The retail sector continues to face a shifting and dynamic environment, with some brands thriving amid economic pressures while others struggle to maintain customer satisfaction, both in-store and online. Amid this dichotomy, overall customer satisfaction with the sector inches up 0.4% to a score of 78.3 (out of 100), according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI®) Retail and Consumer Shipping Study 2025.
While some retailers are finding success through strategic discounting and promotions, others are grappling with the cumulative impacts of inflation. The supermarket industry, for example, has remained relatively stable, but online retail has been more volatile, with more than 65% of tracked brands seeing declines in customer satisfaction scores. To stay competitive, retailers will need to closely monitor changing consumer preferences and invest in enhancing both their physical and digital experiences.
“Though there wasn’t much movement in retail customer satisfaction overall, we’re seeing a clear divide emerge between brands that are meeting the needs and expectations of younger consumers versus those that are falling behind,” said Forrest Morgeson, Assistant Professor of Marketing at Michigan State University and Director of Research Emeritus at the ACSI. “Factors like mobile shopping capabilities, website quality, and perceptions of value are becoming increasingly important, especially for the 18-25 age group, who expressed significantly lower satisfaction levels compared to older demographics.”
Chewy continues to dominate online retailers
Customer satisfaction with online retailers dips 1% to an ACSI score of 79, as over two-thirds of individual companies experience satisfaction declines.
Pet supply e-retailer Chewy, however, bucks the trend and tops the industry again after increasing 1% to 85. It has ranked number one among online retailers in all three years it has been measured by the ACSI.
Second-place Amazon is steady at 83, followed by eBay (unchanged) at 81. Kohl’s (unchanged), Costco (down 2%), Etsy (down 1%), and Home Depot — up 3% and the only company outside of Chewy to improve year over year — all finish with an industry average score of 79. The latter’s partnership with Instacart to offer customers same-day delivery seems to be paying off as it enjoys the biggest satisfaction increase among online retailers.
Despite being the most downloaded app in the United States for the past two years, Temu debuts with an ACSI score of 75, trailing many of its direct competitors in terms of customer satisfaction. Apparel brands Nike (76) and Gap (72) experience notable declines of 5% and 6%, respectively. Apple Store’s satisfaction, driven by frequently updated products that lack new features and AI-integration, falls 5% to 74.
The largest satisfaction downturn belongs to Groupon, which slides 11% to 70, while Staples (72) and GameStop (69) each suffer 9% drops. GameStop’s slide puts the company in last place among online retailers.
As mobile shopping continues to take over a larger proportion of online sales, e-retailers overall are excelling at providing a high-quality mobile app (87). Mobile app reliability dips 1% but remains strong at 85. While many aspects of the customer experience earn scores of 80 or above, there is notable erosion across most customer experience metrics this year. Growing expectations could be leading to modest declines in the usefulness of product images (81), the helpfulness of customer reviews (79), and the usefulness of site-generated recommendations of other products (77).
Sam’s Club secures top spot among general merchandise retailers
Customer satisfaction with general merchandise retailers improves 1% to an ACSI score of 78 with associates and checkout improvements helping drive the increase.
While technology is often linked with online retail, it can also affect the in-store shopping experience. This has helped Sam’s Club vault 5% to 85 — making it the leader among warehouse clubs and general merchandise retailers overall. The company’s Scan & Go service, used regularly by one in three members, has helped customers skip checkout lines completely. Sam’s Club is also piloting technology to improve the receipt checking process to get customers out the door faster.
TJX brands Marshalls and TJ Maxx improve 4% to 82 as they take advantage of shoppers’ value focus. These brands have become go-to spots for Gen Z customers who prefer good deals on high-quality items as opposed to shopping at upscale venues. All of this has allowed TJX to cut into the market share of strong ACSI performers such as Macy’s (unchanged at 82) and Target (down 1% to 80).
While results across the customer experience are mixed, general merchandise retailers do well overall, led by the value of store credit cards (up 1% to 85), mobile app quality (unchanged at 84), and mobile app reliability (up 1% to 84).
Improvements in both courtesy and helpfulness of staff (up 3% to 79) and speed of checkout process (up 3% to 77) also aid the small gain for general merchandise retailers. Despite being the highest-scoring customer experience element a year ago, accuracy of order fulfillment for pickup dips 2% to 83. Call center satisfaction (77), speed of checkout process (77), and frequency of sales and promotion (76) make up the bottom end of the customer experience.
Pet Supplies Plus now leads all specialty retailers
Customer satisfaction with specialty retailers is stable with an ACSI score of 79.
Pet Supplies Plus takes the top spot after climbing 2% to 84. The company receives high marks for customer service, including courtesy and helpfulness of staff and checkout speed.
In the personal care and accessories segment, Ulta Beauty (up 4% to 83) and Bath & Body Works (up 3% to 82) make the biggest splashes. The former plans on adding 200 new stores to fuel its growth, while the latter has found success thanks to new product collaborations with TV shows like “Stranger Things” and “Emily in Paris” and an effective loyalty program.
Among technology and office companies, Best Buy improves 3% to 81, overtaking last year’s leader Apple Store, which slides 6% to 76 amid difficulties with Apple’s AI rollout.
Ace Hardware and Menards both show strong performance in the hardware and home improvement segment, tying with top scores of 83 (up 1% and 2%, respectively). Other specialty retail leaders include O’Reilly Auto Parts (down 1% to 81), Hobby Lobby (up 1% to 81), and Dick’s Sporting Goods and Foot Locker (which share the sporting goods and sports apparel segment lead with unchanged scores of 79). American Eagle Outfitters and Gap also tie atop the apparel segment at 78, down 4% and 1%, respectively.
While satisfaction with the specialty retailer industry is unchanged overall, most aspects of the customer experience show some deterioration. Accuracy of order fulfillment for pickup (85), mobile app reliability (83), ability to provide brand names (82), speed of order readiness for pickup (82), value of store credit card (82), and speed of checkout process (80) all slip 2% year over year. The only improved customer experience metric is website satisfaction, which increases 1% to 84.
Trader Joe’s and Publix share supermarket lead
Following last year’s 4% surge, customer satisfaction among supermarkets remains steady with an ACSI score of 79.
Trader Joe’s (unchanged) and Publix (down 1%) tie for the lead at 84. Sam’s Club (unchanged) and Wegmans (up 1%) are next at 83 apiece, followed by H-E-B (down 4%) and Whole Foods (unchanged) at 82 each.
Along with Wegmans, only three grocers — Ahold Delhaize (up 1% to 78), Kroger (up 1% to 78), and Walmart (up 1% to 75) — experience satisfaction gains. This can be attributed mostly to improvements in quality and value.
Costco (81) and BJ’s Wholesale Club (77) suffer the biggest satisfaction slides in the industry, faltering 5% and 6%, respectively. Although not as severe, Giant Eagle stumbles 3% into last place with an ACSI score of 74.
Looking at customer satisfaction by region, Wegmans takes the top spot in the Northeast while Sam’s Club wins the Midwest. Trader Joe’s is best in the West, and H-E-B and Publix share the lead in the South.
Among customer experience benchmarks, ease of pickup process, convenient store hours and locations, and quality mobile apps all score 84 to lead the industry. The frequency of promotions (79), checkout speed (78), and call centers (76), on the other hand, receive the worst marks.
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