The U.S. Census Bureau has published new data from the Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS), a tool designed to measure ongoing business conditions and forecasts across the United States. The BTOS covers multiunit and multilocation businesses, providing continuous information that complements other economic surveys by tracking indicators such as revenue, employment, hours worked, and inventories.
The survey is representative of all employer businesses in the country except for farms. By collecting data every two weeks, BTOS offers timely insights into key economic measures at both geographic and subsector levels. This allows the survey to track the effects of events like natural disasters or economic downturns and helps 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 once every 12 weeks over a year. The Census Bureau estimates that it takes respondents around nine minutes to complete the survey.
Data from BTOS will be released every two weeks and made available by sector, state, and for the 25 largest metropolitan statistical areas. In November 2025, new questions on artificial intelligence were introduced; results from these questions are expected to be released in 2026. The information collected is intended to support local, state, and federal officials with real-time data for policy decisions while also helping businesses make informed economic choices.
There was no news release associated with this announcement; only a tip sheet was provided.
