Top 20 Application Maintenance and Support Trends to Watch in 2026

The demand for application maintenance and support is increasing as businesses move to the cloud, modernize legacy systems, and adopt AI for operations.

To help you keep up with the rapid change, we’ve gathered the top 20 trends you need to know to make informed decisions.

Market Size and Growth

1. The application maintenance and support market is expected to reach USD 38.25 billion by 2026, up from USD 28.52B in 2024, and USD 33.03B in 2025. This reflects a growth trend through mid-2020s.

2. In 2026, application maintenance and support teams will lean more on real-time data (user experience, performance metrics) to tune applications continuously rather than only in major release cycles.

3. It is projected that by 2026, 80% of enterprises will have deployed gen AI-enabled applications.

4. There will be full lifecycle maintenance accounts for around 55% of all revenue in application maintenance and support in 2026.

5. The global application maintenance and support service market is projected to increase in 2026 and reach USD 145B by 2032, growing at a CAGR of 12%. 

Market Segments and Growth Drivers

1. North America was the largest region to offer application maintenance and support services in 2024; however, the Asia-Pacific region is on the rise.

2. The Asia‑Pacific region is expected to grow at the fastest CAGR in 2026.

3. BFSI, Healthcare, Retail, and IT/Telecom industries are the top segments driving demand for application maintenance in 2026.

4. Legacy systems in regulated industries, like healthcare and government, are increasing the need for structured support services in 2026.

5. Preventive maintenance, bug fixing, and SLA management are consistently rated as the most critical application support functions and are expected to stay the same in 2026. 

6. SMEs are leaning towards cloud-based support demand due to cost efficiency and flexibility.

Automation and Emerging Technology Trends

1. Research shows that AI & ML tools are becoming standard in 2026 in application maintenance and support for predictive maintenance, anomaly detection, and cost reduction. 

2. Companies implementing automated monitoring systems report a huge reduction in reactive incidents.

3. Chatbots and virtual assistants are being deployed for Level 1 issue handling during application support, saving companies millions annually.

Security in Application Maintenance and Support

1. Companies are working on modernizing legacy systems; 69% of vulnerabilities are due to outdated software versions. 

2. Security-driven maintenance activities, including applying critical security fixes, monitoring for vulnerabilities, and remediating security issues, are estimated to make up over 40% of all application maintenance work in 2026. 

3. Research shows that application downtime caused by security incidents can be reduced through proactive application maintenance, including timely vulnerability patching and system hardening. 

Outsourcing Application Maintenance and Support

1. According to research, organizations can save up to 30% on IT costs by outsourcing maintenance and support services. 

2. Security concerns remain a key barrier for 48% of organizations considering outsourcing application maintenance and support, highlighting the need for rigorous vendor compliance and SLAs. 

3. A study highlights that application maintenance can cut costs by more than 50% when done right, which is why many companies are choosing to outsource in 2026. 

These statistics highlight the huge importance of application maintenance and support in 2026. Companies have to stay informed to keep their applications updated and secure.