SaaS Costs Per Employee Climb to $9,100 as Small Businesses Juggle 15+ Subscriptions

Published 2026-02-20 · TrimWell Media News

Small businesses are facing rising software costs even when their tool count stays flat. According to an analysis from Linkenheimer LLP CPAs & Advisors, SaaS costs per employee reached about $9,100 annually in 2026, up from $7,900 two years earlier, with total SaaS spending up 8% year-over-year.

The same analysis found the average small business now pays for more than 15 different software subscriptions, with an estimated 30% of that budget going toward unused seats.

A significant driver, according to the report, is the spread of AI-powered pricing tiers layered onto existing products — the 2026 Zylo SaaS Management Index found spending on AI-native applications surged 108% in one year, with much of that increase landing inside tools businesses already pay for rather than genuinely new purchases.

Rising hardware costs are compounding the pressure: the report notes DRAM prices surged more than 170% in 2025 amid AI-driven memory demand, squeezing technology budgets from both the software and hardware sides simultaneously.

Business owners can benchmark their own subscription load using the free TrimWell Score tool, built for both household and small-business use.

Sources: Linkenheimer LLP CPAs & Advisors.