Market Research Companies in Ukraine

Key figures for researchers

Last census

2001; much of the available population data is obsolete (UNFPA, 2024)¹

Official population estimate

41,167.3 thousand on 1 January 2022, before the full-scale invasion²

Population change since 2022

an estimated fall of 8 million (UNFPA, October 2024)¹

Refugees abroad

an estimated 5.9 million, including over 5 million in Europe (end of 2025)³

Internally displaced people

3,871,000 (IOM, last updated 30 June 2026)⁴

People in need of humanitarian aid

an estimated 10.8 million (2026 plan)⁵

Native language (2001 census)

Ukrainian 67.5%, Russian 29.6%⁶

Ethnic groups (2001 census)

Ukrainians 77.8%, Russians 17.3%⁶

Internet users

82.5% of individuals (2024)⁷

Mobile subscriptions

133 per 100 people (2023)⁸

Research guide

Research landscape

Ukraine has a research industry serving local clients, international companies and international organisations. Full-service agencies work alongside specialist social, B2B and healthcare research firms, telephone centres, field networks and online panel providers. Kyiv is the main business centre; Lviv, Kharkiv, Odesa and Dnipro are other common locations for city samples and qualitative work.

Martial law has been in force since 24 February 2022 (Presidential Decree No. 64/2022) and has been extended by successive decrees (for example, 90 days from 2 August 2026, Decree No. 596/2026). Since 2022, national surveys have also measured displacement and needs: for example, IOM’s general population survey screened 40,001 randomly selected respondents between 15 October and 22 December 2025. Ask your agency which professional code it follows, such as the ICC/ESOMAR International Code.

Languages and fieldwork

Questionnaires are usually prepared in Ukrainian and should be translated by native speakers and tested before fieldwork. The 2001 census, the latest available, recorded Ukrainian as the native language of 67.5% of people and Russian of 29.6%. No more recent census data on language exists, so ask your agency whether a Russian version of the questionnaire is also needed for your target.

Sampling frames are uncertain. UNFPA notes that the last census was held in 2001, making much of the available data obsolete, and estimates that the population fell by 8 million after February 2022. At the end of 2025, an estimated 5.9 million refugees from Ukraine were abroad, and IOM counted 3,871,000 internally displaced people in June 2026; UNHCR states that its refugee figures are estimates that may be amended. Official estimates already excluded the temporarily occupied territories of Crimea and Sevastopol (2020), so define precisely which territory and which population (residents, displaced people, returnees) your sample covers.

Which methods work

Connectivity is high: 82.5% of individuals used the internet in 2024, and there were 133 mobile subscriptions per 100 people in 2023. Telephone surveys have been used for large national samples during the war: IOM’s round 22 survey (October to December 2025) used computer-assisted telephone interviews (CATI) with random digit dialling. Online surveys can reach internet users, with quotas and weighting.

Face-to-face fieldwork depends on security conditions. Under the Law on the Legal Regime of Martial Law, authorities can introduce curfews, restrict the freedom of movement and prohibit mass events. OCHA reports that in front-line communities such as Druzhkivka, a strict curfew means residents can go outside only a few hours a day. Ask your agency which oblasts and settlements can be covered in person, and how interviewers and respondents are protected.

Timing

While martial law is in force, the Labour Code articles on holidays and non-working days (articles 71, 73 and 78-1) do not apply (Law No. 2136-IX of 15 March 2022), so public holidays are not days off.

Since 2023, Christmas is a public holiday on 25 December instead of 7 January, Statehood Day is on 15 July instead of 28 July, and the Day of Defenders of Ukraine is on 1 October instead of 14 October. OCHA reports that attacks are causing systematic damage to energy, water and other essential services: allow extra fieldwork time and plan for interruptions to telephone and online interviews.

Data protection

Personal data is governed by the Law of Ukraine on Personal Data Protection (No. 2297-VI of 1 June 2010). The supervisory authority is the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman). Controllers and processors that process high-risk data must notify the Ombudsman within 30 days of starting that processing; otherwise no prior registration is required.

Personal data can generally be transferred to countries with adequate protection, which include EEA member states and parties to the Council of Europe Convention 108; other transfers are allowed under listed conditions, such as the data subject’s express consent. A new law on personal data protection (bill No. 8153), intended to align Ukrainian rules with European standards, was approved in first reading on 20 November 2024 and was being prepared for second reading in December 2025: check whether it has been adopted before fieldwork.

Working with a local agency

• Share a clear brief: objectives, target, sample size, oblasts and city sizes, method, languages and deadline.
• Ask which territory the sample covers, how internally displaced people and returnees are included, and which population figures are used for quotas and weighting.
• Ask how fieldwork adapts to curfews, movement restrictions and power cuts, and how the safety of interviewers and respondents is ensured.
• Check whether a Ukrainian and a Russian version of the questionnaire are needed.
• Agree in writing who is controller and who is processor of the personal data, how data is transferred abroad, and the retention period.
• Compare several proposals: you can send one request to up to 5 companies from this page.