Three in four independent insurance agencies reported revenue increases between 2024 and 2025, while the share reporting revenue declines fell from 12% to 8%, according to the 2026 Agency Universe Study released by Future One, a collaboration of the Big "I" and leading independent agency companies.
The study estimated roughly 37,000 independent insurance agencies are operating in the US, a small decrease from 2024 but broadly stable over the past decade. Average agency staff size has grown, however, rising from 8.2 employees in 2024 to 9.9 in 2026. One in three agencies reported increasing their employee count over the past two years, with small agencies least likely to have added staff and larger agencies most likely.
Revenue growth was concentrated across both major lines. Approximately 70% of agencies reported personal lines revenue increases and roughly two-thirds reported commercial lines revenue increases from 2024 to 2025, results broadly in line with the prior survey cycle.
Average agency marketing budgets rose from $14,300 in 2024 to $20,600 in 2026, a 44% increase. Social media and digital marketing ranked as the top marketing activity, cited by 47% of agencies. Google Business, search engine optimization and website investment followed. Facebook remains the dominant social channel at 70% adoption, ahead of Instagram at 46% and LinkedIn at 35%.
Meanwhile, nearly half of agencies, 46%, reported using AI in 2026, up sharply from 15% in 2024. The most common applications were marketing content generation at 49%, coverage form analysis at 43% and contract reviews at 35%. Despite that growth, barriers to broader adoption remain significant: 60% of agencies cited lack of knowledge about AI's capabilities as the top barrier, up 10 percentage points from 2024, while 48% cited security and privacy concerns, also up 10 points.
Jennifer Becker, Big "I" senior director of agent development, research and education, said the study provides a unique snapshot of how the channel is evolving.
The three biggest challenges agencies cited were finding and screening job candidates with strong potential at 45%, keeping up with the latest in AI at 43%, which was a new entry this year, and growing personal lines business at 41%. Concerns about carriers' market commitment eased noticeably, falling from 56% in 2024 to 41% in 2026 as market conditions softened. Dealing with multiple carrier interfaces remained the top technology-specific challenge, consistent with prior years.
Most agencies, 86%, continue to prefer routing customer service through the agency via phone or non-online methods rather than carrier self-service portals. Agencies expressed comfort with self-service options for policy documents, billing and claims, but not for purchasing policies or obtaining quotes.
More than half, 57%, said their agency has placed more focus on customer experience over the past two years, and the same proportion said there is a significant need for training to help customer service representatives and producers sell on value rather than price, a finding that reflects both the softening market and the continued competitive pressure from direct and digital channels.
Charles Symington, Big "I" president and CEO, said the findings point to a channel managing change without losing its defining characteristics.
"Independent agencies are successfully navigating a changing insurance landscape and the surge of AI. This study illustrates a distribution channel that remains stable, resilient and well-positioned for the future," Symington said.
