Today, we will discuss the changes, growth, and forecasts related to the business travel industry.
This data will be useful to inexperienced business travelers, veteran business travelers, and marketers who handle marketing for this target audience.
Let’s explore the world of btravel through business travel statistics.
Key Statistics
- In 2020, US business travel overseas declined by 78.8%.
- In 2021, business travel made up 20% of all global tourism spending.
- In 2023, the average business trip expense was recored at $1,293 in the United States.
- Global business travel spending is predicted to get back to pre-pandemic nyumbers in 2024 at $1.4 trillion.
- 54% of business travelers in the United States say they created better relations with their stakeholders in 2022.
- 75% of airlines’ profits come from business travel.
- Half of all business travel expenses are fore air transportation and lodging.
- European survey respondents said they expect that 32% of travel spending will be International trips on their own continent.
- 1.3 million people from the United States engage in daily business travel.
- 22 days is considered the average annual corporate business traveler time spent for work.
Top Business Travel Statistics in 2024
1. In 2020, US business travel overseas declined by 78.8%.
According to recorded data, in the midst of the global pandemic (between 2019 and 2020), business travel experienced a decline by 78.8% in 2020.
Moreover, this decline continued into 2021 when it droped to 87.4% compared to 20192 numbers.
Since then, there has been some growth and the promise of continued recovery in the business travel industry.
(Statista)
2. In 2021, business travel made up 20% of all global tourism spending.
Figures from 2021 show that global business travel accounted for 20% of the overall global tourism spending.
Furthermore, it’s estimated that over $740 billion (USD) was spent by business travelers in 2021.
The top-ranking regional sector came from Chinese tourists in terms of spending the most on business travel during this time.
(Statista²)
3. In 2023, the average business trip expense was recorded at $1,293 in the United States.
The numbers tell us that the average cost of a business trip in the United States came to $1,293 (USD).
The daily figures for the average business trip came to $325 (USD) per traveler.
In terms of international business travel, the average cost per business traveler accounted for $2,600 in 2023.
(Expensify)
4. Global business travel spending is predicted to get back to pre-pandemic numbers in 2024 at $1.4 trillion.
Some experts predict that global business travel spending will recover to pre-pandemic figures, reaching $1.4 trillion (USD) in 2024.
More predicted data for the global business travel sector reveals the potential of reaching around $1.8 trillion (USD) by 2027.
It’s believed that better economic circumstances will fuel these predictions between 2022 and 2023.
(GBTA)
5. 54% of business travelers in the United States say they created better relations with their stakeholders in 2022.
The business travel industry is beneficial for many reasons, but one is that it helps to promote better and stronger stakeholder relations.
In fact, 54% of business travelers in one survey reported that it has helped them to develop better and stronger stakeholder relationships.
Around 22% said that it helped them be more engaged and feel more motivated in their role.
(EnterpriseAppsToday)
In one survey, 48% of people who travel for business say that their last business trip was too long.
Sometimes business trips can take longer than expected and this can create stress and anxiety for business travelers.
Many believe that business travel policies across industries and companies need to be updated to enable better work-life balance and to promote personal well-being and productivity in their endeavors.
Changing business travel policies can potentially optimize travel budgets, make corporate ventures more productive and effective, and boost employee satisfaction.
(ZipDo)
7. 75% of airlines’ profits come from business travel.
Data shows that business related trips make up 75% of all airline profits in the United States.
However, business related trips make up about 12% of all air travel in the United States.
This data includes both international and domestic business trips from the United States.
(Zippia)
8. Half of all business travel expenses are for air transportation and lodging.
Statistics show that 50% of business travel spending goes to air transportation and lodging.
Furthermore, the total cost of business travel from one study revealed to be $334.2 billion (USD).
Lodging accounts for $94 billion (USD) out of the $334.2 billion and $70 billion goes towards air transportation.
(StartupBonsai)
9. European survey respondents said they expect that 32% of travel spending will be international trips on their own continent.
According to Deloitte Insights, international business trips are in continual growth even as problems are occurring in certain parts of the world.
Internationally, the U.S. share of business travel costs grew to 22% in 2023 from 21% in 2022.
Moreover, in Europe, respondents said they expect 32% of their international business travel to go to intercontinental travel and 28% outside of the European continent.
(Deloitte)
10. 1.3 million people from the United States engage in daily business travel.
The United States alone accounts for 1.3 million people who engage in daily business travel.
This figure reveals that more than 445 long-distance business trips are taken annually.
Domestically, thre are another 420 million annual business trips.
This statistic, alongside others in this list, shows the significance of business travel in the overall travel industry.
(Dream Big Travel Far)
11. 22 days is considered the average annual corporate business traveler time spent for work.
In the corporate world of business travel, traveling employees spend an average of 22 days traveling for their work alone.
Moreover, the average business-related trip is said to last around 3.8 days.
This data comes from a survey of 867 Americans who travel for work.
(TravelPerk)
12. The average company spending on business air travel accounts for 17% to 27% of their whole travel budget.
Remember that most of the money spent on business travel is covered by the company and isn’t solely the responsibility of the business traveler.
In terms of air travel spending, the average amount of spending for companies ranges between 17% and 27% of their full travel budget.
Other expenses can include food and lodging.
(Expensify)
13. Global business travel recovery varies depending on the region.
The recovery for worldwide business travel is on the rise, but it does vary depending on the region.
For instance, in 2022, Western Europe experienced the fastest recovery growth on the globe while Latin and North America have been a little slower in recovery.
Delays in business travel recovery have impacted regions like Europe (not including Western Europe), China, and the overall Asia-Pacific region.
However, China is expected to see significant recovery over 2023.
(GBTA)
14. 71% of businesses in the United States resorted to virtual meetings over business travel.
A whopping 71% of business in the United States had to resort to using virtual meetings instead of engaging in real life business travel in 2021.
During and even after the global pandemic, U.S. businesses were forced to use technology for virtual meetings over face-to-face meetings domestically and internationally.
As the travel industry recovers from the pandemic, this is expected to see better growth.
(EnterpriseAppsToday)
15. 66.7% of business travelers that fly frequently said they prefer to take non-stop flights.
In one survey of people who fly frequently for business, 66.7% responded that they don’t favor layover flights, but prefer non-stop trips.
Since business travel can be so stressful and the length of time for some is uncertain, we can understand why most frequent business travelers would favor non-stop flights to their destinations.
Keep in mind that non-stop flights can be more expensive but are certainly a more efficient use of travel time.
(ZipDo)
16. People traveling for business make up around 40% of all hotel guests.
Business travelers must account for lodging, which can include hotels, motels, Airbnb, and other such short-term or even long-term accommodations.
Data shows that 40% of all hotel guests come from business travelers.
(Zippia)
17. 61% of business travelers include some leisure time in their business trips.
This data shows us that it’s common for business travelers to take time for some leisure activities between business activities.
In fact, some companies will include leisure activities as part of the whole business trip ideal.
Whether the company chooses to include leisure time for business employees, or the employees take a little leisure time for themselves, it’s a good thing.
(StartupBonsai)
18. Business travelers say they lost an average of just over 45 minutes of sleep.
This data is revealed from a study of business travelers who say that each night during their business trip, they lost an average of around 47 minutes per night.
Moreover, they said that by the fourth day of their trip, they started feeling emotionally fatigued, according to 62% of the study respondents.
Furthermore, 65% reported feeling homesick by their fifth day.
(Sleep Junkie)
19. One of the most popular business travel destinations is Shanghai, China.
It’s common for most business travelers today to stick close to their home, traveling for business no further than 250 from their homes.
However, data shows that 7% of business travelers travel further from home at around 1,000 miles away,
Still, there are destinations that get more business traveler action than others.
Shanghai, China is one of the most popular business travel destinations.
The others include Tokyo, Japan, New York, USA, and Bangkok, Thailand.
20. 35% of business travelers who engage in extracurricular leisure activities have a traveling companion.
We discussed that many business travelers try to get some leisure time during their trip, which can be referred to as bleisure travel, but do they go solo?
Not all the time.
Surveys reveal that 35% of “bleisure travelers” have a traveling companion of some kind. Another 36% said they take family or friends with them.
A massive 65% of these travelers said they feel like it’s appropriate to have company on business trips with whom they can also enjoy leisure time.
FAQs
How much of business travel spend goes towards food?
Data shows that food can account for more than flights in terms of spending on business trips.
It’s reported that more than 20% of conventional business travelers’ spending is on food.
This can be offset by choosing hotels that offer free continental breakfasts.
It’s not a good idea to skip breakfast unless you’re used to it, so why not save that on that one food expense?
What ages are the most business travelers?
In terms of age demographics related to business travelers, half of them are aged 35 to 54.
Moreover, about 56% of business travelers are in managerial or professional positions that earn them an annual income of around $127,000 or more.
How many business trips do company travelers make each year?
The data tells us that on average, business travelers take about 7 trips per year.
Among the Millennial population of business travelers, this is a bit higher at nearly 7.5 yearly business trips.
Conclusion
We have discussed these statistics related to business travel at some length across data points.
If you own a business where you or your employees travel much inside or outside of your home country, you now have an idea of the expenses you may incur and how to offset some expenses.
If you’re a marketer whose target audience includes business travelers, you have enough data to create an efficient and effective marketing campaign.
If you already have campaigns for this audience, this data is updated enough for you to update your campaign strategy.
We hope you have learned a lot from these business travel statistics and that you can find ways to apply them to your own business life.