Discover the investment plans of today’s software buyers, and how they refine their options from an informal list to a fully-researched purchase decision.
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2025 Software Buying Trends Report
Every software provider knows landing on a buyer’s shortlist is critical to locking down the sale.
But in an increasingly competitive marketplace—where buyers have endless purchase options and are bombarded by information from a dizzying number of sources—making it to the shortlist has never been more of a challenge.
With the latest data from Gartner Digital Markets’ survey of 3,500 global software buyers, this report breaks down how buyers go from an initial list to a final purchase—and how you can secure your spot.
Get the report for the most up-to-date research on software buyer behavior, including:
- The types of software buyers are ready to purchase in 2025
- The key channels, factors, and information sources that are influencing buying decisions
- The software categories with the highest purchase regret and how sellers can avoid it
Key insights:
How buyers build their software shortlist
How buyers make the final purchase decision
The challenges of post-purchase retention
- 83% of software buyers make changes to their initial list after doing research
- Reviews were voted the most influential information source during the shortlist research process
- Software buyers actively engage with only 2.5 vendors on average
- 62% of buyers say the product trial is their top factor in the final purchase decision
- 59% of buyers regret at least one software purchase made in the past 18 months
- 49% of regretful buyers cite increased costs as a result of their regretful software purchase
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