U.S. Business R&D Spending Reaches $765 Billion
Corporate investment in research and development highlights broad activity across the national business sector in 2024.
Updated on Oct. 29, 2026 in Economic Indicators
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Business research and development spending in the United States totaled $765 billion in 2024. This figure represents the investment activity of companies across the nation as documented in a comprehensive federal survey.
Why it matters
Business R&D spending serves as a key gauge of corporate investment and future innovation, which can influence long-term economic growth and industry competitiveness. Monitoring these figures provides insight into how businesses prioritize capital allocation for new products and processes.
U.S. businesses invested $765 billion in R&D throughout 2024, a figure derived from a survey of 45,500 companies representing a broader population of over 1.1 million businesses. The survey included only those reporting at least $50,000 in research expenditures.
The players
National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics
A federal agency that compiles and publishes data on scientific and engineering research funding.
Census Bureau
The federal agency responsible for collecting and reporting national demographic and economic data.
The details
The spending data reflects investments made by businesses toward domestic research and development activities. Researchers at the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics and the Census Bureau classified these expenditures based on the primary business activity of each firm. The survey reached a 66% response rate from the selected corporate sample.
Timeline
The 2024 survey sampled 45,500 companies to collect data for that calendar year.
A total of 46,000 companies were sampled for the survey in 2023.
Money Landscape
Corporate R&D spending remains a central component of the broader U.S. investment climate, reflecting how firms allocate resources toward future development. This data follows the long-term trend of tracking business innovation through the Business Enterprise Research and Development Survey.
Changes in corporate R&D spending reflect broader business confidence and potential long-term shifts in job market demand. Individuals should note that these high-level macro trends often influence future industry-specific hiring and the stability of roles within research-intensive sectors.
The takeaway
Large-scale corporate research spending often foreshadows changes in innovation cycles and industry health. Keep an eye on sector-specific updates from these agencies to understand how R&D investment is shifting within your own industry or employer's field.
Further reading
For broader context on how such spending influences the national economy, see the latest updates on Economic Indicators.
More information
View the full report and methodology in the BERD Survey data tables.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Nsf.
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