PropTech by the numbers: funding, adoption and ROI in 2025

Market snapshot: a data-driven sector matures

In the PropTech sector, PropTech—spanning digital marketplaces, smart building platforms, and construction technology—has moved from experimentation to scaled deployment. Adjacent categories underscore the momentum: the global smart home market is on track to surpass $200 billion by the late 2020s, data from analysts shows, signaling broader consumer and landlord appetite for connected, data-rich property experiences. Across commercial real estate, the shift toward software-led operations is increasingly visible in leasing, asset management, and tenant engagement.

Investor and operator priorities are converging on operational resilience, energy performance, and user experience. In its latest industry outlook, industry reports show that institutional owners rank technology modernization among the top strategies to protect net operating income amid higher rates and shifting demand patterns. That directional thesis is catalyzing spend on building operating systems, digital twins, and analytics layers that can turn fragmented property data into actionable KPIs.

Capital flows: funding resets, focus sharpens

The venture cycle has cooled from the 2021 peak, but deal-making remains active in segments tied to cash-on-cash efficiency—energy optimization, workflow automation, and data infrastructure. After a slower 2023, PitchBook reports point to stabilization through 2024, with a shift toward later-stage financings and corporate strategic participation. That pattern favors companies with demonstrable unit economics and enterprise sales traction, rather than consumer-facing experiments.

Strategic buyers in real estate services and building equipment have become prominent catalysts. Firms like JLL, CBRE, and Schneider Electric have expanded venture arms and partnership programs, while category leaders such as VTS (leasing and asset management), Procore (construction management), and Matterport (spatial data) continue to scale recurring revenue footprints. The takeaway for founders: the bar has risen for evidence-backed ROI, but solutions that compress operating costs or unlock rent premiums still find capital.

Adoption metrics: from digital tours to smart operations

On the residential side, digital discovery is now near-universal. In the U.S., a large majority of buyers use online listings and mobile research as primary tools, and Realtor adoption of virtual tours, e-signatures, and CRM systems continues to climb, according to recent research. This behavioral shift amplifies the role of platforms like Zillow, Redfin, and CoStar’s Homes.com in lead generation and market liquidity.

Commercial adoption is expanding in tandem, particularly where energy and maintenance are high-cost line items. Buildings account for roughly 30% of global final energy consumption and about a quarter of energy-related CO2 emissions, according to the IEA. Those fundamentals are pushing owners to instrument properties with IoT sensors, BMS integrations, and AI-driven optimization that can deliver double-digit reductions in energy use while tightening comfort bands—metrics increasingly reported in asset ESG dashboards and lender disclosures.

ROI and outlook: measurable gains, integrated stacks

The most persuasive statistics in PropTech today are operational. Owners report fewer work orders per unit after deploying predictive maintenance, faster lease-up times with data-informed pricing, and lower churn where tenant apps improve service transparency. While outcomes vary by asset class and geography, pilots are giving way to portfolio rollouts as property teams standardize APIs, data models, and governance that allow insights to travel across buildings and business lines.

Looking ahead, the funding reset is likely to persist even as adoption accelerates, rewarding firms that can quantify savings and revenue lift in months, not years. The interplay of regulation (from energy disclosure mandates to indoor air quality standards) and insurance underwriting will further elevate demand for verified building data. With capital rediscovering durable value and operators demanding interoperable stacks, PropTech’s next growth phase will be driven less by novelty and more by statistics that tie digital capabilities to NOI, cap rates, and risk-adjusted returns—the language that moves real estate decisions.