Enterprise SaaS Sprawl Hits 305 Apps on Average, Driving Consolidation Push
New data from Zylo shows the average organization now manages 305 SaaS applications, with 87% purchased outside of IT oversight.
The Scale of SaaS Sprawl
The average organization now manages 305 SaaS applications, according to new data from Zylo's 2026 SaaS Management Index. The figure highlights a sprawl problem that has been growing for years and is now reaching a tipping point for IT and finance teams.
Even more striking, 87 percent of those applications were purchased by teams outside of IT, meaning the vast majority of an organization's software portfolio is being built without centralized oversight.
Why Sprawl Keeps Growing
The explosion in SaaS adoption is driven by how easy it has become to buy software. Credit card purchases, free trials that convert to paid plans, and department-level budgets all make it simple for individual teams to acquire tools without going through procurement.
AI has accelerated the trend further. The rapid proliferation of AI-powered tools has given employees new reasons to sign up for yet another subscription, often without checking whether the company already has a similar solution in place.
The result is massive redundancy. Zylo's data shows that many organizations are paying for multiple tools that serve essentially the same function, with different teams unaware of each other's purchases.
Security and Compliance Risks
Beyond wasted spend, SaaS sprawl creates real security concerns. Zylo found that 46 percent of SaaS applications in use across the organizations it studied received low or poor risk scores, meaning they may not meet enterprise security and compliance standards.
When tools are adopted outside of IT's visibility, there is no guarantee that proper security reviews, data processing agreements, or access controls are in place. This is especially concerning as more AI tools handle sensitive company data.
The Consolidation Imperative
Organizations are responding by pushing for vendor consolidation. The goal is to reduce the total number of applications, eliminate redundancy, and bring spending back under centralized control.
Platform vendors are capitalizing on this trend by expanding their feature sets to cover more use cases, making it easier for companies to consolidate onto fewer platforms. Salesforce, Microsoft, and Google have all been aggressive in positioning their suites as all-in-one solutions.
Looking Ahead
SaaS management is quickly becoming a board-level priority. Companies that invest in visibility and governance tools now will save millions in wasted licenses and reduce their exposure to security risks from unvetted software.