Palantir's third-quarter U.S. commercial revenue reached $984 million, exceeding government revenue for the first time.
Written by: TechFlow
Palangtir Technologies (PLTR) released its third-quarter earnings after market hours on Eastern Time on November 2, 2026, reporting US commercial revenue of $984 million and US government revenue of $953 million. The company stated in its earnings presentation that this marks the first time US commercial revenue has surpassed US government revenue. Total revenue for the quarter was $2.313 billion, up 96% year over year.
From Lagging by $89 Million to Leading by $31 Million Within a Year
According to the Palantir earnings press release, US commercial revenue grew 148% year over year and 29% sequentially, while US government revenue grew 96% year over year and 18% sequentially.
BusinessQ3 2025Q3 2026YoY
US Commercial$397 million$984 million148%
US Government$486 million$953 million96%
US Total$883 million$1.937 billion119%
Calculated by TechFlow, one year ago US government revenue exceeded US commercial revenue by $89 million, whereas this quarter it reversed with US commercial revenue ahead by $31 million; US commercial revenue accounted for 50.8% of total US revenue and 42.5% of overall revenue.
The quarterly sequence presented in the deck shows US commercial revenue growing from $255 million in Q1 2025 to $984 million in Q3 2026, with no quarter showing a decline. According to TechFlow calculations, this segment expanded nearly 3.9 times its size over six quarters. The number of US commercial customers reached 686, up 29% year over year, with total contract value amounting to $1.463 billion. During the quarter, the company secured 212 contracts exceeding $1 million, including 64 contracts worth over $10 million.
Profitability and Market Expectations
The press release showed GAAP net income of $1.128 billion for the quarter, representing a 49% margin, compared to $476 million in the same period last year; GAAP earnings per share were $0.44. Adjusted operating income was $1.427 billion with a 62% margin; adjusted free cash flow stood at $1.216 billion; net dollar retention rate was 165%, and the “Rule of 40” score was 158%; cash and short-term US Treasuries totaled $10.4 billion.
According to CNBC, LSEG consensus analyst estimates were $0.41 per share and $2.18 billion in revenue. Palantir beat both expectations, yet the stock still fell approximately 3% in after-hours trading. TechFlow previously analyzed Deutsche Bank's research report on Palantir.
Calculated by TechFlow, non-US revenue was approximately $376 million, compared to roughly $298 million in the prior-year period, reflecting a growth rate of about 26%—less than a quarter of the 119% growth pace of the US business. Also calculated by TechFlow, the year-over-year increase in US commercial revenue was $587 million, surpassing the $467 million increase from the US government segment, indicating that Palantir's incremental revenue primarily came from US corporate clients.
Implied US Commercial Revenue Floor from Q4 Guidance
The press release provided fourth-quarter revenue guidance of $2.649 billion to $2.653 billion, and adjusted operating income guidance of $1.640 billion to $1.644 billion. Full-year revenue guidance stands at $8.530 billion to $8.534 billion, representing 91% growth, with full-year adjusted free cash flow guidance between $4.8 billion and $5.0 billion. Full-year US commercial revenue guidance is set above $3.559 billion, implying growth of at least 143%. According to CNBC, this guidance was previously raised from $3.42 billion.
Per TechFlow calculations, US commercial revenue for the first three quarters totaled $2.343 billion. To meet the full-year guidance, Q4 would need to reach at least $1.216 billion, representing a sequential growth rate of at least 23.6%—approximately 5 percentage points lower than the 29% sequential growth seen in Q3.