Check out the latest business travel statistics and trends to keep costs in line while providing a better employee travel experience.
Knowledge is power when it comes to planning work trips, which is why tracking business travel statistics can help your team make smarter decisions. For business travelers, following the latest flexible working trends lends fresh inspiration for upcoming journeys. And when it comes to cost efficiency, these statistics unveil everything from the hidden fees to airfare fluctuations and departure taxes that can quickly derail even the best-planned travel budget.
Armed with the latest data-driven insights your company will be better able to optimise its business travel policies in terms of cost, efficiency, and employee satisfaction.
From consulting and sales to real estate and construction management, there are numerous industries that involve extensive travel. But which industries top the list in terms of money spent? Here’s what the business travel stats can show us.
1. Accommodation and food services is primed for growth when it comes to global business travel spending, growing 37.4% in 2023 and on track to make up 13.6% of global business travel spend through 2027. (GBTA)
2. This is closely followed by utilities, with the electricity and gas industries making up 9.1% of global business travel spend at $93.6 billion. (GBTA)
3. Looking ahead, industries expected to increase business travel spending up through 2027 include Audiovisual and Broadcasting (16.1%) and Electrical Equipment Manufacturing (15.1%), among others. (GBTA)
Average company spend depends on industry, region, and business size.
4. The business travel industry has rebounded post-pandemic. According to the GBTA, overall business travel spending increased from $1.43 trillion in 2019 to $1.48 trillion by the end of 2024. This figure is expected to exceed $2 trillion by 2028. (GBTA)
What about per-company and per-traveler spend?
5. A 2024 Tripeden.com for Business survey found that the average spend per non-senior business traveler was $1,771 per trip, including all accommodation, meals, transportation, and other non-leisure expenses. (Tripeden.com for Business)
6. Senior-level decision makers cost an average of $1,986 per trip, in comparison, partially due to tighter schedules with less flexibility. (Tripeden.com for Business)
7. Company size impacts business travel spend. This same set of business travel stats shows that larger companies spent more on average ($2,095) compared to small ($1,783) and medium ($1,549) businesses. (Tripeden.com for Business)
From international roaming charges to flight cancellation fees, there are many hidden travel costs _that can make your travel budget trend upwards._
8. Excess baggage fees cost between £15 and £80, often on each leg of the journey. (Tripeden.com for Business)
9. Businesses typically pay between 2.75% and 3% on purchases made abroad with a business credit card. (Money.co.uk)
10. £150 billion is paid in hidden foreign exchange fees to banks every year. (Wise)
As a result, using multicurrency accounts, virtual cards or digital wallets for business travel payments is one of the best ways to save on hidden currency and card fees.
Creating an accurate, realistic business travel budget necessitates taking the latest flight ticket price statistics into consideration. These have increased due to higher fuel costs and a surge in demand.
11. According to the U.S. Consumer Price Index, airline fares increased by 7.1% between January 2024 and January 2025. And during this same period, hotel costs increased by 2%. (BLS)
12. AirPlus data shows European businesses paid an average increase of €200 on flights between 2019 and 2023. (AirPlus)
13. Intercontinental business travelers were most likely to fly in business class, with 43.7% choosing a higher level of comfort in comparison to just 7.7% of domestic business travelers. (AirPlus)
14. Due to these rising flight ticket price statistics, half of travel managers reported that their companies were mandating lower-cost flights to stay within budget. (Deloitte)
15. While in many areas the prices are trending upward, cost-effective accommodation can still be found in the Asia-Pacific region. Advertised hotel room rates are forecast to be 11% lower in the first half of 2025 compared to 2024. (Lighthouse)
Despite the overall increase in the cost of business flights and hotels, travel is still a strong priority for companies of all sizes.
16. Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) travel stats show that in 2024, 71% of travel buyers reported an increase in their company’s travel volume. This applies across all regions surveyed, including North America, Latin America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. Of these, 18% reported a ‘significant’ increase throughout the year. (GBTA)
17. This increase in travel volume is expected to continue, with nearly half (48%) of buyers anticipating taking more business trips in the year to come. (GBTA)
18. Travel expenditure outpaced volume, reflecting higher costs across the board. Nearly four in five buyers (77%) stated an increase in their company’s travel spend last year. (GBTA)
19. As with anticipated volume increases, more than half (57%) of corporate travel buyers expect to spend more on business travel in 2025 compared to 2024. (GBTA)
Bleisure statistics reflect that the blend of business with leisure is a growing trend. Business is the primary focus of a bleisure trip, with the destination dictated by work commitments.
Yet many employees choose to book flights on weekends, adding an extra day or two for sightseeing.
20. Statista research shows 35% of business trips included a weekend, and 41% of employees surveyed were interested in combining business with leisure. (Statista)
21. Tripeden.com for Business travel stats show that 26% of business travelers were excited about the chance to combine their business trip with a holiday. And 30% embraced the opportunity to visit a new destination as one of the top benefits of business travel. (Tripeden.com for Business)
22. AirPlus showed 15.8% of business flights were booked on the weekend in 2023, up from 13.6% in 2019. This gives travelers added time to explore new locations outside of business hours. (AirPlus)
23. The growing interest in both sustainability and bleisure has also extended the average business trip length. While 14.3% of business trips lasted just one day in 2019, this dropped to 6.8% of trips in 2023. (AirPlus)
24. In the UK, the average business trip duration is 4.8 days, and 14% of intercontinental trips lasted longer than 14 days in 2023. (AirPlus)
To incorporate bleisure into your company’s travel policy, decision-makers will need to determine which costs are covered by the business, and which will be covered by the employee.
With a closer look at expense management statistics, we can see how decision-makers are allocating their budgets.
25. In the GBTA global survey of travel buyers, companies planned to allocate 27% of their 2025 travel budgets to sales and account management meetings with customers. The second priority was internal meetings with colleagues (21%) and visits to conferences, trade shows, or industry events (14%). Service trips, employee training, and supplier meetings were additional reasons for expected travel spend. (GBTA)
At the same time, expense management statistics paint a picture of areas where improvements are needed to streamline and automate accounting processes.
26. Over one in ten (11%) businesses depend on employees to manually report their travel expenses, leading to potential delays. (Tripeden.com for Business)
27. Companies process an average of 51,000 expense reports each year, each taking 20 minutes on average to process manually. (GBTA)
28. 19% of business travel expense reports contain errors or missing information. (GBTA)
29. Encouraging compliance with travel policy remains an important cost-saving strategy. Over half (55%) of travel managers surveyed cited booking compliance as a top priority for expense management, above encouraging cheaper flight and hotel options. (Deloitte)
30. Only 56% of business travelers used their company’s preferred corporate booking tool, reducing compliance. And age was a major predictor of booking compliance, with Gen X’ers and Boomers more likely to never use company channels, in comparison to Gen Z’ers and Millennials. (Deloitte)
31. Expense reimbursement fraud formed 13% of all occupational fraud cases in 2024, with a median loss of $50,000. (ACFE)
If you’re looking for more business travel stats, you can turn to government sources like the UK’s Office of National Statistics and the US’s International Trade Administration or Bureau of Transportation.
Statista and Deloitte offer a good general resource for business travel statistics around the world, while the GBTA publishes regular reports based on insights from global business travel industry professionals.
Forecasting and managing business travel expenditure is a delicate balancing act. Following the latest hotel and flight price statistics gives your team clear guideposts to follow. For example, examining monthly trends often ensures better deals on hotels and flights as you’ll be able to determine which months are cheaper to fly.
At the same time, looking at expense management statistics clearly show how much time and money is spent on manual processing, and why an automated expense overhaul can save money.
The latest industry research shows what’s most important to business travelers when planning a work trip, whether it’s flexibility, bleisure, or access to their preferred hotels. Armed with this information, businesses can fine-tune their travel policies to better meet traveler needs. A flexible travel policy also enables your team to book up-and-coming destinations and low-demand times of year, along with choosing more cost-effective venues. In addition to tracking flight price statistics with automated alerts, companies can also save up to 20% on flights, hotels and car rentals with exclusive business rates from Tripeden.com for Business.
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