Sports facilities and data centers, two of the hottest areas in commercial real estate development, fueled revenue growth at some of the largest U.S. architecture firms.

Gensler retained its position for the fifth straight year as the largest U.S.-based architecture firm mea,sured by yearly revenue, according to Architectural Record, a New York-based publication. Gensler’s worldwide revenue grew 2.5% to $1.83 billion in 2023.

Perkins & Will retained its No. 2 spot in the ranking, also for the fifth consecutive year, with revenue increasing 35% to $706.6 million.

Architecture firms’ billings were soft in April as high interest rates stalled projects, according to a monthly survey of executives conducted by the American Institute of Architects. Billings by architecture firms offer insight into the potential outlook of commercial development activity. Architects are hired in the early stages of development to work on building designs and master planning.

While Gensler and other firms reported growth in sales in 2023, some dropped in the rankings as their revenue declined. NBBJ slid to No. 22 from No. 15 with revenue dropping 24.2% to $180.2 million. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill fell to No. 19 from No. 12 as revenue declined 13.5% to $223.6 million.

NBBJ did not respond to CoStar News' request for comment. Skidmore declined to comment.

Data centers are one of the main factors behind the growth at Dallas-based HKS. The company ranked No. 3 with revenue of $566 million, up about 14% from the prior year.

The rising usage of cloud computing and artificial intelligence is boosting demand for data centers, HKS CEO Dan Noble told CoStar News. HKS worked on mission-critical building designs in 31 states in 2023. Its projects include a data center on the site of SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.

“With the growth of artificial intelligence, demand for mission-critical facilities is increasing exponentially,” Noble told CoStar News.

HKS also saw revenue growth for senior living, manufacturing and logistics projects. The company last year added interior design to its traditional architecture services for senior living facilities, Noble said.

Gensler co-chair Andy Cohen told CoStar News that the firm’s entertainment, sports and retail practices are growing. Even design work for offices has remained solid as landlords and tenants renovate to lure employees back to the office.

“We are seeing a growing demand for places and spaces that foster connection, promote interaction and immerse people in real, visceral experiences,” Cohen told CoStar News.

Populous vaulted into the top 10 with revenue climbing 74% to $390.4 million, placing the firm at No. 9. The Kansas City, Missouri-based firm is focused primarily on sports facilities and entertainment venues. Several Populous projects have opened in the past year, including the Sphere in Las Vegas and BMO Centre in Calgary. The pipeline at Populous remains full, too, with construction underway at the Buffalo Bills’ new football stadium.

HDR ranked No. 4 with revenue of $496.3 million, up 3.1%. The No. 5 firm, Aecom, said its revenue rose 8.6% to $478.5 million. Stantec, Jacobs, Corgan and HOK rounded out the top 10 in this year’s rankings.

HDR, Aecom, Stantec, Jacobs and HOK also provide engineering, construction and geotechnical services, but the companies break out figures specifically for architecture in their reports to Architectural Record.

In other significant jumps in rankings, Arcadis rose to No. 12 from No. 25 with 2023 revenue of $319.3 million. PBK climbed to No. 15 from No. 20 with $278 million in revenue.

Quinn Evans, this year’s winner of the American Institute of Architects award for firm of the year, reported 2023 revenue of $53.2 million, placing No. 88 in the ranking.

The Architectural Record rankings are collected from data reported by architectural firms to the publication and to an associated publication, Engineering News-Record. Architectural Record and Engineering News-Record are published by BNP Media, a Birmingham, Michigan-based company that publishes news sites, organizes industry events and provides market research.