Forrester State of Business Buying, 2026: typical B2B buying decision involves 13 internal stakeholders + 9 external influencers
Claim: Forrester's State of Business Buying, 2026 puts the typical B2B buying decision at 13 internal stakeholders plus 9 external influencers, rising for more complex purchases.
Confidence: Verified.
Updates [[gartner-6-to-10-decision-makers-2019]] — newer, larger group sizes consistent with the post-pandemic interaction increase from Forrester 2021 B2B Buying Study (n=950+): buying interactions during evaluation rose from 17 to 27 during the pandemic.
For GC SMB application: 13+9 is for enterprise purchases. For a $1M–$5M residential GC, buying group is owner + spouse + (sometimes) office manager. For $5M–$50M ICI, it is owner + estimator/PM + BD lead + external referrer (architect/LP partner). See GC buying-group composition by revenue tier (Candid synthesis for SMB application of forrester-state-business-buying-2026-13-and-9).