By Aijaz Alam
How many law firms use AI?
71% of solo practitioners and 75% of small law firms use AI to complete legal work, per Clio's May 2026 solo and small firm report, a vendor survey. Use rises with firm size: in the ABA's late-2024 survey of US attorneys, 17.7% of solo practitioners' offices used AI tools, against 47.8% at firms of 500 or more lawyers.
- 71%Solo practitioners using AI to complete legal workClio, May 2026 report; sample not stated
- 75%Small law firms using AI to complete legal workClio, May 2026 report; sample not stated
- 93%Mid-sized law firms using AIClio mid-sized firm report, March 2025
- 30.2%US attorneys whose office uses AI-based toolsABA Legal Technology Survey, Oct-Dec 2024
- 86%Solo firms that made no pricing changes for AIClio, May 2026 report; 46% at enterprise firms
- Under 33%Solo and small firms that increased revenue with AIClio, May 2026 report; nearly 60% at enterprise firms
The numbers
The full breakdown
AI use and pricing changes by law firm size, Clio 2026
| Firm size | Use AI to complete legal work | Made no pricing changes for AI |
|---|---|---|
| Solo | 71% | 86% |
| Small | 75% | 78% |
| Mid-market | Not reported | 51% |
| Enterprise | Not reported | 46% |
From Clio's press release of 4 May 2026 (Legal Trends for Solo and Small Law Firms). Clio sells legal AI software. The release gives no sample size, field dates, countries covered or firm-size bands.
US attorneys whose office uses AI-based tools, by firm size, ABA 2024
| Firm size | Office uses AI-based tools |
|---|---|
| Solo practitioners | 17.7% |
| 2-9 lawyers | 24.1% |
| 10-49 lawyers | 29.5% |
| 500 or more lawyers | 47.8% |
| All respondents | 30.2% |
ABA Legal Technology Survey, Online Research volume: 512 respondents, surveyed October to December 2024. The ABA summary page gives no figure for firms of 50-499 lawyers.
How widely law firms use AI, by firm size, Clio reports
| Group | Use AI in some capacity | Use AI widely or universally | Clio report and data |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo legal professionals | 72% | 8% | Solo and small firm report, 2024 survey |
| Small-firm legal professionals | 67% | 4% | Solo and small firm report, 2024 survey |
| Larger firms | 85% | 35% | Solo and small firm report, 2024 survey |
| All surveyed legal professionals | 79% | 25% | Legal Trends Report 2024, June 2024 survey |
| Mid-sized firms | 93% | Over half | Mid-sized firm report, 25 Mar 2025 |
Each population is taken from Clio's own page for it. First four rows: Clio pages whose methodology lists a survey of 1,028 US legal professionals (lawyers and support staff), 5-23 June 2024; the solo and small firm highlights page was updated 15 May 2025. Last row: Clio's mid-sized firm press release of 25 March 2025, which gives no sample size or field dates. That release also says 72% of 'smaller firms' use AI in some capacity and only 10% 'extensively', without defining smaller firms; those figures are not used here because they do not match Clio's solo and small firm page.
What AI has done for law firm revenue
| Finding | Value | Report |
|---|---|---|
| Solo and small firms that increased revenue with AI | Under 33% | Clio, May 2026 |
| Enterprise firms that increased revenue with AI | Nearly 60% | Clio, May 2026 |
| Wide AI adopters vs non-adopters, likelihood of revenue growth | Nearly 3x | Clio Legal Trends Report, Oct 2025 |
| Firms that grew revenue with AI and credit better operations | 77% | Clio Legal Trends Report, Oct 2025 |
From Clio press releases of 4 May 2026 and 16 October 2025 (vendor reports; neither release gives a sample size). The 3x figure is an association, not proof that AI caused the growth.
Why sources differ
Same question, different answers
| Number | When | Who measured | Why it differs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 71% / 75% | 2026 | Clio, solo and small firm report | Solo practitioners / small firms using AI to complete legal work; vendor survey, sample not stated. |
| 93% | Mar 2025 report | Clio, mid-sized firm report | Mid-sized firms; AI in some capacity, with over half using it widely or universally. Sample not stated. |
| 79% | Jun 2024 | Clio, Legal Trends Report 2024 | US legal professionals using AI in some capacity; 25% widely or universally. 1,028 surveyed. |
| 30.2% | Oct-Dec 2024 | ABA Legal Technology Survey | US attorneys saying their office uses AI-based tools; 512 respondents. |
| 19% | 2023 | Clio | Law firms using AI in their practice, from Clio's previous AI research. |
Law firm AI figures run from about 18% to 93% because the surveys ask different questions of different people. Clio, which sells practice software and legal AI, asks legal professionals whether they use AI in some capacity, and the tools its respondents name include general ones such as ChatGPT. That gives high numbers: 79% in mid-2024 and 71% of solo practitioners in 2026. The ABA asks US attorneys whether their office uses AI-based technology tools, a question about the office rather than the person, and its late-2024 survey found 30.2%, with solo practitioners lowest at 17.7%. Depth matters as much as reach: in Clio's 2024 survey data only 8% of solos used AI widely or universally, against 35% of larger firms. The 93% figure is Clio's headline for mid-sized firms and should not be quoted as a figure for all law firms. When you cite a number, name the publisher, the year and the group it covers.
What it means
How to use these numbers
Most small law firms now use some AI, but few use it deeply and fewer earn more from it. Clio's 2026 figures put use at 71% of solo practitioners and 75% of small firms, while fewer than a third of those firms say AI has raised revenue, against nearly 60% of enterprise firms.
Clio's report points to pricing. 86% of solo firms have made no pricing changes in response to AI. Under hourly billing, faster work means a smaller bill, so the time saved does not turn into income unless the firm moves some work to flat fees, which Clio says 71% of clients prefer.
For a solo or small firm, the ABA numbers are the sober benchmark: in late 2024 only 17.7% of solo practitioners said their office used AI-based tools, and accuracy was the top concern. The gap between the two surveys is the gap between trying a chat assistant and building AI into the practice.
For legal marketers, the useful message is not that a firm uses AI but what it changes for the client: faster replies, clear flat fees and quicker turnaround.
Method and sources
How it was measured
Method
- Publisher
- Clio (vendor) for the 2026, 2025 and 2024 figures; American Bar Association for the 2024 office-use figure
- Sample
- Clio 2026, Clio mid-sized 2025 and Clio Legal Trends 2025: not stated in the releases. Clio 2024: 1,028 US legal professionals (lawyers and support staff), 5-23 June 2024. ABA: 512 respondents to the Online Research volume, October-December 2024.
- Definition
- Clio: legal professionals or firms using AI to complete legal work, or in some capacity. ABA: attorneys whose office currently uses AI-based technology tools.
- Released
- Clio solo and small firm report, 4 May 2026; Clio Legal Trends Report, 16 October 2025; Clio mid-sized firm report, 25 March 2025; ABA 2024 Artificial Intelligence TechReport, 25 April 2025
- Checked at source
- 31 October 2026, on clio.com press and blog pages and the ABA 2024 AI TechReport page
- Next release
- Clio's next Legal Trends Report (usually October) and the ABA's next Legal Technology Survey
- Last changed
- 30 Oct 2026
- Data files
- CSV · JSON (stable links)
Sources
- Legal Trends Report and Legal Trends for Solo, Small and Mid-Sized Law Firms, Clio (Themis Solutions Inc.) Vendor data
- Legal Technology Survey (TechReport) and Profile of the Legal Profession, American Bar Association Industry body
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FAQ
More questions people ask
Is it true that 93% of law firms use AI?
No. 93% is Clio's headline figure for mid-sized firms in its March 2025 report. For solo practitioners and small firms, Clio's 2026 figures are 71% and 75%, and the ABA's late-2024 survey found 30.2% of US attorneys' offices using AI tools.
Do big law firms use AI more than small ones?
Yes, in both the ABA and the Clio figures. The ABA found 47.8% of firms with 500 or more lawyers using AI-based tools in late 2024, against 17.7% of solo practitioners. Clio's 2024 survey found 35% of larger firms using AI widely, against 8% of solos.
What worries lawyers most about AI?
Accuracy. 74.7% of attorneys in the ABA's 2024 survey named it as a major concern, ahead of reliability (56.3%) and data privacy and security (47.2%).
Are law firms charging less because of AI?
Mostly they have not changed prices at all. 86% of solo firms and 78% of small firms made no pricing changes for AI, against 51% of mid-market and 46% of enterprise firms (Clio, May 2026).
Every number on this page was checked at its original source (Clio (Themis Solutions Inc.), American Bar Association). Free to cite with a link to this page.