HubSpot's 2025 State of Blogging Report [Data from 500+ Marketers]

Full disclosure, I believe my group and I are a bit embarrassed. Consider it or not, running a blog is type of our fundamental factor right here at The HubSpot BLOG — so the truth that it‘s taken over a decade for us to place collectively our first-ever report on the state of running a blog isn’t the most effective look.

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However hey! As that Chinese language proverb says, “The very best time to plant a tree is 20 years in the past. The second greatest time is true now.” That is why we surveyed over 500 entrepreneurs throughout varied industries and firm scales to get a pulse on the present state and future destiny of running a blog.

We lined the entire massive bases, together with:

Do companies still publish blog content?
Why do companies blog?
What kind of content are companies publishing?
Where does blog traffic come from?
How is AI transforming the practice?
How are blogs adjusting in the era of E-E-A-T?
Where is blogging headed?
A lot extra!

Test it out! Yeah!

Do firms nonetheless publish weblog content material?

Brief reply? Yeah, they do — for good cause.

Our survey signifies that 65% of entrepreneurs are employed by firms that preserve blogs, they usually usually submit fairly diligently. Our analysis discovered that:

22% of companies that preserve blogs publish content material every day.
37% publish two to 3 occasions per week.
30% publish weekly.
7% publish bi-weekly.
5% publish month-to-month.

Most of these respondents additionally say running a blog continues to be fairly essential to their broader advertising methods. Of our respondents whose firms publish weblog content material:

47% cite it as being crucial.
46% cite it as being essential.
5% cite it as being impartial.
2% cite it as being much less essential.

That‘s why running a blog stays a reasonably vital staple of many advertising orgs’ budgets. In keeping with our analysis:

24% of entrepreneurs from blog-producing companies say they dedicate lower than 10% of their advertising funds to running a blog.
31% say they allocate 11-20% to it.
25% say they allocate 21-30% to it.
18% say they allocate greater than 30% to it.

And people figures make sense when you think about the returns running a blog generates for a number of companies. Our analysis discovered that:

50% of entrepreneurs from companies that preserve blogs say they noticed the next ROI from running a blog in 2024, relative to 2023.
31% stated it was roughly the identical 12 months over 12 months.
15% noticed a decrease ROI.

So it is sensible that numerous blog-publishing companies are leaning into the technique. In keeping with our research:

45% of entrepreneurs from blog-maintaining companies say their firms are going to take a position extra funds in running a blog in 2025, relative to 2024.
Solely 13% are going to take a position much less.
40% are going to maintain their funding constant 12 months over 12 months.

So by the appears of it, running a blog continues to be widespread and never going wherever anytime quickly — however why is that the case? We dug into that as effectively.

Why do firms weblog?

Running a blog is a reasonably versatile apply. It could actually assist cowl numerous bases on the advertising entrance, however our analysis signifies that almost all companies that leverage it are doing it to garner consideration. Our research discovered that:

66% of blog-maintaining companies publish content material for model consciousness.
53% do it for buyer engagement.
49% do it for lead technology.
34% do it for Search engine marketing-related functions.
26% do it to undertaking thought management.

Naturally, these objectives align with the KPIs most of these firms use to gauge their content material’s success. We discovered that extra model awareness-oriented metrics had been the most well-liked with companies that publish weblog content material. In keeping with our analysis:

54% of blog-maintaining companies use pageviews to measure their blogs’ success.
53% use social shares.
46% use conversion charge.
45% use time on web page.
22% use backlinks.

Finally, weblog content material is — initially — a promotional play for many companies. Whereas some use it for exhausting conversions, most blog-producing companies are simply in search of one other avenue to get their model in entrance of potential prospects. Whereas these objectives are usually constant, there are loads of the way to attain them.

“Weblog content material” is a reasonably broad catch-all that covers a number of content material codecs — and the entrepreneurs we surveyed noticed worth in a variety of them.

What sort of content material are firms publishing?

An organization weblog will be a wonderful medium for establishing longer-term credibility via evergreen content material and instant clout with extra trend-responsive articles, and the entrepreneurs we surveyed usually publish a mixture of the 2. In keeping with our analysis:

40% of retailers that produce weblog content material produce evergreen and well timed content material at a 50/50 cut up.
24% cut up their content material 75% evergreen and 25% well timed.
18% cut up their content material 75% well timed and 25% evergreen.
7% publish evergreen content material solely
2% publish well timed solely.

Our analysis additionally signifies that blog-producing companies see stable returns from a reasonably big selection of various content material codecs. Our research discovered that:

51% of blog-producing companies discover that how-to guides carry out effectively for them.
45% discover that business information performs effectively for them.
42% discover that case research carry out effectively for them.
34% discover that encyclopedic articles explaining ideas related to their verticals carry out effectively for them.
23% discover that product listicles carry out effectively for them.

However the way you construction the content material you produce is a little bit of a non-factor if you cannot distribute it successfully — and as any content material strategist will inform you, that is among the most (if not the most) difficult features of sustaining a weblog.

The place does weblog visitors come from?

Getting engaged eyes in your content material is each bit as tough as it’s important — and in a panorama going through seismic shifts prompted by elements like volatility in natural search and the popularization of short-form content material, sustaining a various vary of distribution channels is transitioning from nice-to-have to need-to-have for bloggers.

The entrepreneurs we surveyed mirrored that sentiment. Our research discovered that:

83% of companies that preserve blogs distribute their content material via social media.
47% leverage e-mail newsletters.
47% leverage paid adverts.
36% leverage natural search.
33% leverage influencers.
23% leverage paid search.

Our analysis additionally signifies that companies with blogs are usually cut up on sourcing visitors organically versus via paid avenues. Our survey discovered that:

38% of companies with blogs principally sourced visitors organically.
21% sourced it primarily via paid avenues.
36% sourced it with a principally equal mixture of the 2.

Whereas we’re with reference to nice-to-haves turning into need-to-haves, let‘s check out how AI is enjoying into companies’ weblog methods.

How does AI play in?

AI — particularly generative AI — might be probably the most disruptive component ever launched into the world of content material advertising (and possibly the world normally, however that is neither right here nor there.)

It is presenting an actual “adapt or die” second for bloggers, and our respondents appear to know that. Our analysis signifies that:

Solely 4% of bloggers by no means use AI instruments to assist content material creation.
21% use it to assist lower than 25% of content material creation.
37% use it to assist 25-50% of content material creation.
19% use it to assist 51-75% of content material creation.
16% use it to assist greater than 75% of content material creation.

Bloggers additionally use AI at varied factors within the content material creation course of. Our research discovered that:

43% use AI to assist enhancing and proofreading.
38% use it to assist define creation.
37% use it to assist first-draft writing.
31% use it to assist picture creation.
30% use it to assist subject analysis.
26% use it to assist meta-description technology.

Of the AI sources out there to bloggers, the most well-liked had been:

ChatGPT with 68% of respondents referencing utilizing it for content material creation.
Google Gemini with 50%.
Copy.ai with 13%.
Claude with 12%.
Jasper with 11%.
HubGPT with 8%.
5% used different sources.

As you may in all probability assume, one of many main advantages of incorporating AI instruments into bloggers’ workflows has been a rise in content material manufacturing quantity. Our analysis discovered that:

19% of respondents noticed their manufacturing considerably enhance after folding AI sources into their content material manufacturing.
48% noticed it reasonably enhance.
17% noticed no change in content material manufacturing quantity.
9% noticed it reasonably lower.
3% noticed it considerably lower.

AI‘s emergence isn’t the one component that lately rocked the world of content material advertising. These previous couple of years noticed Google pivot to E-E-A-T (Expertise-Experience-Authority-Belief) — a brand new search-grading standards that locations additional emphasis on related, first-hand expertise with the subject material bloggers cowl.

How are blogs E-E-A-T-ifying?

A number of blogs have discovered themselves scrambling to regulate to those new requirements, and our respondents took a spread of approaches to get there.

One key consider appeasing the E-E-A-T gods is establishing creator credibility, and respondents whose firms publish weblog content material went about that a couple of methods. Our analysis discovered that:

43% of blog-producing companies established creator experience by referencing revealed works and citations.
42% used creator bios with credentials.
40% included hyperlinks to skilled profiles.
27% referenced business certifications.
8% had been uncertain.

Incorporating analysis and information can also be a giant assist when E-E-A-T-ifying weblog content material — making it one of many extra widespread approaches our respondents took. In keeping with our research:

8% of our respondents featured information in 0-20% of their weblog content material.
23% featured it in 21-40% of their content material.
28% featured it in 41-60% of their content material.
26% featured it in 61-80% of their content material
13% featured it in 81-100% of their content material.
3% had been uncertain.

Nevertheless, loading your content material with information won’t be sufficient to chop it on SERPs these days. Once more, the extra “E” in E-E-A-T stands for “expertise” — which means firsthand perception is fairly mission-critical when attempting to make headway within the present search panorama. In keeping with our analysis:

45% of blog-producing companies undertaking firsthand expertise by highlighting private experiences from group members.
36% supply unique quotes from material consultants.
35% reference case research from precise purchasers.
33% function knowledgeable interviews.
25% share product testing outcomes.
10% do not particularly doc expertise.
6% had been uncertain.

Finally, E-E-A-T represents what could be probably the most monumental shift in natural search ever, so naturally, it‘s basically formed a number of blogs’ content material growth course of. In keeping with our analysis, these are the first methods our respondents have tailored:

39% elevated quotation of main sources.
34% applied knowledgeable overview processes.
36% added unique analysis and information.
31% applied enhanced fact-checking procedures.
20% added creator credentials and bios.
12% did not implement any vital adjustments.
7% had been uncertain.

So with the entire shifting tides, turmoil, and uncertainty that‘s been shaping the panorama of content material advertising as of late, there’s actually just one query to ask — the place is running a blog headed?

The place is running a blog headed?

Effectively, regardless of the entire current headwinds and “all-over-the-boardness” that numerous my fellow content material strategists can communicate to, many of the entrepreneurs we surveyed had been optimistic about the way forward for running a blog.

Our analysis discovered that:

56% of entrepreneurs who work for blog-maintaining companies say they see the position of running a blog of their content material advertising technique increasing sooner or later.
32% say it would keep the identical.
7% they’re going to be decreasing give attention to it.
5% are uncertain.

Nonetheless, content material advertising is ever-evolving, and companies can‘t lean strictly on their blogs to drive engagement going ahead — and most of our respondents acknowledge that. That’s why they’re additionally investing in different content material codecs. In keeping with our research:

81% of blog-producing companies are additionally investing in video.
53% are investing in podcasts.
46% are investing in newsletters.
39% are investing in webinars.
20% are investing in ebooks.

So what’s the state of running a blog in 2025?

Finally, if our analysis is any indication, running a blog is much from out of date midway via the 2020s. A whole lot of adjustments have rocked the apply in recent times — the popularization of AI and the introduction of E-E-A-T standards being two of probably the most transformative — however bloggers look like adapting.

Running a blog continues to be one of the vital efficient autos advertising orgs have at their disposal for facilitating key objectives like lead technology and producing model consciousness. And the truth that the entrepreneurs we surveyed nonetheless see sufficient worth within the apply to maintain investing in it speaks to how versatile and productive it may be.

So what is the state of running a blog? In a phrase — stable.

It is ever-changing and basically totally different than it was once … however nonetheless stable.