Business travel continues its strong comeback, and new data suggests its role in corporate operations is more valued than ever. According to The State of Corporate Travel & Expense 2026, the annual industry survey by Navan and Skift, 90% of frequent business travelers now consider travel an essential investment or a necessary operational cost*. This signals a notable shift in mindset after years of disruption and cautious spending.

The report is based on insights from nearly 1,800 respondents across three groups: travelers, travel managers, and finance managers. Together, their perspectives offer a detailed view of today’s corporate travel and expense (T&E) ecosystem, including where processes are improving and where persistent inefficiencies remain.

One of the key trends emerging from the survey is the renewed purpose behind in-person meetings. As companies look to strengthen relationships, improve collaboration, and drive business development, face-to-face interactions are again seen as strategically important. This resurgence is influencing travel frequency and shaping destination choices across multiple sectors.

Despite this momentum, compliance continues to challenge travel programs. The report shows that 80% of travelers sometimes book off-platform, often driven by convenience, perceived better options, or user-experience gaps in corporate tools. Travel managers indicate that improving platform usability and offering greater transparency in booking options could help reverse the long-term decline in compliance.

The survey also highlights operational obstacles facing finance teams. Many cite fragmented systems and manual workflows as barriers to efficiency. These challenges slow down expense processing, create oversight gaps, and make it difficult for organizations to optimize spending. Streamlined integrations and automated solutions rank high on finance managers’ wish lists for the year ahead.

A notable finding concerns companies’ reluctance to switch T&E platforms. While functionality and cost remain important, the report identifies a new driver of hesitancy: change fatigue. Many organizations are wary of adopting new solutions due to the perceived complexity of implementation and the potential disruption to employees.

Together, these insights form a timely picture of a sector in transition. Corporate travel has regained its strategic importance, yet the supporting systems must evolve to match traveler expectations, regulatory needs, and operational goals. As organizations refine their policies and digital tools, the focus in 2026 is expected to shift toward simplifying processes, improving compliance, and enhancing the end-to-end travel experience for all stakeholders.

* Navan has commissioned Skift to conduct global surveys of business travelers and travel and finance managers in each of the past seven years. This year’s edition garnered 1,798 total responses in August 2025, including 869 corporate travel and finance managers and 929 business travelers.