Market Research Companies in Beirut

Key figures for researchers

Census

none since 1932: population figures come from official surveys and estimates¹

Population

341,700 residents in Beirut, 7.1% of Lebanon’s residents (CAS, mid-2018, excluding camps)²

Suburbs

553,800 residents in Baabda and 511,000 in Matn, in Mount Lebanon (CAS, mid-2018)²

Non-Lebanese

30.9% of Beirut residents, the highest share in Lebanon (CAS, 2018–2019)³

Registered elsewhere

58.4% of Beirut residents do not live in their place of registration (CAS, 2018–2019)³

Area

Beirut municipality covers 21 km², at the core of a 111 km² built-up area⁴

Syrian refugees known to UNHCR

28,818 in Beirut, 82,792 in Baabda, 41,788 in Matn (31 July 2026)⁵

Grid electricity

8 to 10 hours a day at best from current production capacity (December 2025)⁶

Travel advice

the UK advises against all travel to parts of Beirut’s southern suburbs (updated 10 August 2026)⁸

Ramadan 2027

expected to start around 8 February, with Eid al-Fitr around 9–10 March⁹

Research guide

Research landscape

Beirut is the main base for market research in Lebanon: local full-service agencies, qualitative and social research specialists, fieldwork and recruitment companies, and offices that also coordinate studies in other Middle East countries. Many agencies, clients and NGOs are based in the city itself or in the neighbouring suburbs of Mount Lebanon. Since the 2020 port explosion and the economic crisis, the city has also been the focus of many humanitarian and urban studies, including UN-Habitat neighbourhood profiles.

Who you will interview

Lebanon has had no census since 1932, and the government has only published estimates since then. The best official source is the CAS 2018–2019 household survey, which excluded refugee camps: it counted 341,700 residents in Beirut, 7.1% of the country’s residents. Treat all population figures for Beirut as estimates.

Beirut is very mixed. Non-Lebanese made up 30.9% of residents, the highest share in the country, and 58.4% of residents did not live in their place of registration. UNHCR counted 28,818 Syrian refugees known to it in Beirut at the end of July 2026. Questionnaires are usually offered in Arabic, French and English, with Lebanese Arabic wording for spoken interviews (see the Lebanon guide).

Fieldwork in practice

Decide early what “Beirut” means for the study. Beirut municipality covers only 21 km², at the core of a 111 km² continuously built-up area. Much of what clients call Greater Beirut lies in Mount Lebanon: the Baabda district (553,800 residents in mid-2018, covering the southern and eastern suburbs) and the Matn district (511,000). Agree on the district list and set quotas by area, nationality, age and gender on that area.

Grid power is limited: in December 2025 the Minister of Energy said current production capacity could supply 8 to 10 hours of electricity a day at best, and households and businesses rely on more expensive private diesel generators. Check that venues and call centres have backup power, and allow for connection problems in online and video interviews.

Security conditions differ by area and can change quickly. In its travel advice updated on 10 August 2026, the UK FCDO advises against all travel to parts of Beirut and its southern suburbs, including Tariq el Jdideh, Ghobeiry, Chiyah, Haret Hraik and Burj Al Barajneh (Route 51 from central Beirut to the airport is excluded), and against all travel to the 12 Palestinian refugee camps. Ask the agency which areas it can cover and how it protects its interviewers.

Focus groups and qualitative research

In-person focus groups for Lebanon are usually held in Beirut, in viewing facilities, agency offices or hotel meeting rooms. Ask the agency about backup power for recording and streaming, and whether groups should be split by language, age, community or nationality for your topic.

Ask for incentive levels, the payment currency (US dollars or Lebanese pounds) and recruitment lead times by target. Online communities and video interviews are used alongside in-person groups, and are a useful fallback if access to an area becomes difficult.

Timing

Beirut follows two calendars, Christian and Muslim. Ramadan is expected to start around 8 February 2027, with Eid al-Fitr around 9–10 March and Eid al-Adha around 16–17 May (exact dates depend on the moon sighting): fieldwork among Muslim respondents often moves to the evening during Ramadan.

In 2027, Western Easter falls on 28 March and Orthodox Easter on 2 May. Other official holidays include Armenian Orthodox Christmas (6 January), St Maroun’s Day (9 February), the Annunciation (25 March), the Assumption (15 August), Independence Day (22 November) and Christmas (25 December). Keep a contingency plan, such as a switch to telephone interviews, in case security conditions change during fieldwork.

Working with a Beirut agency

• Share a clear brief: objectives, target, sample size, Beirut only or Greater Beirut, districts, nationality quotas, method, languages and deadline.
• Ask which population figures the agency uses for quotas, since there is no recent census, and which groups its sample frame covers.
• Ask for the questionnaire in Arabic, French and English, and how the versions are checked for equivalence.
• Ask which areas the agency can cover today, how it follows security conditions and what its contingency plan is (switch to CATI or online).
• For focus groups, ask for the venue, backup power, viewing and streaming options, moderator languages and incentive levels.
• Compare several proposals: you can send one request to up to 5 Beirut companies from this page.

National rules (data protection, holidays, sampling across regions) are covered in our guide to market research in Lebanon.