The State of Customer Onboarding 2026 is here. See the trends shaping the year

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What is the State of Customer Onboarding in 2026?

After interviewing 200 customer onboarding professionals, we found that the industry is moving quickly toward AI, but some familiar challenges, like keeping customers engaged, still slow teams down.

62%

have lost at least one customer due to a poor onboarding experience

48%

say keeping customers engaged is their biggest challenge

46%

are prioritizing AI automation above all else in the next 12 months

9%

have real time visibility into the health of their onboarding portfolio

Who We Surveyed

We surveyed 200 professionals who either work directly with new customers or lead the teams responsible for onboarding them.

All respondents came from B2B organizations, with perspectives spanning 18 industries, including HR technology, healthcare technology, financial services, telecommunications, cybersecurity, logistics, education technology, and employee benefits.

We were deliberate about surveying across a range of verticals because onboarding can look very different from one business to the next. Some teams manage relatively simple launches, while others coordinate complex implementations involving integrations, change management, and several internal and customer-side stakeholders.

Even with those differences, the responses revealed a surprisingly consistent set of challenges around customer engagement, visibility, manual work, and the pressure to deliver value faster.

Survey snapshot

  • 200 onboarding professionals
  • 18 industries represented
  • 100% B2B organizations
  • April–June 2026 research period

What the Research Revealed

Customer onboarding is evolving, but the hardest parts remain.

Teams are investing in AI, automation, and more sophisticated delivery systems. Yet the challenges that most directly affect time to value are still surprisingly human: keeping customers engaged, coordinating stakeholders, and maintaining momentum across increasingly complex projects.

The report explores where onboarding teams are making progress, where projects continue to break down, and which priorities are shaping the next phase of customer delivery.

Inside the Report

What we learned about customer onboarding in 2026
We went into this research wanting to understand where onboarding teams are investing, what is still slowing them down, and how the work is changing as AI becomes more prominent. What we found was a real tension. Teams are looking ahead, but many are still working through the same practical challenges they have faced for years.

AI is the top priority, but most teams are still finding their footing.
Nearly half of the people we surveyed are prioritizing AI automation. At the same time, most are still experimenting and working out where AI can make a meaningful difference in the day-to-day.

Customer engagement is still the hardest part.
Getting customers to respond, complete their work, and stay involved remains the biggest drag on time to value. We also looked at how much time onboarding asks of customers and how the growing number of stakeholders adds to the challenge.

The impact of poor onboarding reaches well beyond the project itself.
More than six in ten respondents told us they have lost a customer because of a poor onboarding experience. The report explores how limited visibility, manual reporting, and late risk detection can contribute to that outcome.

The benchmarks that show how teams are operating right now.
We gathered data on onboarding timelines, customer workload, stakeholder involvement, monthly volume, go-live predictability, and the metrics teams are using to measure success.

Most teams are still piecing the process together across several tools.
Even teams using dedicated onboarding software often rely on a wider mix of CRMs, email, spreadsheets, project management platforms, and internal systems. We looked at where those tools are falling short and what teams say is still missing.

We also asked experienced onboarding leaders to help us make sense of the findings.
Throughout the report, customer onboarding experts including Donna Weber, Jeff Kushmerek, and Kristi Faltorusso share their perspective on where teams should begin with AI, why standardization has to come before automation, and how to build a more flexible, transparent, and customer-centered onboarding experience.

FAQs

Everything you need to know about the State of Customer Onboarding in 2026.

Customer engagement remains the most commonly cited challenge. Teams are still working to get customers to respond, complete tasks, provide information, and make room for onboarding alongside their day-to-day responsibilities.

Most teams are still experimenting. Early use cases tend to focus on reducing manual work, supporting internal workflows, improving communication, and identifying project risks earlier.

Onboarding is often the customer’s first sustained experience after the sale. When projects feel disorganized, unclear, or difficult to participate in, confidence can fall quickly. A strong onboarding experience helps establish trust and creates a better foundation for the broader relationship.

The report covers onboarding timelines, customer workload, stakeholder involvement, monthly volume, go-live predictability, project visibility, and the metrics teams use to evaluate success.

Most teams use a combination of dedicated onboarding software and broader business tools such as CRMs, email, spreadsheets, communication platforms, and project management systems. The report explores the gaps that can appear when those systems do not work together cleanly.

Download the Report

Download the full report to explore the survey findings, onboarding benchmarks, expert perspectives, and the trends shaping how teams are working in 2026.

Get the report