Healthcare executives, pharmaceutical companies and investors need market intelligence that is accurate, timely and actionable. The right research partner blends deep therapeutic expertise, robust primary research capabilities, proprietary datasets and rigorous analytics to convert noisy signals into confident decisions. Below is a curated ranking of ten market research firms that consistently deliver high-impact insight across product strategy, commercial forecasting, market access, and competitive intelligence. Each entry explains why the firm matters to life-science leaders evaluating partners for launch planning, portfolio prioritization, M&A diligence, and commercial strategy.
IQVIA combines one of the largest healthcare datasets in the world with advanced analytics and consulting services. Its strength is a “human data science” approach that merges real-world evidence, claims and prescription data, and commercial analytics into end-to-end solutions for product forecasting, market access modeling, and post-launch performance optimization. For global pharma teams seeking scale and breadth—especially when cross-market comparability and large-sample real-world evidence are required—IQVIA remains a default strategic partner.
Clarivate offers deep life-science and healthcare intelligence built on proprietary databases, expert commentary and workflow tools. Since integrating Decision Resources Group and other specialized assets, Clarivate delivers syndicated research, clinical and commercial analytics, and therapeutic forecasting that support portfolio decisions, pricing and market access strategy. Clients value Clarivate for its comprehensive coverage of late-stage assets, payer dynamics, and evidence-based commercialization guidance.
Kantar’s health practice—now operating in partnership with Cerner (Cerner Enviza) and other specialist units—combines rigorous global primary research panels with real-world datasets and patient/provider-level insights. The firm’s strength lies in rich HCP and patient panels, brand tracking, and lifecycle research that helps commercialization teams validate positioning, quantify unmet need, and design multi-stakeholder launch plans across markets.
DelveInsight is a specialist life-science market research and consulting firm focused on biopharma and medtech. The firm delivers therapeutic area reports, pipeline analytics, and tailored consulting for market entry, competitive landscaping and regulatory intelligence. DelveInsight is frequently selected by mid-sized biotechs and investors that require focused, disease-centric intelligence paired with bespoke forecasting and market access support.
Frost & Sullivan’s growth-strategy model and market-forecasting capabilities are well suited to clients pursuing geographic expansion, technology commercialization or cross-sector benchmarking. Their healthcare practice produces detailed market forecasts, competitive benchmarking and innovation scouting—services that are particularly useful for executives assessing long-term growth opportunities in digital health, medtech and specialty therapeutics.
GlobalData provides subscription-based intelligence and forecasting tools across the healthcare ecosystem. Its blended model of analyst-driven reports, market forecasts and company trackers supports commercial teams and investors who need continuous monitoring of regulatory events, competitor moves and market sizing across multiple therapeutic areas. GlobalData’s platform orientation is attractive for clients that want a single pane of glass for ongoing market surveillance.
Ipsos’s healthcare division combines large-scale primary research capabilities with advisory services tailored to life-science clients. Known for robust HCP and patient studies, Ipsos helps commercial teams with brand positioning, segmentation, payer research and real-world evidence initiatives. Its global footprint and methodological rigor make Ipsos a preferred partner for cross-country comparative studies and multi-stakeholder qualitative work.
Evaluate (Evaluate Ltd / Evaluate Pharma) specializes in commercial intelligence and forecasting for pharmaceuticals and biotech. Its consensus forecasting, product sales models and pipeline analytics are widely used by investors, corporate strategy teams and business development groups to compare asset potential, model revenue trajectories, and stress-test scenarios ahead of licensing or acquisition decisions. Evaluate’s combination of transparent methodology and regularly refreshed forecasts is particularly valuable during peak decision windows.
NielsenIQ brings deep consumer and retail analytics to healthcare, making it an essential partner for OTC brands, consumer health teams and any biopharma organization integrating retail channels into commercialization plans. NielsenIQ’s syndicated consumer panels, purchase-level data and health & wellness practice help companies understand patient and consumer behavior, track brand performance in retail, and quantify trends that intersect consumer demand and clinical markets.
While primarily a management consultancy, McKinsey’s healthcare analytics and market intelligence offerings are robust and increasingly data-driven. The firm combines strategic consulting with large-scale analytics, bespoke market models and implementation support, making it a strong option for organizations that need integrated strategy-to-execution research—especially for complex transformation programs, payer-provider strategy or large commercial rollouts. McKinsey is frequently engaged where research must be coupled with organizational change and execution capability.
Selecting a market research partner is not only a question of pedigree; it is about fit. Start by defining the decision you need to support: Do you need a rapid go/no-go launch assessment, a multi-year sales forecast, primary payer research, or a continuous competitive monitoring service? Match the vendor’s core strengths to that need. For example, syndication-heavy projects and retail analytics often map to NielsenIQ or IQVIA, while specialized therapeutic research and bespoke pipeline forecasting may align better with DelveInsight, Evaluate or Clarivate/DRG. Larger transformation or go-to-market programs that require cross-functional execution benefit from firms that combine advisory and analytics, such as McKinsey or Frost & Sullivan.
Procurement and contracting tips: specify deliverables and update cadence, insist on transparent modeling assumptions and sensitivity analyses for forecasts, and include data-security and compliance clauses when projects involve patient-level or HCP data. When possible, run a short proof-of-concept to validate methodology and responsiveness before committing to enterprise subscriptions.
High-value engagements are characterized by clearly defined objectives, co-created research designs, and iterative checkpoints where draft findings are stress-tested with internal stakeholders. The best providers surface both directional strategic implications and practical next steps—e.g., prioritized patient segments, payer evidence-gaps that require targeted RWE, or launch sequencing that maximizes early access. They also provide reproducible models and exportable datasets that internal teams can re-use for scenario planning.
Trusted market research is often the difference between an informed high-conviction decision and an expensive strategic misstep. For CEOs, CMOs and investors, the right provider reduces uncertainty around market sizing, reimbursement risk and competitor dynamics. When evaluating firms, triangulate vendor claims with client references, sample deliverables and an assessment of the firm’s recent work in your specific therapeutic area and geography. Finally, prioritize flexibility: markets move fast—your research partner should be able to pivot from baseline forecasts to rapid, targeted deep dives as regulatory outcomes, trial readouts or competitive moves demand updated guidance.
Choosing among world-class providers ultimately comes down to matching your strategic priorities with a firm’s demonstrated strengths. The ten organizations profiled here represent a range of capabilities—from scale and syndicated datasets to niche therapeutic focus and high-touch advisory services—so procurement teams can select a partner that reliably converts data into decisive outcomes.