The Workforce AI Index · Consumer Cyclical
Best Buy Co., Inc. (BBY)
Electronics retailer, one pattern. Read October 1, 2026 from the annual report for the period ending 2026-01-31, filed 2026-03-18. Ranked 1 of the 39 Consumer Cyclical companies read so far, by the share within reach now: the sector.
The filing states approximately 82,000 employees in the U.S. and Canada and nothing by workplace, so one electronics retail pattern carries the workforce (c).
The figures on this page come from the company's own annual report and from BLS staffing patterns for its industries, never from a roster. They are estimates with a stated method. Nothing here says what the company will do: within reach is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
What follows from the reading
Share of working time within reach of AI, on the long-run pace at four in five: 30% now, 39% at the end of 2027, 40% at the end of 2028, 41% at the end of 2030. By the patterns, the work is about 41% desk work, 27% people work and 32% body work. These are the site's industry estimates weighted by the shares below: estimates with a stated method and range, not a forecast of what the company will do. By the same patterns, at the end of 2028 about 56% of the working time stays with people (conversation, in-person and hands-on work), 26% becomes checking a model's work and 17% could be handed over with lighter checks, from the industries' own figures, not the company's roles.
Headcount
82,000 employees as of 2026-01-31 (stated). The filing counts its employees in the U.S. and Canada together; the Domestic segment is 92% of revenue.
The filing: “At the end of fiscal 2026, we employed approximately 82,000 employees in the U.S. and Canada.”
The workforce as industry patterns
| Pattern | Share | Reason, from the filing |
|---|---|---|
| Electronics and Appliance Retailers | 100% | By description (c): consumer electronics and appliance stores with their services, the industry the filing's SIC code names; the supply chain and corporate leaders it mentions stay inside the retail pattern under rule 6, since it counts none of them. |
What the filing says about the workforce: Approximately 82,000 employees in the U.S. and Canada, down from 85,000; a seasonal workforce onboarded each year; no count by status or workplace.
What the filing says about AI
15 sentences in the filing name AI. The filing names AI in 15 sentences: the rapid integration of AI into consumer products, AI-driven search and shopping bots changing customer behavior, and the need for its own AI strategy to keep pace with competitors.
- “We operate in a highly and increasingly dynamic industry sector fueled by constant technological innovation, advancement and disruption, including the rapid integration of artificial intelligence ("AI") into consumer products.”
- “Inability to quickly adapt to changes in customer behavior (e.g., AI-driven search, AI shopping bots) could have an adverse impact our financial results.”
- “Further, as our competitors develop and expand their strategic use of AI, our operations and profitability could be adversely impacted if we fail to execute or maintain our own focused AI strategy that drives technological advancement and innovation.”
- “Diverse competition may also arise from new entrants into the markets we serve, including unexpected players who could more aggressively leverage technologies such as AI and platform integrations.”
- “Further, our flexibility to modify selling prices is limited due to digital technology that enables consumers to compare prices on a real-time basis, a challenge that is further amplified by the increasing use of AI-driven tools and shopping platforms.”
Headcount by filing year
As reported in each year's annual report, with the filing. A year marked not read had no figure the reading could take from the report's text.
| Period | Employees | Filed | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-31 | 82,000 | 2026-03-18 | 10-K |
| 2025-02-01 | 85,000 | 2025-03-19 | 10-K |
| 2024-02-03 | 85,000 | 2024-03-15 | 10-K |
| 2023-01-28 | 90,000 | 2023-03-17 | 10-K |
| 2022-01-29 | 105,000 | 2022-03-18 | 10-K |
| 2021-01-30 | 102,000 | 2021-03-19 | 10-K |
| 2020-02-01 | 125,000 | 2020-03-23 | 10-K |
| 2019-02-02 | 125,000 | 2019-03-28 | 10-K |
| 2018-02-03 | 125,000 | 2018-04-02 | 10-K |
| 2017-01-28 | 125,000 | 2017-03-24 | 10-K |
| 2016-01-30 | 125,000 | 2016-03-23 | 10-K |
| 2015-01-31 | 125,000 | 2015-03-31 | 10-K |
| 2014-02-01 | 140,000 | 2014-03-28 | 10-K |
| 2012-03-03 | 167,000 | 2012-05-01 | 10-K |
| 2011-02-26 | 180,000 | 2011-04-25 | 10-K |
| 2010-02-27 | 180,000 | 2010-04-28 | 10-K |
| 2009-02-28 | 155,000 | 2009-04-29 | 10-K |
| 2008-03-01 | 150,000 | 2008-04-30 | 10-K |
| 2007-03-03 | 140,000 | 2007-05-02 | 10-K |
| 2006-02-25 | 128,000 | 2006-05-10 | 10-K |
| 2005-02-26 | 109,000 | 2005-05-10 | 10-K |
| 2004-02-28 | 100,000 | 2004-04-29 | 10-K |
| 2003-03-01 | 98,000 | 2003-05-30 | 10-K |
| 2002-03-02 | 94,000 | 2002-05-30 | 10-K |
| 2001-03-03 | 75,000 | 2001-06-01 | 10-K |
| 2000-02-26 | 55,000 | 2000-05-24 | 10-K |
| 1999-02-27 | 45,000 | 1999-05-27 | 10-K |
| 1998-02-28 | 19,500 | 1998-05-28 | 10-K |
| 1997-03-31 | 19,000 | 1997-05-28 | 10-K |
| 1996-03-02 | 18,000 | 1996-05-31 | 10-K405 |
| 1995-02-25 | 25,300 | 1995-05-24 | 10-K405 |
| 1994-02-26 | 15,200 | 1994-05-20 | 10-K |
Limits of this reading
- The filing counts no people by workplace; distribution centers and corporate staff stay inside the retail pattern (rule 6).
- The U.S. share is not stated; the count combines the U.S. and Canada.
Source: the company's annual report on EDGAR, accession 0000764478-26-000009, the filing. Read by Claude Fable 5.1 under rubric version 1, by the method. A company can write to info@stratussc.com to have its reading checked against its filing.
Questions about this company
- How much of Best Buy Co., Inc.'s working time is within reach of AI?
- An estimated 30% now and 40% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five, from the workforce Best Buy Co., Inc.'s own annual report describes and BLS staffing patterns for its industries, never from a roster. It is an estimate with a stated method. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings, and it says nothing about what the company will do.
- How many people does Best Buy Co., Inc. employ?
- 82,000 as of January 31, 2026, as its annual report for the period ending January 31, 2026 states.
- What kinds of work make up Best Buy Co., Inc.'s workforce?
- Read from its annual report as a blend of 1 industry staffing pattern, the largest Electronics and Appliance Retailers; by those patterns the work is about 41% desk work, 27% people work and 32% body work. Each share has a one-sentence reason on this page that can be checked against the filing.
- What does Best Buy Co., Inc.'s annual report say about AI?
- 15 sentences in the filing name AI. They are counted and quoted on this page, never judged: a count says how much a filing talks about AI, not what the company does with it.
- How is this estimated?
- Claude Fable 5.1 read the annual report under the Index's written rubric (version 1) on October 1, 2026: the stated headcount, the share in the U.S. when stated, and the workforce as a blend of industry staffing patterns. The estimates are the site's industry estimates weighted by those shares, from O*NET tasks with estimated lengths and METR's measurements of how long a task AI models can finish. A company can write to info@stratussc.com to have its reading checked against its filing.
Embed these figures on your site
A small card with the share of working time within reach now and at the end of 2027, 2028 and 2030, the date and a link back. Free under CC BY 4.0; the card carries the credit.