2025 was yet another banner year for launch. Around the world, rockets attempted to lift off 329 times—with 321 of these attempts reaching orbit or near orbit—according to data compiled by astronomer Jonathan McDowell.
US (SpaceX): The data follows similar trends in years past where SpaceX accounted for the vast majority of US launches. The company also blew past the number of attempts made by entire nations—including nearly doubling the number from China in the same time period.
Over the course of the year, US launchers attempted to reach orbit 181 times, and hit (or very nearly missed) the mark in 179 of those attempts. US launch providers included:
- SpaceX: 170 launches
- Falcon 9: 165
- Starship: 5
- ULA: 6 launches
- Atlas V: 5
- Vulcan: 1
- Blue Origin: 2 New Glenn launches
- Firefly: 1 Alpha launch
- Northrop Grumman: 1 Minotaur launch
US-based Rocket Lab also logged 18 orbital launch attempts, 17 of which took off from the company’s pad in Mahia, New Zealand. One lifted off from Wallops Island in Virginia, but watch for them to start adding to this number this year, when their Neutron rocket is expected to start flying from the NASA facility.
Continental break: On the other side of the pond, European launchers brought the continent out of a multi-year slump, registering eight launch attempts and seven successes—the highest since 2021. European launchers included:
- Arianespace: 7 launches
- Ariane 6: 4
- Vega: 3
- Isar Aerospace: 1 Spectrum launch
China: China broke a yearslong plateau, logging 92 attempts throughout the year—35% more than in 2024. Long March 3 led the way with 15 launches, followed by Long March 6 with 11 launches. Deployment was mainly driven by the country’s two major LEO broadband constellation projects—the government run Guowang constellation and the commercial Qianfan (Spacesail), which both ramped up deployment in 2025.
+ Commercial: Underlying all of these attempts was a continuing shift from government-run launch programs to commercial alternatives. Commercially operated rockets were responsible for 70% of global launch attempts in 2025, flat from 2024 but up from 65% in 2023 and 55% in 2022.
Commercially owned satellites also accounted for much of the increase in the total number of sats launched. In 2025, a record 4,517 satellites were deployed on orbit, 58% more than 2024. The vast majority of these satellites (87%) were owned by commercial entities, while civil and defense satellites accounted for just 10% of the total.
