New Navan Data Shows Companies Doubling Down on ‘Being There’

The latest Navan Business Travel Benchmark is out, and the numbers show a striking trend: despite widespread budget scrutiny, companies are doubling down on in-person connections.

In the first half of 2026, corporate travel volume grew 13.5% year-over-year, climbing to an all-time index high of 189.1.

What makes this growth remarkable is the contrast with broader consumer trends. While business travel climbed, consumer travel stayed completely flat, growing just 0.5% over the same period according to TSA passenger volume data. This has pushed the gap between business and leisure travel to 68 points — the largest divergence since the benchmark’s inception.

Where the Momentum Is Concentrated

Organizations are making targeted, strategic investments in the sectors and activities that require high-stakes alignment.

A few key takeaways from the H1 data:

• Professional Services led all industries with a 44.6% year-over-year growth rate, heavily driven by the scaling and implementation needs of hyper-growth sectors like artificial intelligence.
• Government & Public Sector continued its steady momentum, tracking at 28.5% year-over-year growth.
• Ground Transportation saw a major lift, with a 23.7% spike in Taxi & Rideshare volume, indicating that travelers are maximizing their time on the ground.

Why This Data Matters

By isolating business travel activity from consumer travel patterns, the Navan Business Travel Benchmark, validated by the Nasdaq Economic Research Team, reveals the true value companies still place on “being there.”

To help organizations analyze these macroeconomic shifts and view the full historical trajectory from H1 2023 through H1 2026, we have mapped out the entire dataset on our interactive benchmark webpage.

You can filter the data by specific industry segments, track seasonal variations, and evaluate sub-indices across global markets.