Proficiency testing (PT) is a form of external quality assurance in which laboratories analyze identical samples and compare results to evaluate performance. It essentially provides an interlaboratory comparison that verifies a lab’s testing accuracy and competence. By identifying systematic errors and deviations, PT helps laboratories validate their methods and demonstrate their competency to stakeholders such as accreditation bodies and regulators. Participation in PT is often mandatory for accredited labs, and it has become a cornerstone of laboratory quality management across clinical, environmental, food, and other testing domains. The global proficiency testing market has been growing steadily – for example, it was valued around $1.2 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach $1.6 billion by 2028, reflecting the increasing emphasis on lab quality standards worldwide. Key factors driving this growth include stringent regulations (e.g. in food safety, water quality, and pharmaceuticals) and the expansion of PT programs into emerging areas like cannabis testing.

Major organizations leading the global proficiency testing market (examples of top PT providers and brands). These companies offer proficiency testing schemes across various industries, helping laboratories worldwide ensure accurate and reliable results.

Given the importance of PT, several leading companies and organizations have emerged as primary providers of proficiency testing services globally. These top providers serve thousands of laboratories around the world and cover a broad range of testing fields. Below, we highlight some of the most prominent proficiency testing providers, along with insights into their programs and contributions:

LGC Limited (UK) – Global Leader in Proficiency Testing

LGC Limited, based in the UK, is widely recognized as a market leader in proficiency testing programs. According to industry reports, LGC holds the largest share of the global PT market – responsible for about 19% of total participation volume worldwide. Through its flagship AXIO Proficiency Testing brand, LGC offers a wide range of PT schemes across clinical, food, environmental, pharmaceutical, and other sectors. The company serves over 13,000 laboratories in more than 160 countries, organizing approximately 2,000 PT rounds each year. LGC has continually expanded its offerings, introducing new programs (for example, a COVID-19 PT scheme in 2020) and integrating advanced technologies. Recent developments include AI-driven software to speed up proficiency result analysis by 85%, underscoring LGC’s innovative approach in the PT market. This broad coverage and continuous innovation have cemented LGC’s position as a global leader in proficiency testing.

College of American Pathologists (US) – Pioneer in Clinical Laboratory PT

The College of American Pathologists (CAP) is a not-for-profit professional organization that operates one of the world’s most extensive proficiency testing programs, particularly for clinical laboratories. CAP’s Surveys and External Quality Assessment programs have a long history (dating back to the 1940s) in helping labs ensure accurate medical testing. The CAP is accredited to ISO/IEC 17043 and is regarded as the largest PT provider in the clinical laboratory community. In 2020, over 25,000 laboratories worldwide participated in CAP’s proficiency testing programs, reflecting its broad adoption. CAP offers more than 700 PT/EQA programs covering 16 different disciplines of laboratory medicine. These range from clinical chemistry and hematology to microbiology, cytopathology, genetics, and beyond. The CAP continually updates its programs in response to emerging needs – for example, in 2023 it launched a new PT program for the monkeypox (mpox) virus to aid labs in validating their molecular testing for this pathogen. By combining scientific expertise with rigorous quality standards, CAP has been a pioneer of laboratory proficiency testing and remains a leading authority for clinical labs seeking accreditation (e.g. under CLIA) and quality improvement.

Bio-Rad Laboratories (US) – Comprehensive PT/EQA Program Provider

Bio-Rad Laboratories is a global life science and diagnostics company that also stands as a major provider of proficiency testing materials and external quality assessment programs. Bio-Rad’s diagnostic division offers fully accredited PT/EQA programs covering a wide array of clinical testing areas – including clinical chemistry (serum/urine analyses), immunoassays, therapeutic drug monitoring, hematology, and more. In market analyses, Bio-Rad is consistently identified among the top-tier PT providers globally (with roughly 14% share by participation volume, second only to LGC in one estimate). The company’s PT programs are often delivered alongside its quality control products, enabling laboratories to assess performance using Bio-Rad’s independent control samples and peer comparisons. With a presence in over 150 countries and thousands of laboratory customers, Bio-Rad’s proficiency testing services help labs verify their analytical accuracy against peer benchmarks on a continual basis. The strength of Bio-Rad’s offerings lies in its combination of a wide product portfolio (spanning 3,000+ diagnostic products) and an emphasis on quality – the company maintains accreditation for its PT programs and regularly adds new analytes and program modules to meet evolving laboratory needs. This has solidified Bio-Rad’s reputation as a leading PT provider, especially in the clinical diagnostics arena.

Randox Laboratories (UK) – RIQAS: The World’s Largest EQA Scheme

Randox Laboratories, based in Northern Ireland (UK), is well known for its Randox International Quality Assessment Scheme (RIQAS) – which is the world’s largest external quality assessment (EQA) or proficiency testing scheme in the clinical laboratory field. RIQAS has an exceptionally large global reach: as of recent reports, it involves over 70,000 laboratory participants across more than 130–140 countries. This extensive participation makes RIQAS a truly worldwide program for interlaboratory comparison. Founded in 1989, RIQAS today offers around 35 different PT programs covering disciplines such as clinical chemistry, hematology, immunoassay, microbiology, molecular testing, and more. Laboratories participating in RIQAS receive regular unknown samples to test, and the centralized Randox program provides comparison reports that allow labs to benchmark their performance against thousands of peers. The huge dataset of RIQAS (tens of thousands of labs) enables robust statistics and rapid performance feedback – a key benefit cited by participants. Randox has also achieved accreditation (ISO/IEC 17043) for RIQAS, ensuring the program’s quality and credibility. With its scale and comprehensive coverage, RIQAS is a cornerstone EQA/PT program for clinical labs globally, and it firmly establishes Randox as one of the leading proficiency testing providers in the world.

Merck KGaA (Germany) – Supelco® Proficiency Testing Solutions

Merck KGaA (based in Darmstadt, Germany), through its life science subsidiaries like Sigma-Aldrich and the Supelco® brand, is another key player in the proficiency testing market. Merck’s PT offerings span multiple industries, with a strong emphasis on environmental, pharmaceutical, and industrial chemistry testing. For example, Merck (Sigma-Aldrich) provides a suite of proficiency testing schemes for parameters in drinking water, wastewater, soil/solids, air, food, and more. Many of these programs originated from Sigma-Aldrich’s RTC™ proficiency testing services, now integrated under Merck’s umbrella. The company offers both scheduled PT rounds and on-demand proficiency test samples, allowing labs to independently assess their performance at any time. Merck’s Supelco PT products are designed to be “certified and independent evaluations” of a lab’s analytical performance, aligned with ISO 17043 requirements. In addition to traditional chemistry PT schemes, Merck has also expanded into emerging areas – for instance, providing PT materials for cannabis analysis and pharmaceutical impurities, reflecting current industry trends. By leveraging its expertise in reference materials and analytical chemistry, Merck KGaA has established itself as a leading provider of proficiency testing in the environmental and pharmaceutical quality sectors, complementing the more clinically-focused providers in the market.

Fera Science (UK) – FAPAS Proficiency Testing for Food and Water

Fera Science Ltd. (UK) operates the FAPAS® proficiency testing service, which is one of the world’s leading PT providers for the food and beverage, agriculture, and environmental sectors. Founded in 1990 as part of the UK government’s Food and Environment Research Agency, FAPAS has nearly 30 years of experience in conducting international proficiency tests. It is a UKAS-accredited provider (ISO/IEC 17043) that supports thousands of laboratories in over 130 countries. FAPAS offers a wide array of PT schemes covering areas such as food chemistry (nutrient analysis, contaminants, toxins), food microbiology, GMO testing, water quality, animal feed, and more. It is often referred to as a “global leader in proficiency testing for the food and drink industry,” with a mission to provide high-quality PT services to an international customer base. FAPAS programs are scheduled throughout the year, allowing labs to regularly challenge their testing accuracy on real-world sample matrices – for example, measuring pesticide residues in fruits, heavy metals in drinking water, or pathogens in food products. As a division of Fera Science (and formerly part of DEFRA), FAPAS brings authoritative expertise in food safety and environmental science. Its long-standing reputation and extensive catalog of tests make FAPAS a go-to proficiency testing provider in the food/water testing community, trusted by industry labs and regulatory bodies alike.

American Proficiency Institute (US) – Major North American PT Provider

The American Proficiency Institute (API) is one of the largest proficiency testing providers based in the United States, serving primarily clinical laboratories and point-of-care testing sites. Founded in 1990 and headquartered in Michigan, API has grown to enroll over 20,000 laboratories in its PT programs worldwide. This scale puts API among the top global providers by participation count, comparable to the largest international programs. API offers a comprehensive range of proficiency testing programs across all areas of laboratory medicine – including chemistry, hematology, microbiology, immunology, blood bank (immunohematology), molecular diagnostics, and more. Many small to mid-sized clinical labs and physician-office laboratories in the U.S. use API’s proficiency tests as part of their CLIA certification requirements. API is known for its user-friendly Paperless Reporting platform and for introducing innovative features such as DataDirect (an interface allowing direct upload of results from laboratory information systems to avoid transcription errors). The organization emphasizes customer service and education, offering tools like continuing education for lab staff. According to API itself, the institute “is one of the largest proficiency testing providers in the world,” delivering technical excellence and quality assurance to a broad range of labs. Through affordable programs and a wide test menu, API has become a key player in proficiency testing, especially for clinical laboratories in North America**.

Other Notable Proficiency Testing Providers

In addition to the leaders outlined above, there are several other significant organizations contributing to proficiency testing globally. For example, Waters Corporation (US), through its ERA division, is a major provider of PT schemes for environmental analysis (water, soil, etc.). Bipea (France) is an established proficiency testing cooperative serving labs in agriculture, food, environmental and pharmaceutical testing since the 1970s. AOAC INTERNATIONAL (US) runs PT programs focused on food safety and pharmaceutical analyses, leveraging its expertise in standard methods. Regional providers like Proficiency Testing Australia (Australia) and UK NEQAS (UK) coordinate PT/EQA schemes in their respective geographies and specialties. Niche specialists also exist, such as Weqas (Wales, UK) for clinical pathology EQA and Phenova Inc. (US) for environmental and cannabis testing. Furthermore, global databases like EPTIS (European Proficiency Testing Information System) list hundreds of accredited PT providers around the world. This rich ecosystem of providers – from large global companies to smaller specialized programs – ensures that laboratories in virtually every testing discipline have access to proficiency tests. Such widespread availability of PT services helps uphold high standards of accuracy and reliability in lab results across the globe.