How Optimistic are SMBs About 2026?

Bredin recently surveyed 500 SMB principals to gauge current business sentiment, and optimism for 2026. We found that revenue growth and business confidence vary by company size:

‍Larger SMBs report stronger 2025 revenue expectations. Nearly half of midsized businesses (MBs, with 100–500 employees) anticipate revenue rising more than 25% over last year, compared with about one third of small businesses (SBs, with 20–99 employees) and one quarter of very small businesses (VSBs, with 1–19 employees).

‍Business confidence rises with company size. SBs and MBs are significantly more likely than VSBs to report a very positive outlook for the next 12 months. More than half of SBs and MBs express a very positive economic outlook for the year ahead, while only about one third of VSBs share this view.

SMB 2025 Revenue Outlook vs. 2024

SMB 12-Month Business Outlook

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