Sogolytics today released the Sogolytics Experience Index: Employee Edition Q2 2026, examining how U.S. employees feel about their jobs, their employers, and the future of work. The Q2 reading is the third cycle in a rolling quarterly series that now covers 2,840 full-time U.S. employees across a wide range of industries, job levels, and company sizes.
The Q2 findings run counter to several assumptions that have shaped workplace planning since 2020. Employees are more satisfied, more loyal, and more willing to be in the office than in any prior reading, even as views on AI grow sharper and the gap between how executives and frontline workers see the workplace continues to widen.
Key Findings
Fully in-office is now the single most preferred work arrangement, chosen by 41% of employees, more than double any other option. 57% call four or five days in the office ideal.
Employee satisfaction rose to 74% in Q2, the highest point across all three cycles, and 43% of employees say satisfaction increased over the past year, up from 38% in Q1.
63% of employees are very likely to stay with their current employer, a series high. Even so, nearly half of that group would still leave for better pay elsewhere.
Employee views on AI are polarizing. The "waste of time" share grew from 15% to 20% and "extremely useful" from 14% to 18% since 2025 while the middle shrank by nine points. 23% now say AI should not be used at work at all, up from 18% a year ago.
Executives are three times more likely than frontline employees to say their company communicates clearly, at 62% versus 20%.
Fully In-Office Overtakes Every Other Work Arrangement by More Than Two to One
Fully in-office is now the single most preferred work arrangement in the study, chosen by 41% of employees, more than double the share choosing any other option, including fully remote. 57% say four or five days in the office is their ideal. Remote flexibility still holds value, but 43% of employees would not accept any pay reduction in exchange for more of it, with women holding that line more strongly than men at 46% versus 40%.
Employee Satisfaction Reaches Its Highest Point in the Series
The share of employees who describe themselves as somewhat or very satisfied rose to 74% in Q2, the highest reading across all three cycles, and 43% say satisfaction increased over the past year, up from 38% in Q1. Salary remains the single biggest driver of satisfaction, and employer delivery has quietly improved, with nine of the ten measured performance factors gaining ground since 2025, led by fair and transparent leadership at 7 points and salary at 6.
Retention Looks Strong, but Nearly Half of Committed Employees Would Leave for Better Pay
In Q2, 63% of employees said they are very likely to stay with their current employer over the next year, the highest retention signal in the series. Even inside that group, nearly half say they would leave for better pay and benefits elsewhere. Pay is also the top improvement employees ask for in their own words. When invited to name a single thing their employer could do differently, more employees pointed to pay than to any other theme, 23% of all responses.
Employee Sentiment Toward AI Is Polarizing, Not Converging
Two opposing views of AI at work are gaining ground at the same time. The share of employees who call AI a waste of time grew from 15% in 2025 to 20% in Q2, and the share calling it extremely useful grew from 14% to 18%. The middle ground lost nearly nine points. Among employees who use AI tools, ChatGPT leads at 52%, and nearly one in four AI users say it saves them no time at all in a typical week, even as most say AI improves the quality of their work. Privacy is now the top employee concern about AI, cited by 36% and overtaking loss of human connection, the 2025 leader.
Executives See a Feedback Loop That Frontline Employees Don't
Whether an employee thinks their employer listens depends heavily on where they sit. In Q2, 62% of executives said their organization communicates clearly, compared to 20% of frontline staff. Executives also say feedback usually or always leads to change 69% of the time. Among frontline staff that figure is 22%, and one in four say feedback almost never leads to anything. Trust in the process is thin at the same time. 59% of employees say knowing a response is anonymous makes them more likely to respond, but only 21% are very confident that promised anonymity is honored.
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About the Study
The Sogolytics Experience Index: Employee Edition tracks how U.S. employee satisfaction, expectations, and behaviors evolve throughout 2026. Each cycle surveys full-time U.S. employees across four age groups, five job levels, six company-size bands, and a broad range of industries. The Q2 2026 cycle included 812 participants. The three published cycles together include feedback from 2,840 full-time U.S. employees.
The Sogolytics Experience Index is an independent study. Sogolytics received no funding or input from any of the organizations or companies referenced in the results. Opinions expressed are those of Sogolytics and are for informational purposes only, not industry-specific advice or an endorsement of any employer or workplace policy.
Sogolytics is an enterprise experience management platform that helps organizations listen to, understand, and act on employee and customer feedback. Trusted by leading organizations across industries, Sogolytics combines Employee Experience (EX), Customer Experience (CX), and research capabilities in a single platform. Learn more at sogolytics.com.
