{
    "question": "How many small businesses use AI?",
    "answer": "24.3% of US businesses with 1 to 4 employees used AI in the two weeks to 18 October 2026, according to the Census Bureau's Business Trends and Outlook Survey, up from 17.0% in November 2025. A broader Federal Reserve survey found 46% of small employer firms said the business or its staff used AI for work in late 2025.",
    "period": "Oct 2026",
    "key_numbers": [
        {
            "value": "24.3%",
            "label": "US firms with 1 to 4 employees that used AI in the last two weeks",
            "note": "Census BTOS, 5-18 Oct 2026",
            "stat": "small-business/small-business-ai-use-1-4-staff"
        },
        {
            "value": "22.6%",
            "label": "Firms with 5 to 9 employees, the lowest size band",
            "note": "Census BTOS, 5-18 Oct 2026",
            "stat": "small-business/small-business-ai-use-5-9-staff"
        },
        {
            "value": "46%",
            "label": "Small employer firms (1-499 staff) where the business or employees use AI",
            "note": "Fed Small Business Credit Survey, Sep-Nov 2025",
            "stat": "small-business/small-business-ai-use-fed-sbcs"
        },
        {
            "value": "83%",
            "label": "Of small-firm AI users use it for writing or marketing",
            "note": "Fed Small Business Credit Survey, Sep-Nov 2025",
            "stat": "small-business/small-business-ai-writing-marketing"
        },
        {
            "value": "71%",
            "label": "Of small-firm AI users say it raised productivity",
            "note": "Fed Small Business Credit Survey, Sep-Nov 2025",
            "stat": "ai/small-firm-ai-users-higher-productivity"
        }
    ],
    "tables": [
        {
            "id": "by-size",
            "title": "US firms using AI in the last two weeks, by number of employees",
            "columns": [
                "Firm size",
                "5-18 Oct 2026",
                "17-30 Nov 2025"
            ],
            "rows": [
                [
                    "1 to 4 employees",
                    "24.3%",
                    "17.0%"
                ],
                [
                    "5 to 9",
                    "22.6%",
                    "15.5%"
                ],
                [
                    "10 to 19",
                    "24.6%",
                    "17.8%"
                ],
                [
                    "20 to 49",
                    "26.0%",
                    "18.7%"
                ],
                [
                    "50 to 99",
                    "29.0%",
                    "20.7%"
                ],
                [
                    "100 to 249",
                    "35.3%",
                    "23.7%"
                ],
                [
                    "250 or more (for comparison)",
                    "43.6%",
                    "30.5%"
                ],
                [
                    "All US employer firms",
                    "24.6%",
                    "17.3%"
                ]
            ],
            "row_ids": [
                "size-1-4",
                "size-5-9",
                "size-10-19",
                "size-20-49",
                "size-50-99",
                "size-100-249",
                "size-250-plus",
                "size-all"
            ],
            "note": "Census Business Trends and Outlook Survey, Employment Size Class file. Question: did the business use AI in any of its business functions in the last two weeks. The November 2025 wave was the first with this wording. Standard errors run from 0.32 points (1 to 4 staff) to 1.97 points (100 to 249).",
            "source": "census-btos"
        },
        {
            "id": "fed-use",
            "title": "AI use among US small employer firms (1 to 499 staff), Sep-Nov 2025",
            "columns": [
                "Answer",
                "Share of firms"
            ],
            "rows": [
                [
                    "Business or employees use AI now",
                    "46%"
                ],
                [
                    "Not using, plan to in the next 12 months",
                    "15%"
                ],
                [
                    "Not using, no plans",
                    "33%"
                ],
                [
                    "Unsure",
                    "6%"
                ]
            ],
            "row_ids": [
                "fed-use-now",
                "fed-plan",
                "fed-no-plans",
                "fed-unsure"
            ],
            "note": "Federal Reserve Banks, Small Business Credit Survey, 2026 Report on Employer Firms (3 Mar 2026), N=5,248 firms that answered the optional AI module.",
            "source": "fed-sbcs"
        },
        {
            "id": "fed-depth",
            "title": "How far small firms that use AI have gone",
            "columns": [
                "Measure",
                "Share of AI-using small firms"
            ],
            "rows": [
                [
                    "Experimenting (testing tools or running pilots)",
                    "49%"
                ],
                [
                    "Partially integrated (used in some business processes)",
                    "44%"
                ],
                [
                    "Fully integrated (embedded in business functions)",
                    "7%"
                ],
                [
                    "AI very important to their core goods or services",
                    "21%"
                ],
                [
                    "AI somewhat important",
                    "42%"
                ],
                [
                    "AI not important",
                    "37%"
                ]
            ],
            "row_ids": [
                "depth-experimenting",
                "depth-partial",
                "depth-full",
                "importance-very",
                "importance-somewhat",
                "importance-not"
            ],
            "note": "Fed Small Business Credit Survey, Sep-Nov 2025. Level of adoption N=2,199; importance N=2,127.",
            "source": "fed-sbcs"
        },
        {
            "id": "tasks",
            "title": "What small firms use AI for (share of AI-using small employer firms)",
            "columns": [
                "Task",
                "Share"
            ],
            "rows": [
                [
                    "Writing or marketing",
                    "83%"
                ],
                [
                    "Individual productivity",
                    "61%"
                ],
                [
                    "Planning or analysis",
                    "51%"
                ],
                [
                    "Administrative business functions",
                    "38%"
                ],
                [
                    "Customer service",
                    "29%"
                ],
                [
                    "Process automation",
                    "21%"
                ],
                [
                    "Coding or coding assistance",
                    "19%"
                ]
            ],
            "row_ids": [
                "task-writing",
                "task-productivity",
                "task-planning",
                "task-admin",
                "task-customer-service",
                "task-automation",
                "task-coding"
            ],
            "note": "Fed Small Business Credit Survey, Sep-Nov 2025, N=2,225. Firms could pick more than one task.",
            "source": "fed-sbcs"
        },
        {
            "id": "results",
            "title": "What changed at small firms that use AI",
            "columns": [
                "Measure",
                "Increased",
                "No change",
                "Decreased"
            ],
            "rows": [
                [
                    "Productivity",
                    "71%",
                    "28%",
                    "1%"
                ],
                [
                    "Quality of goods or services",
                    "39%",
                    "60%",
                    "1%"
                ],
                [
                    "Sales",
                    "31%",
                    "69%",
                    "0%"
                ],
                [
                    "Spending on outside services",
                    "11%",
                    "71%",
                    "18%"
                ],
                [
                    "Labor costs",
                    "7%",
                    "77%",
                    "16%"
                ]
            ],
            "row_ids": [
                "result-productivity",
                "result-quality",
                "result-sales",
                "result-outside-services",
                "result-labor-costs"
            ],
            "note": "Fed Small Business Credit Survey, Sep-Nov 2025; excludes \"not applicable or unsure\". N from 1,738 (sales) to 2,011 (productivity). Of firms whose labor costs changed (N=373), 10% added employees and 11% cut employees because of AI.",
            "source": "fed-sbcs"
        },
        {
            "id": "why-not",
            "title": "Why small firms with no AI plans do not use it",
            "columns": [
                "Reason",
                "Share of firms with no plans"
            ],
            "rows": [
                [
                    "AI is not applicable to my business",
                    "56%"
                ],
                [
                    "Prefer not to use",
                    "30%"
                ],
                [
                    "Finding the right tools to meet business needs",
                    "19%"
                ],
                [
                    "Data security and privacy concerns",
                    "18%"
                ],
                [
                    "Accuracy (bias or misinformation)",
                    "17%"
                ],
                [
                    "Ethical or social concerns",
                    "16%"
                ],
                [
                    "Cost",
                    "13%"
                ],
                [
                    "Too difficult or confusing",
                    "13%"
                ],
                [
                    "Lack of time",
                    "12%"
                ]
            ],
            "row_ids": [
                "why-not-applicable",
                "why-prefer-not",
                "why-tools",
                "why-security",
                "why-accuracy",
                "why-ethics",
                "why-cost",
                "why-difficult",
                "why-time"
            ],
            "note": "Fed Small Business Credit Survey, Sep-Nov 2025, N=1,855. Firms could pick more than one reason.",
            "source": "fed-sbcs"
        },
        {
            "id": "challenges",
            "title": "AI challenges for small firms that use AI or plan to",
            "columns": [
                "Challenge",
                "Firms that use AI",
                "Firms that plan to use AI"
            ],
            "rows": [
                [
                    "Accuracy (bias or misinformation)",
                    "46%",
                    "25%"
                ],
                [
                    "Finding or adapting tools to meet business needs",
                    "43%",
                    "54%"
                ],
                [
                    "Data security and privacy concerns",
                    "28%",
                    "29%"
                ],
                [
                    "Time to implement or train employees",
                    "25%",
                    "37%"
                ],
                [
                    "Cost",
                    "21%",
                    "32%"
                ],
                [
                    "Ethical or social concerns",
                    "18%",
                    "19%"
                ],
                [
                    "Experienced no challenges",
                    "24%",
                    "25%"
                ]
            ],
            "row_ids": [
                "challenge-accuracy",
                "challenge-tools",
                "challenge-security",
                "challenge-time",
                "challenge-cost",
                "challenge-ethics",
                "challenge-none"
            ],
            "note": "Fed Small Business Credit Survey, Sep-Nov 2025. Firms that use AI N=2,203; firms that plan to use AI in the next 12 months N=810. Shares add to more than 100% because firms could name several challenges.",
            "source": "fed-sbcs"
        },
        {
            "id": "history",
            "title": "US firms with 1 to 4 employees using AI, every other wave and the latest",
            "columns": [
                "Wave ending",
                "Used AI in the last two weeks"
            ],
            "rows": [
                [
                    "30 Nov 2025",
                    "17.0%"
                ],
                [
                    "28 Dec 2025",
                    "17.7%"
                ],
                [
                    "25 Jan 2026",
                    "18.2%"
                ],
                [
                    "22 Feb 2026",
                    "17.5%"
                ],
                [
                    "22 Mar 2026",
                    "18.5%"
                ],
                [
                    "19 Apr 2026",
                    "19.2%"
                ],
                [
                    "17 May 2026",
                    "19.1%"
                ],
                [
                    "14 Jun 2026",
                    "20.1%"
                ],
                [
                    "12 Jul 2026",
                    "20.8%"
                ],
                [
                    "9 Aug 2026",
                    "21.9%"
                ],
                [
                    "6 Sep 2026",
                    "23.6%"
                ],
                [
                    "4 Oct 2026",
                    "23.9%"
                ],
                [
                    "18 Oct 2026",
                    "24.3%"
                ]
            ],
            "row_ids": [
                "h-2025-11-30",
                "h-2025-12-28",
                "h-2026-01-25",
                "h-2026-02-22",
                "h-2026-03-22",
                "h-2026-04-19",
                "h-2026-05-17",
                "h-2026-06-14",
                "h-2026-07-12",
                "h-2026-08-09",
                "h-2026-09-06",
                "h-2026-10-04",
                "h-2026-10-18"
            ],
            "note": "Census BTOS. Only waves with the \"any business function\" wording (from November 2025). From the wave starting 19 Oct 2026 Census asks about \"Super Intelligence or SI\", so later waves start a new series.",
            "source": "census-btos"
        }
    ],
    "sources": [
        {
            "name": "Business Trends and Outlook Survey",
            "publisher": "US Census Bureau",
            "type": "official",
            "url": "https://www.census.gov/"
        },
        {
            "name": "Small Business Credit Survey",
            "publisher": "Federal Reserve Banks",
            "type": "survey",
            "url": "https://www.fedsmallbusiness.org/"
        },
        {
            "name": "Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business; Small Business Profiles",
            "publisher": "US Small Business Administration, Office of Advocacy",
            "type": "official",
            "url": "https://advocacy.sba.gov/"
        }
    ],
    "content_changed_on": "2026-10-30",
    "page_url": "https://digitaltreed.com/statistics/small-business/small-business-ai-use",
    "csv_url": "https://digitaltreed.com/statistics/small-business/small-business-ai-use.csv"
}