Aug 19, 2026
If you have been watching the news regarding the appliance market, you would have realized that steam irons have become widely popular. Steam irons are increasingly used not just in homes, but also in hotels, hospitals, and factories.
According to the research, the size of the global industrial steam iron market in 2025 was almost $1.4bn and will pick up at a compound annual growth rate of 5% and reach $2bn in 2032. In addition, some forecasts predict that the overall steam iron market is even larger-it should reach $3.24bn in 2024 and grow to $4.5bn by 2035.
This is a lot of irons, and all of them need a thermostat.
It should also be noted that the migration to steam ironing does not only have to do with figures. It brings along changes in the requirements towards temperature controlling devices.
Steam irons have been around for decades, but the market dynamics have shifted. Consumers and commercial buyers are prioritizing efficiency, fabric safety, and time savings like never before. Nearly 58% of consumers now value time savings when choosing an ironing solution, and 46% prioritize fabric safety.
In the commercial space, the drivers are even clearer. Textile and garment manufacturing is expanding rapidly-particularly in Asia-Pacific, which holds over 40% of the industrial steam iron market. Countries like China, India, and Bangladesh are scaling up production to meet global apparel demand. Commercial laundry services, hotels, and hospitals are also upgrading their equipment.
The result? More steam irons being built, and more pressure on OEMs to deliver consistent, reliable performance at scale.
Here's the part that matters to you as a manufacturer.
Steam irons run hotter and longer than dry irons. They generate steam by heating water to high temperatures-often well above 180°C at the soleplate. The thermostat has to cycle on and off constantly to maintain that temperature while steam is being generated and released.
That means more cycles, more heat stress, and less tolerance for drift.
If the thermostat drifts by even 10°C over time, the iron either:
Runs too hot-scorching fabrics and damaging the soleplate coating, or
Runs too cool-producing weak steam and leaving wrinkles.
Either way, you get warranty returns. And in commercial applications-where an iron might run 8 to 10 hours a day-that drift happens faster.
This is precisely where KST snap-action thermostats shine.
The snap-action mechanism means the contacts open and close instantly at the set temperature. No slow creeping, no arcing that erodes the contacts over time. That translates to over 100,000 cycles of reliable operation-exactly what a commercial steam iron needs.
The adjustability is another factor. Steam iron users-especially in commercial settings-need to switch between fabrics. Cotton needs high heat; synthetics need low heat. KST thermostats give OEMs the flexibility to design irons with a temperature dial that actually works, across a range from 0°C to 250°C.
And because KST thermostats are purely mechanical-no electronics, no sensors-they hold up in the high-humidity, high-heat environment inside a steam iron handle. No circuit boards to fry, no sensors to drift out of spec.
Here's where the market growth really hits home for OEMs.
With the industrial steam iron market growing at 5.0% CAGR and the broader steam iron market expanding steadily, production volumes are climbing. OEMs are under pressure to ramp up output without compromising quality.
That means they need thermostat suppliers who can:
Deliver consistent calibration across thousands of units
Maintain tight tolerances batch after batch
Provide certifications (UL, TUV, VDE, CQC) for export markets
Offer customization-temperature range, shaft length, terminal types-to fit different iron designs
We've seen this play out with several of our OEM customers over the past few years. One commercial laundry equipment manufacturer told us their production of steam irons has nearly doubled since 2022. They've standardized on KST thermostats across all models because they need a component that performs the same way, every time, at volume.
The industrial steam iron market is segmented by product type, and gravity feed steam irons hold about 45% of the market share. These are the workhorses of commercial laundries and garment factories-simple, reliable, and built for continuous duty.
Steam generator irons are the fastest-growing segment, driven by demand for higher performance and energy efficiency. These irons use external boilers to generate high-pressure steam, which means even more demanding temperature control requirements.
Digital and smart steam irons are also gaining traction, with automated temperature control and connectivity features. Even in these more advanced systems, the temperature sensing and switching often still rely on a reliable mechanical thermostat as the primary control-because when you're dealing with steam at 200°C, you don't want software glitches.
The steam iron market is growing, and it's not slowing down. Whether you're building gravity feed irons for commercial laundries or steam generator irons for premium consumers, the demand for precise, reliable temperature control is only going to increase.
KST thermostats have been the go-to choice for iron manufacturers for years, and the shift to steam is reinforcing that trend. The snap-action mechanism handles the high cycle counts. The adjustability gives users the flexibility they need. The mechanical reliability holds up in steam-filled environments. And the ability to customize means you can spec exactly what your design requires.
If you're scaling up steam iron production or designing a new model, we can help you spec the right KST thermostat for your application. Send us your requirements-temperature range, voltage, cycle life targets, and annual volume-and we'll recommend a configuration, provide samples for testing, and quote production pricing.
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