FP&A Report Reveals Record Tech Spend Yet 100% Spreadsheet Dependency, AI Adoption Poised to Double
Limelight Software's 2026 FP&A Statistics Report shows CFOs increasing technology spending and AI adoption, but nearly all finance teams still rely on spreadsheets, with 61% citing inaccurate forecasting as a top cost-control barrier.
Limelight Software, a cloud FP&A platform provider, released its 2026 FP&A Statistics Report, revealing a finance function caught between rising technology investment and legacy workflows. The report, which aggregates over 50 benchmarks from sources including Gartner, PwC, and AFP, shows that CFOs are boosting FP&A budgets to record levels while nearly 100% of finance professionals still use spreadsheets for monthly planning.
Key findings indicate that 77% of CFOs plan to increase FP&A technology spending in 2025, with 47% expecting a rise of 10% or more compared to 2024, according to Gartner. The FP&A software market is projected to grow from $3.9 billion in 2023 to $9.7 billion by 2031. Meanwhile, AI adoption is set to more than double within 12 months: 28% of finance departments currently use AI in forecasting, and another 39% plan to adopt it within the next year, per PwC. The AI in FP&A market is expected to grow at a 34.8% CAGR through 2034.
Despite these investments, spreadsheet dependency remains near universal. Over half of FP&A teams manage eight or more data categories and 10 or more reporting tools each quarter. This reliance on manual processes contributes to forecast accuracy problems: 61% of CFOs say inaccurate forecasting is the biggest barrier to controlling costs, according to SAP Concur. Additionally, 82% of companies make decisions based on stale information, and 85% say outdated data leads directly to lost revenue.
Finance transformation programs are also stalling, with 69% progressing slower than planned and 30% failing to meet goals entirely, often due to poor change management. The CFO role continues to expand, with 82% of CFOs saying their remit has grown significantly over the past five years, and 81% seeing themselves as primary drivers of business growth.
AI is reshaping forecasting first. According to Gartner, 66% of finance leaders say generative AI will have the biggest immediate impact on explaining forecast and budget variances. In retail and CPG sectors, 55% of finance leaders are already using generative AI in forecasting workflows.
"Finance leaders in 2026 are being pulled in two directions," said Rosie Shea, BDM at Limelight Software. "They're expected to drive strategy, sponsor digital transformation, and accelerate ROI, while still spending most of their week pulling numbers out of spreadsheets. The teams pulling ahead have stopped tolerating that gap." Shea added, "What the data really shows is a distance between intent and infrastructure. Closing that gap is the work of the next two years."
The full report is available at Limelight's website.