The U.S. Census Bureau has released new data products from the Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS) as of August 14, 2025. The BTOS measures ongoing business conditions and projections across the United States, excluding farms. The survey now includes data for businesses with multiple locations.
According to the Census Bureau, “BTOS provides insight into the state of the economy by providing continuous, timely data for key economic measures every two weeks. By providing continuous data with geographic and subsector detail, BTOS captures the impact of events like natural disasters and economic crises and assists in monitoring recovery efforts.”
Approximately 1.2 million businesses are part of the biweekly BTOS sample. These businesses are divided into six panels of about 200,000 each; each panel reports every 12 weeks over a year. The Census Bureau states that it takes an average respondent around nine minutes to complete the survey, which includes time for reviewing instructions and answers.
Data from the BTOS will be available on a biweekly basis by sector, state, and for the 25 most populous metropolitan statistical areas. According to the release, “Survey results give local, state and federal officials essential, real-time data to aid in policymaking and decision-making. In addition, the information aids businesses in making economic decisions.”
There is no news release associated with this announcement; it is distributed as a tip sheet only.
