Global IT spending set to exceed $6 trillion in 2026

Global IT spending is set to surpass the $6 trillion mark for the first time ever in 2026, according to new figures from Gartner.

Analysis from the consultancy projects $6.08 trillion in spending across the year, marking a 9.8% increase compared to 2025.

John-David Lovelock, Distinguished VP Analyst at Gartner, said the spending figures show that lingering market uncertainty at the beginning of 2025 is well and truly over.

“The uncertainty pause that began in the second quarter of 2025 started to alleviate in the third quarter and a significant budget flush is anticipated before the end of the year,” he said.

Notably, this spending spree is expected to coincide with the “trough of disillusionment” next year. This is a term used to describe a phase in the Gartner Hype Cycle where appetites for emerging technologies wane due to unrealistic expectations during early adoption processes.

So what’s behind the bullish investment? Data center systems spending, in particular, is a key driver of broader IT spending, figures show.

Spending in this domain has surged 46.8% across 2025, reaching $489 billion, while next year this is expected to top $582 billion at a growth rate of 19%.

Elsewhere, software spending is expected to surge 15.2%, reaching $143 billion across the full year.

Notably, Lovelock said that a large portion of growth recorded in 2025 has been driven by “stronger-than-expected spending on mobile phones”.

“The availability of AI devices has also boosted overall spending by more than $30 billion,” he explained.

“In other areas, such as data center systems, the race to build AI infrastructure has further increased demand and growth expectations for data center servers, especially AI-optimized server racks.”

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