What are the renewal rates for "Ask Gartner" users compared to non-users, and what benefits are seen in revenue, renewals, and retention?

"Ask Gartner" is one component of the broader BTI transformation to enhance user experience. The core value is proactive insights and overall engagement, which drives future retention, rather than a specific metric for this tool. “As Gartner for us is table stakes because that's the way a lot of people are now when they're behind the firewall or working through information, they are leveraging a large language model. Our core value is really driving people there to our site proactively because we know what their mission-critical priorities are.”

Is the company still expecting ex-federal government CV growth to accelerate to 4% plus by the end of this year?

Yes, the company expects the entire business, including ex-federal government CV growth, to continue to accelerate. “So along with overall CV growth continuing to accelerate this year, it's our expectation that the expense CV growth will be a part of that. So short answer is yes. We do expect the entire business to continue to accelerate ex-Fed being a piece of that reacceleration as well.”

What drives mid-single-digit growth in midsized clients compared to large enterprises, and are there differences in downselling?

Midsized enterprises have lower complexity, making it easier to manage initiatives like AI and achieve ROI. Large enterprises are more complicated and global, though downsell activity is stabilizing across the portfolio. “I think what's going on with midsize enterprises is these are enterprises that are -- again, they're typically revenues of $100 million or more. So these are not small enterprises, but they're smaller than the very large enterprises. And so the level of complexity in their environment is lower.”

Gartner (IT) Q2 FY26 earnings call: guidance and Q&A

Earnings call· Jun 2026 (Q2 FY26)· Information Technology· Aug 4, 2026

Source: earnings call transcript

Executive summary

Gartner Q2 FY26 — Strong Engagement and AI Demand Drive Accelerated CV Growth

Gartner exceeded Q2 expectations, driven by strong client engagement and accelerated contract value growth, particularly in midsized enterprises and government. Despite ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty and budget scrutiny, the company is leveraging its Business and Technology Insights (BTI) transformation and robust demand for AI-related insights to drive future growth. Management expects continued CV acceleration and double-digit adjusted EPS growth over the next three years, supported by strategic capital allocation including significant share repurchases.

Highlights

Q2 revenue, EBITDA, adjusted EPS, and free cash flow were ahead of expectations.
Client engagement improved 140 basis points year-over-year.
Contract value growth accelerated for the second consecutive quarter, up 70 basis points sequentially.
Midsized enterprise clients across GTS and GBS grew mid-single digits year-over-year.
Share count reduced by more than 5% sequentially, with $547 million of stock repurchased.
Full-year EBITDA guidance raised by $40 million on an operational basis.

Concerns

Persistent macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges are creating new and shifting budget pressures, leading to scrutiny of expenses, escalating approval processes, and delayed decisions.
GBS new business was down 5% compared to last year.

Guidance & targets

Category	Target	Timeline	Confidence
Full-year 2026 Revenue	at or above $6.375 billion high materiality	FY26	High
Full-year 2026 EBITDA	at or above $1.57 billion high materiality	FY26	High
Full-year 2026 EBITDA Margin	at or above 24.6% high materiality	FY26	High
Full-year 2026 Adjusted EPS	at or above $14 high materiality	FY26	High
Full-year 2026 Free Cash Flow	at or above $1.185 billion high materiality	FY26	High
Full-year 2026 FCF Conversion from GAAP Net Income	136% medium materiality	FY26	High
Q3 2026 EBITDA	at or above $315 million medium materiality	Q3 · FY26	High
Insights revenue	up sequentially on an FX-neutral basis medium materiality	Q3 · FY26	High
Adjusted EPS CAGR	above 12% high materiality	next 3 years	High
Contract Value growth	continue to accelerate high materiality	future	High
Ex-federal government CV growth	accelerate to 4% plus high materiality	by the end of this year · FY26	High

Segment performance

Segment	Revenue	YoY	QoQ	Margin
Insights Second consecutive quarter of acceleration in CV growth. Contribution margin up about 140 basis points versus last year. Contract value: $5.3 billionContract value YoY growth: 2%Contract value sequential increase: 30 basis points from Q1Contract value ex-Fed YoY growth: 3.3%	—	2% as reported, 1% FX neutral	—	77% contribution margin
Global Technology Sales (GTS) Tech Vendor year-over-year growth accelerated from Q1. Contract value: $4 billionCV sequential: flatCV acceleration from Q1: 70 basis pointsCV ex-U.S. federal: 3% growthRetention: 97%Retention ex-Fed: 99%New business: up 2% compared to last yearNew business sequential: up from Q1	—	1% CV growth	—	—
Global Business Sales (GBS) Growth led by sales, legal, and finance practices. About 90% of CV is from core subscription products. Contract value: $1.3 billionCV sequential: up 1% from Q1CV ex-U.S. federal: 4% growthCore subscription products CV growth: 7% YoYSales practice CV growth: double digitsFinance and Legal CV growth: mid-single digitsRetention: 99%New business: down 5% compared to last yearNew business sequential: around 20% higher than Q1	—	3% CV growth	—	—
Conferences Strong demand for insights. Revenue growth on a same conference basis. Number of destination conferences held: 18	$244 million	around 12% FX neutral	—	59% contribution margin
Consulting Labor-based revenue in line with expectations. First year-over-year backlog increase since Q1 2025. Labor-based revenue: $96 millionBookings growth: 17% over the prior yearBacklog: $214 millionBacklog YoY growth: 9%	$142 million	compared to $156 million in the year ago period	—	38% contribution margin
Contract Optimization Revenue on an LTM basis, consistent with Q1 FY26. Highly variable business, Q2 performance better than expected. 2-year revenue CAGR: up about 9%	$148 million	—	—	—

IT operating KPIs by quarter

IT operating KPIs stated on its earnings calls, by fiscal quarter
KPI	Mar 2026 Q1 FY26	This call Jun 2026 Q2 FY26	Change vs prior quarter
Contract value	$5.3B Contract value was $5.3 billion at the end of the first quarter, up 1% versus the prior year and an acceleration from year-end. Source: earnings call transcript	$5.3B Contract value was $5.3 billion at the end of the second quarter, a sequential increase of 30 basis points from Q1. Source: earnings call transcript	0%
Contract value US Federal	~$114M At March 31, we had approximately $114 million of US Federal CV. Source: earnings call transcript	~$125M At June 30, we had approximately $125 million of US Federal CV. Source: earnings call transcript	—
New business	$200M+ We had more than $200 million in new business in the first quarter as there continues to be considerable interest in Gartner's proprietary unbiased insights. Source: earnings call transcript	~$240M We had about $240 million of new business in the second quarter as there continues to be considerable interest in Gartner's proprietary unbiased insights. Source: earnings call transcript	—
Contract value Global Technology Sales	$4B Global Technology Sales contract value was $4 billion at the end of the first quarter, up versus the prior year. Source: earnings call transcript	$4B Global Technology Sales contract value was $4 billion at the end of the second quarter, about flat sequentially and up 1% versus the prior year. Source: earnings call transcript	0%
Wallet retention Global Technology Sales	97% Wallet retention for GTS was 97% for the quarter. Source: earnings call transcript	97% Tech Vendor year-over-year growth accelerated from Q1, while retention for GTS was 97%, an improvement from the first quarter. Source: earnings call transcript	0 pt
Wallet retention Global Technology Sales ex Fed	99% Ex Fed, wallet retention was 99%. Source: earnings call transcript	99% ex-Fed, while retention was 99%. Source: earnings call transcript	0 pt
Contract value Global Business Sales	$1.3B Global Business Sales contract value was $1.3 billion at the end of the first quarter, up 3% year-over-year. Source: earnings call transcript	$1.3B Global Business Sales contract value was $1.3 billion at the end of the second quarter, up 1% from Q1 and up 3% year-over-year. Source: earnings call transcript	0%
Wallet retention Global Business Sales	98% Wallet retention for GBS was 98% for the quarter. Source: earnings call transcript	99% CV from these products grew about 7% year-over-year in the quarter with even faster growth from our offerings for C-level leaders, while retention for GBS was 99% for the quarter. Source: earnings call transcript	+1 pt
Destination conferences held	10 We held 10 destination conferences in the first quarter as planned. Source: earnings call transcript	18 We held 18 destination conferences in the second quarter as planned. Source: earnings call transcript	+80%

Operating figures the company stated on at least two of the calls shown, checked against each call's transcript. Click a figure to read the sentence. A dash means it was not stated that quarter.

Orderbook & backlog

Consulting Backlog $214 million June 30

up about 9% year-over-year

First year-over-year backlog increase since Q1 of 2025.

Risks & headwinds

Macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges today's environment

creating new and shifting budget pressures, scrutinizing expenses, escalating approval processes and delaying decisions

Mitigation:Strengthening value proposition, BTI transformation, improving sales/services/analyst capabilities, agile expense management.

Stronger U.S. dollar FY26

compared with our prior guidance from 3 months ago, impacts reported results

Mitigation:Guidance updated to account for FX effect.

What to watch in Q3 FY26

Contract Value growth acceleration

next quarter

Current 2% YoY

Target continued acceleration

Why it matters

Core to the company's growth thesis and confidence in business model resilience.

We expect contract value growth to continue to accelerate.

Find out whether IT delivers this. Inve re-checks your case every morning.

Q&A highlights

How have thoughts evolved on macro and AI impact, especially since AI is now mentioned as a factor?

The selling environment improved in Q2, and AI is the single most requested topic from clients, driving demand for Gartner's insights and proving valuable.

“AI actually for us is something we get a lot of demand for us, the single biggest depend from our clients. And so it's actually quite valuable to our clients.”

asked by Faiza Alwy · answered by Eugene Hall

2 min read 6 chapters

Detailed narrative

Business and Technology Insights (BTI) Transformation Progress

Gartner is making significant progress on its BTI transformation, focusing on enhancing client value. This includes increasing the Insights library by 18% to cover a broader range of mission-critical priorities, achieving double-digit growth in higher impact documents, and significantly improving the timeliness of insights produced after important events.

The transformation also involves enhancing the Gartner digital experience and improving sales, services, and analyst capabilities to deliver unparalleled client value, aiming to return to historical growth rates.

Strong Demand for AI-Related Insights

AI remains the single most requested topic from clients, including C-level executives across various functions. Gartner proactively covers a comprehensive range of AI technologies and strategies, connecting over 80,000 business leaders, 10,000 CIOs, and 5,000 technology providers. This strong demand for AI support is a key driver for Gartner's value proposition, as the company helps clients navigate AI strategy, cybersecurity, and adoption cases, effectively driving demand for its products.

Improving Client Engagement and Retention Trends

Client engagement improved meaningfully by 140 basis points year-over-year across both digital and human interactions, with digital engagement up over 110 basis points and human interactions up over 150 basis points. Wallet retention continues to improve as downsell activity stabilizes, and in-quarter retention rates increased in Q2.

These positive trends in engagement and retention are viewed as important leading indicators for future growth and the reacceleration of contract value.

Midsized Enterprise Outperformance and Large Enterprise Dynamics

Midsized enterprise clients (with revenues of $100 million or more) across both GTS and GBS grew mid-single digits year-over-year. This outperformance is attributed to their lower complexity in managing initiatives like AI, making it easier to achieve ROI and control costs.

While large enterprises face more complex challenges, downsell activity is stabilizing, and overall retention rates are improving across the entire client portfolio, indicating a broader positive trend.

Strategic Capital Allocation and Shareholder Returns

Gartner continues to generate strong free cash flow, with $378 million in Q2 and $1.3 billion on a rolling four-quarter basis. The company repurchased $547 million of stock during Q2, reducing its share count by over 5% sequentially. The Board recently increased the buyback authorization to approximately $1.2 billion, demonstrating a commitment to opportunistic capital deployment on stock repurchases and strategic tuck-in M&A to drive incremental shareholder value.

Adaptation to Macroeconomic Headwinds

Despite persistent macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges leading to budget pressures, increased scrutiny, and delayed decisions, Gartner is adapting its business model. The company is strengthening its value proposition and focusing on execution, believing it can accelerate contract value growth even without a radical shift in the external environment. Management emphasizes that the ongoing transformations are designed to enable better performance amidst current uncertainties.

Summary of the company's earnings call; see how call summaries are prepared. Not investment advice.