The U.S. Census Bureau has released new data from the Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS), which measures ongoing business conditions and future expectations. The survey now includes information for businesses with multiple locations.
The BTOS is designed to provide continuous, timely data on key economic indicators such as revenue, employment, hours worked, and inventory levels. It covers all employer businesses in the United States except for farms. Data are collected every two weeks and include details by geographic area and industry subsector. This approach allows the survey to track the effects of events like natural disasters or economic crises and to monitor recovery efforts.
Approximately 1.2 million businesses participate in the BTOS through a biweekly data collection process. These businesses are divided into six panels of about 200,000 each, with each panel reporting every 12 weeks throughout the year. According to the Census Bureau, it takes an average respondent about nine minutes to complete the survey.
Survey results are published biweekly and can be broken down by sector, state, and for the 25 largest metropolitan areas in the country. In November 2025, questions related to artificial intelligence were added; responses will be released in 2026.
The BTOS provides local, state, and federal officials with real-time data that help inform policy decisions. Businesses also use this information to guide their own economic planning.
There was no separate news release issued for this announcement; only a tip sheet was provided.
