Largest exhibition halls worldwide 2024, by gross hall capacity

As of late 2023, the China Import & Export Fair Complex (Pazhou Complex) was the world's largest exhibition hall, with a gross hall capacity of approximately 504 thousand square meters. Shanghai's National Exhibition and Convention Center (NECC) followed with 470 thousand square meters, while the Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center and the National Convention and Exhibition Center (Tianjin) tied for third place, each with 400 thousand square meters. All four largest venues were in China. The fifth- and sixth-placed spaces were in Germany: Messe Hannover and Messe Frankfurt had little more than 392 thousand and 372 thousand square meters, respectively.

An industry in recovery

With dozens of players across the globe, the trade fair business is a multimillion-dollar industry. But it remains far from pre-pandemic heights. The coronavirus outbreak turned 2020 into a defining year for this field. Online meetings and events became paramount, starting a new era where, even after COVID-19 subdued, many people did not necessarily feel the urge to attend an event in person. As a result, in 2022, very few trade fair organizers – three out of 18 – recorded revenues higher than three years earlier.

Is trade show marketing effective?

While the first years following the pandemic indicated a bleak scenario for the industry, most of its participants remained confident about their businesses' capabilities. According to a survey released in early 2023, approximately 45 percent of trade show marketing professionals in the United States felt hopeful about their field's effectiveness. Another 43 percent described their perception as optimistic.