# LinearB | Engineering Metrics Benchmarks

> Created from a study of 8.1+ M PRs from 4,800 engineering teams across 42 countries.

Annual report

# 2026 Software Engineering Benchmarks Report

Created from a study of 8.1+ M PRs from 4,800 engineering teams across 42 countries.

[Learn more about the report](https://linearb.io/resources/engineering-benchmarks#benchmarks-table)

# 2026 Software Engineering Benchmarks Report

Download your free copy

![Cover for Software Engineering Benchmarks Report](https://assets.linearb.io/image/upload/c_fit,w_2560,h_1339/f_auto/q_auto/v1/Benchmarks-rountable-social?_a=BAVMn6ID0)

## Data sourced from

4,800

teams

8.1+ mil

pull requests

42

countries

| Feature | Metric | Elite | Good | Fair | Needs focus |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Coding Timehours | < 54 mins | 54 mins - 4 hours | 5 - 23 | > 23 |
| Pickup Timehours | < 1 | 1 - 4 | 5 - 16 | > 16 |
| Approve Timehours | < 10 | 10 - 22 | 23 - 42 | > 42 |
| Merge Timehours | < 1 | 1 - 3 | 4 - 16 | > 16 |
| Review Timehours | < 3 | 3 - 14 | 15 - 24 | > 24 |
| Deploy Timehours | < 16 | 16 - 106 | 107 - 277 | > 277 |
| Cycle Timehours | < 25 | 25 - 72 | 73 - 161 | > 161 |
| Merge Frequencyper dev/week | > 2.0 | 2 - 1.2 | 1.2 - 0.66 | < 0.66 |
| Deploy Frequencyper service | > 1.2 | 1.2 - 0.5 | 0.5 - 0.2 | < 0.2 |
| PR Sizecode changes | < 100 | 100 - 155 | 156 - 228 | > 228 |
| PR Maturity% | > 89% | 89 - 83% | 82 - 77% | < 77% |
| Change Failure Rate% | < 1% | 1 - 4% | 5 - 17% | > 17% |
| Refactor Rate% | < 11% | 11 - 16% | 17 - 22% | > 22% |
| Rework Rate% | < 3% | 3 - 5% | 6 - 8% | > 8% |
| Capacity Accuracy% | 85 - 115% | 75 - 85% or 115 - 125% | 70 - 75% or 125 - 130% | > 70% or > 130% |
| Planning Accuracy% | > 82% | 82% - 64% | 63% - 47% | < 47% |
| Issues Linked to Parents% | > 90% | 90 - 67% | 66 - 56% | < 56% |
| Branches Linked to Issues% | > 77% | 77 - 62% | 61 - 41% | < 41% |
| In Progress Issues with Estimation% | > 55% | 55 - 26% | 25 - 14% | < 14% |
| In Progress Issues with Assignees% | > 96% | 96 - 84% | 83 - 76% | < 76% |

## About the report

## 2026 benchmarks breakdown

This year’s benchmarks include 20 metrics spanning the full SDLC – plus all-new AI metrics. Discover industry benchmarks for:

* Delivery: Cycle Time, Deploy Frequency, PR Size, and more
* Predictability: Change Failure Rate, Rework Rate, Planning Accuracy, and more
* Project Management: Issues Linked to Parents, In Progress Issues with Assignees, and more

![2026 Software Engineering Benchmarks Report](https://assets.linearb.io/image/upload/c_fit,w_2560,h_2560/f_auto/q_auto/v1/2026-software-engineering-benchmarks?_a=BAVMn6ID0)

## Real stories from top engineering leaders 

Data alone doesn’t tell the full story. That’s why this year’s report goes beyond metrics, capturing real-world perspectives from top engineering leaders regarding questions like:

* What’s been the biggest challenge or concern with using AI in your role?
* How confident are you in the quality of AI-generated code or suggestions?
* Looking ahead, how do you expect AI to influence your work in the next 12 months?

![The State of AI readiness](https://assets.linearb.io/image/upload/c_fit,w_2560,h_2560/f_auto/q_auto/v1/the-state-of-ai-readiness?_a=BAVMn6ID0)

## NEW AI productivity insights

This year’s report takes a hard look at AI’s impact on productivity. Here are a few of the standout findings from this year’s data:

* AI PRs wait 4.6x longer before review – but are reviewed 2x faster once picked up.
* Acceptance Rates for AI-generated PRs are significantly lower than manual PRs (32.7% vs. 84.4%).
* Bot Acceptance Rates vary widely by tool, with Devin’s rising since April and Copilot’s slipping since May.

![Agentic AI PRs have a PR PIckup Time 5.3x longer than Unassisted ones.](https://assets.linearb.io/image/upload/c_fit,w_2560,h_2560/f_auto/q_auto/v1/agentic-ai-prs-have-longer-pickup-time?_a=BAVMn6ID0)

Download your free copy

![Cover of the 2026 Software Engineering Benchmarks Report](https://assets.linearb.io/image/upload/c_fit,w_2560,h_2097/f_auto/q_auto/v1/2026_Benchmarks_R1_7_1?_a=BAVMn6ID0)