As consolidation continues and calls for more fundamental changes, Inman has laid out plans for the remaining 484 MLSs, both large and small.
Since 2015, the United States has lost nearly half of its multiple listing services (MLS). But if there’s one emerging consensus among leaders of some of the country’s largest MLSs, it’s that half isn’t enough.
While there is no widespread agreement on the appropriate number of MLSs to serve the industry’s approximately 1.86 million participants, a wave of consolidation is underway that many argue should continue.
From Compass CEO Robert Refkin’s call for a single national MLS to consolidation that still takes into account regional disparities, MLS consolidation is likely to continue beyond this year.
In this changing landscape, Inman set out to create an interactive map of the nearly 500 MLSs, large and small, that form the backbone of today’s real estate industry.
Bookmark this page to use it as an ongoing resource and track changes in real time. Below you will find comments from MLS and industry leaders regarding the wave of consolidation.
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art carter
Art Carter, CRMLS CEO
“I think it’ll probably settle in that 50 to 60 range. Look at California. It’s designated by CAR as a statewide multiple listing service, but at the end of the day California will probably have two or three MLSs, because there are literally some distinct differences in the way business is done across the state. You know, from the listing side to the closing table, there are some distinct differences even within the state.”
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Matt Consalvo, ARMLS CEO
“We think it’s efficient for brokers to have an MLS of less than 200,” Consalvo told Inman in March. “Below 200 is an important step in efficiency for brokers.”
matt consalvo
“Think of it this way: If I’m logged into nine MLSs, that means there are nine different sets of rules. Especially if the NAR has local discretion in terms of rules, the broker’s policy manual will have all three of those numbers or 30,” he added. “It’s going to get difficult quickly.”
Anne Marie Decatsi
Anne Marie Decatsi, CanopyMLS CEO
“I think there should be more integration, both on the MLS side and on the association side. There shouldn’t be 500 MLSs. But there should never be one. I don’t agree that there should be only one. But I think there should be maybe 25 MLSs in the country.”
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Justin Haag, NWMLS CEO
“What’s the right number? I don’t know. Maybe 100. Maybe 50. Maybe 20. I don’t think it’s 1.”
Justin Haag | Northwest MLS
“The reason I don’t think it’s one is because competition between MLSs is important. It fosters innovation and makes everyone better. And that’s healthy,” he added. “If you only have one, there’s no competition. And I think that’s a problem.”
“The same goes for the securities industry: Having just one brokerage firm in the country eliminates competition and ultimately stifles innovation.”
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Deonna Hall, BeachesMLS CEO
“I started in this industry almost 20 years ago, and it’s been no secret for a long time that there has been a call for more consolidation. One of the great things is that for the most part, MLSs have taken it seriously, which is a big reason why we’ve seen more consolidation in MLSs over the years. We naturally want to make sure this market works for brokers.”
diona hall
“It sounds like a great idea to bring that person in. I think it’s probably a logistical nightmare to run a national MLS. And I understand that from a brokerage standpoint, given that person’s position and maybe where that person is from, it might sound like a great idea. But I don’t think it’s as realistic as someone looking in from the outside might think.”
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Robert Refkin, CEO of Compass
“I believe that we should not have 518 MLSs. I believe that brokerages should come together and create a common MLS that is owned by brokerages and agents and that treats everyone fairly and equally without fines or bans.”
robert refkin compass
“If all the brokerages came together and created one national MLS that would be owned by the brokerage firms, then it would be owned by the brokerage firms. By the way, I’d be very happy if Brian Donnellan of BrightMLS were that CEO. Let’s do that. Let’s create one national MLS that works across the country. Then we’ll create new super sites. That’s what should happen.”
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Methodology: The interactive map was built with help from Claude Pro using RESO’s Unique Organization Identifier (UOI) dataset as the canonical source. Accessed through RESO’s three public views (JSON feed, UOI Google Sheet, and human-readable “List of All MLS”) that RESO updates approximately weekly. MLS is included using RESO’s active US-based organization definition (OrganizationStatus=1, Organization Country=USA, OrganizationType=MLS). Subscriber numbers reflect MLS self-reported numbers through RESO’s membership process and may be supplemented by RESO with information from the MLS’s website and other industry information. Because RESO distinguishes MLSs from “pooled platforms” and may treat some entities as sub-MLSs, totals may differ from other trackers (such as T3 Sixty or Modern.tech) and may change if mergers or classifications are updated after the snapshot. RESO’s Certification Terms and Conditions do not allow third parties to republish certification/test metadata, so certification references are limited to high-level status labels only, if shown.
Data: RESO UOI (snapshot March 30, 2026).
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