Market Research Companies in Algeria

Key figures for researchers

Population

46.7 million (1 January 2024, ONS)¹

Wilayas (provinces)

69 and 1,541 communes (2026 reform; 58 wilayas before)³

Aged 15–59 / 60 and over

59.2% / 10.5% (1 July 2023, ONS)¹

Urban population

about 75.8% (2025, World Bank estimate)⁴

French speakers

33% of the population (2022 OIF estimate)⁵

Internet users

77.4% of individuals (2024)⁶

Mobile subscriptions

115 per 100 people (2024)⁷

GDP per capita

about US$6,050 (2025)⁸

Weekend

Friday and Saturday (since 2009)⁹

Research guide

Research landscape

Most market research agencies are based in Algiers, the capital and main business centre, with Oran and Constantine as the other main business cities. Local independent agencies and field suppliers work alongside offices or partners of international research networks.

Languages and fieldwork

The Constitution makes Arabic the official language of the State and states that Tamazight is also a national and official language. Questionnaires for the general public are usually written in Arabic and administered in Algerian Arabic (Darja), with Tamazight-speaking interviewers where needed. French remains widely used in business: the OIF estimates that 33% of Algerians are French speakers (2022), which makes it a usual language for B2B and executive interviews.

Algeria was divided into 58 wilayas until 2026, when a territorial reform raised the number to 69 wilayas and 1,541 communes; the transfer of powers to the new wilayas is due to be completed by 31 December 2026. Check which division your agency uses for quotas and regional results, since many existing statistics still follow the 58 former wilayas. A national sample should cover the main cities (Algiers, Oran, Constantine), the rest of the north and the High Plateaus, and the less populated southern wilayas.

Which methods work

Connectivity is good: 77.4% of individuals use the internet and there are more mobile subscriptions than inhabitants (115 per 100). Online surveys and telephone interviews (CATI) work well for urban, younger and educated targets, and for B2B.

For the general population, including older people (10.5% are aged 60 and over) and rural areas, face-to-face interviews (CAPI) with quotas by region, area type, age and gender remain the reference. Online samples tend to over-represent urban and educated respondents: ask the agency how the panel or sample is recruited and weighted. Focus groups are usually held in Algiers, and in Oran or Constantine when regional groups are needed.

Timing

The weekend is Friday and Saturday (since 2009, replacing Thursday–Friday): plan B2B interviews from Sunday to Thursday. Ramadan changes daily routines: working hours are shorter, fieldwork often moves to the evening and consumption patterns change. In 2027 it is expected to start around 8 February, with Eid al-Fitr around 9 or 10 March and Eid al-Adha in mid-May (astronomical estimates: exact dates depend on the moon sighting). Fieldwork usually stops for a few days around each Eid.

Yennayer, the Amazigh New Year, has been a paid public holiday on 12 January since 2018. July and August are the main holiday months, so business decision makers are harder to reach. For B2B studies, September to June is the best period, outside Ramadan.

Data protection

Personal data is governed by Law No. 18-07 of 10 June 2018, amended and supplemented by Law No. 25-11 of 24 July 2025, and supervised by the ANPDP (Autorité nationale de protection des données à caractère personnel). Its members took office on 11 August 2022, and operators had until 11 August 2023 to comply. Processing generally requires the express consent of the person concerned and a prior declaration to the ANPDP; prior authorisation is required for transfers of personal data abroad, for example when survey data is hosted outside Algeria.

Since the 2025 amendment, controllers must appoint a data protection officer, keep records of processing activities and notify data breaches to the authority and to the people concerned. Ask your agency whether its processing is declared to the ANPDP, how respondents give consent and how the data will be transferred to you.

Working with a local agency

• Share a clear brief: objectives, target, sample size, wilayas, method, languages and deadline.
• Ask who does the fieldwork: own interviewers or subcontractors, and in which wilayas (High Plateaus and south in particular).
• Ask about quality control: back-checks, GPS or audio checks for face-to-face interviews, supervision of CATI calls.
• Check that the processing is declared to the ANPDP and how consent and transfers abroad are handled under Law 18-07.
• Compare several proposals: you can send one request to up to 5 companies from this page.