Small U.S. SMBs Use AI to Increase Output Without Adding Staff

A PYMNTS Intelligence report based on a survey of 533 U.S. small- to medium-sized businesses shows AI is helping firms do more work without expanding payroll PYMNTS report. Seventy-four percent of respondents use AI at least occasionally; among those, 60% say they produce more work and 72% finish tasks faster, allowing owners to serve more customers with the same team.

Skipped hires are more common than layoffs: 13% of AI users avoided a full-time hire they otherwise would have made, versus 3.3% who laid off staff. Overall, 26% took at least one staffing action such as cutting hours or ending an arrangement, while roughly three-quarters reported none.

Forty-five percent of AI users report taking on assignments beyond previous capabilities, with customer service, marketing, bookkeeping and sales the top applications. The same data show 23% gained customers who specifically wanted human delivery, and 14% secured work fixing AI-generated output.

Our read: The findings illustrate that AI is being leveraged as a productivity lever rather than a replacement tool, enabling SMBs to expand capacity and capture new revenue streams while keeping labor costs stable. This dynamic creates niche opportunities for service providers who can complement AI with human expertise.