Deloitte: What will drive IT spending in 2025

Data centres and software will drive global IT spending growth in 2025, according to a recent Deloitte analysis.

Global IT spending is showing no signs of slowing down. According to Deloitte’s latest market analysis, worldwide IT expenditures are projected to grow by 9.3% in 2025, surpassing $5 trillion for the first time. The report identifies software and data center investments as the primary engines driving this expansion, while services and hardware are expected to see more moderate growth.

Global Momentum Accelerates

After a 7.2% increase in 2024, IT budgets worldwide are set to expand by another $500 billion in 2025. If this growth trajectory holds, global IT spending could hit $7 trillion by 2028. Data center and software investments are forecast to rise by over 14% this year, with other sectors like devices, services, and communication lagging behind with growth rates below 9%.

Notably, IT spending growth has consistently outpaced global GDP growth over the past decade — and Deloitte predicts this gap will continue to widen in the years ahead.

Europe Follows, at a Slightly Slower Pace

While Europe trails the global average slightly, it too is riding the AI-fueled IT boom. The region is expected to record an 8.7% growth in IT spending in 2025 — its strongest year since the pandemic. This follows a sharp decline in 2022 due to the economic impacts of the war in Ukraine, with spending falling 2.2%, before rebounding with 5.5% growth in 2023 and 6.8% in 2024.

Despite the positive momentum, European data center investments in 2025 are anticipated to grow at a slower rate than the global average. Looking ahead, experts predict an average annual growth rate of 8.1% for European IT spending through 2032.

IT Workforce Dynamics Stabilizing

After reaching a high turnover rate of 8.5% among IT professionals in Europe in 2023, job-hopping appears to be slowing down, with just 5% of IT workers expected to switch employers in 2024. Meanwhile, 58% of European companies increased their IT headcounts last year, a sign of continued demand for tech talent despite macroeconomic uncertainties.

Four Core IT Services Markets Identified

Deloitte breaks down IT services into four major categories:

• IT Consulting & Implementation: Advisory services helping companies align technology strategies with business goals.
• Business Process Outsourcing (BPO): The delegation of entire business functions or specific processes to external IT-driven service providers.
• IT Outsourcing: Comprehensive IT service contracts handled by third-party vendors.
• Other IT Services: System integration, software installation and support, and IT training services.