimates rather than audited figures. Market Intelo estimated the global tabletop miniatures game market at about 3.8 billion dollars for 2025, growing toward 7.1 billion by 2034, with Warhammer alone an estimated 40 percent or more of revenue. Growth Market Reports sized the miniature painting supply market at about 1.29 billion dollars for 2025.
The paint aisle is consolidating around a few names. Citadel Colour, made by Games Workshop, spans hundreds of paints across seven ranges, and in December 2023 the model-paint maker Acrylicos Vallejo was acquired by ProA Capital for 50 million euros. The Army Painter, another major brand, runs about 110 employees out of Denmark.
The community and its reach
The audience extends well past the tabletop. Games Workshop reported about 115,000 subscribers to its Warhammer Plus streaming service, and community trackers put the r/Warhammer40k subreddit around 1.5 million members. The 2024 video game Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has sold 7 million copies, crossing 2 million at launch and 4.5 million in its first month.
That crossover is now a business line of its own. Licensing revenue jumped to 52.5 million pounds in 2024-25, up from 31 million, driven by Space Marine 2 and a December 2024 agreement with Amazon for Warhammer 40,000 films and television, with Henry Cavill set to star and executive produce.
What the hobby costs
Getting started is cheaper than the finished armies suggest. Hobby guides put a basic starter set of a few paints, a brush, and primer at under 50 euros, while a complete, painted 2,000-point Warhammer army runs roughly 600 to 1,200 dollars at retail depending on the faction.
Paint is the recurring purchase that compounds, so most painters standardize on one system early. A broad starter set like the Vallejo Game Color 16-Bottle Starter Set covers the core palette a new painter needs before branching out.
Vallejo Game Color 16-Bottle Starter Set
The most practical beginner palette in the hobby: 16 dropper-bottle acrylics covering every major colour group, formulated for plastic and metal miniatures.
Where the hobby is heading
Two trends are reshaping painting. Speed paints, the one-coat contrast style, have exploded: The Army Painter Speedpaint 2.0 range alone offers 79 colors plus 10 metallics, sharply cutting the time to a tabletop-ready model. And 3D printing is now mainstream enough that Market Intelo estimates more than 15 percent of active painters supplement retail miniatures with self-printed models from STL files, enabled by resin printers under 300 dollars.
Sources
Games Workshop, FY2024-25 Annual Report and Investor Relations trading updates (reported by Frontline Gaming and the Games Workshop investor pages).
Market Intelo, Tabletop Miniatures Game Market; Growth Market Reports, Miniature Painting Supply Market (market-research estimates).
Wargamer, on Warhammer Plus subscribers; GummySearch, subreddit size.
Insider Gaming and Game World Observer, on Space Marine 2 sales and licensing.
Mergr, on the Vallejo and Army Painter ownership; Warhammer Colour, Citadel paint range.
Calcix and Miniatures of Death, hobby cost guides, 2024 and 2026.
Keep reading
Related roundups
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How much money does the Warhammer hobby generate?+
Games Workshop, the maker of Warhammer, reported record revenue of 617.5 million pounds and pre-tax profit of 262.8 million pounds for its 2024-25 year, up 29.5 percent. It joined the FTSE 100 in December 2024.
How big is the miniatures market overall?+
Estimates vary because most of the market is private. Market Intelo put the global tabletop miniatures game market at about 3.8 billion dollars for 2025, and Growth Market Reports sized the miniature painting supply market at about 1.29 billion dollars, with Games Workshop the clear leader.
How big is the Warhammer community?+
Games Workshop reported about 115,000 Warhammer Plus subscribers, and community trackers put the r/Warhammer40k subreddit around 1.5 million members. The Space Marine 2 video game has sold 7 million copies, a sign of how far the audience reaches beyond the tabletop.
How much does it cost to start painting miniatures?+
A basic starter set of a few paints, a brush, and primer costs under 50 euros, per hobby cost guides. A fully painted 2,000-point Warhammer army runs roughly 600 to 1,200 dollars at retail depending on the faction.
Are speed paints replacing traditional painting?+
They are growing fast, not replacing. One-coat contrast and speed paints have surged, with The Army Painter Speedpaint 2.0 alone offering 79 colors plus 10 metallics, dramatically cutting the time to a tabletop-ready model while traditional layering remains the choice for display pieces.
Is 3D printing changing the hobby?+
Yes. Market Intelo estimates more than 15 percent of active miniature painters now supplement retail miniatures with self-printed models from STL files, made possible by resin 3D printers priced under 300 dollars.