Daily online shopping frequency has dropped sharply, falling from 21% to 9% in the past year, according to Salsify’s 2026 Consumer Research report, which surveyed nearly 3,000 shoppers across the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. Shoppers are pulling back from fast online purchases and lean more heavily on physical stores for confidence and value.
The consumer mindset is now defined by risk reduction and verification, with buyers scrutinizing more details, comparing across more channels, and seeking reassurance through in-store discovery. Sixty percent of shoppers now say they find new products in store, surpassing online marketplaces and marking a clear pivot from years of digital-first shopping behaviour.
“Consumers are recalibrating. They are being selective, they are verifying every detail and they expect product information that gives them confidence from the start,” says Dom Scarlett, research director at Salsify. “When content falls short, they walk away.”
Key trends revealed from the 2026 Consumer Research report include:
1. Economic pressure forces shoppers to hit the brakes on online buying
Rising prices linked to global trade volatility are reshaping how shoppers evaluate purchases. Consumers are comparing more, delaying more, and trading down more often as they try to stretch their budgets.
Thirty-nine percent compare prices more carefully, 38% reduce spending in specific categories, and 37% choose lower-priced alternatives regardless of origin. One in three now prioritizes domestically made products, reflecting heightened sensitivity to global trade dynamics.
Many shoppers are postponing non-essential spending entirely. Twenty-seven percent are delaying discretionary purchases, and one in five is buying more secondhand, reinforcing the shift toward value and expanding the resale economy.
2. Stores become the new search bar as shoppers go back to the aisles
Physical retail is back at the centre of the discovery journey. Bricks and mortar stores (60%) now outrank online marketplaces at 57% and social platforms at 52% as the place where shoppers discover new products. Shoppers say discovering products in person gives them greater confidence in quality and accuracy than any digital channel.
“What’s changing isn’t where people buy, but where they decide. As budgets tighten, shoppers are turning to physical stores to confirm quality, pricing, and accuracy before choosing where to complete a purchase,” Scarlett insists. “Seeing products in person helps remove doubt in a way digital channels often can’t. Stores are increasingly where confidence is built, not just where transactions happen. They provide tangible confirmation of everything shoppers have gleaned about a brand across channels.”
Additionally, more than two-thirds (67%) of shoppers webroom (researching a product online before purchasing it in-store), and 53% showroom (checking out a product in-store before buying it online), illustrating how valuable connected shopping experiences are to customers. “Webrooming habits are steady from Salsify’s 2025 research, but showrooming has experienced a 10% decline. This reinforces that though stores might not be the starting point for the buying journey, they’re likely the endpoint,” she adds.
3. The new buyer reflex: Verify everything before you buy anything
“Modern shoppers are discerning: They now assume they need to double-check before committing. The fact that many people look across several channels before buying shows how careful the process has become. When product details don’t match from one place to the next, it can easily turn shoppers off or halt the purchase altogether,” Scarlett warns.
Shoppers no longer rely on a single source of information. Fifty-four percent use two to three channels for mid-range items, while 30% use four to six channels and 11% use up to 10 for big-ticket purchases. U.S. shoppers are the most thorough, with 56% checking four or more channels.
Inconsistent content instantly breaks trust. Up to 45% of Gen Z and 43% of millennials abandon purchases when product details do not match across sites.
AI has not solved the trust gap either. While 22% use AI tools to research products, only 14% trust AI recommendations enough to rely on them regularly, and one-third do not use AI shopping tools at all. Detailed product descriptions and clear specifications remain the top triggers of trust in AI-recommended products.
For retailers, keeping information accurate and consistent is one of the most practical ways to prevent returns and lost sales: 45% of shoppers have returned an item they purchased online in the past year due to incorrect product content. From the research, Scarlett reveals, “brands can win trust from nearly the same number of shoppers (43%) if they have high-quality product content (e.g., product images and descriptions). And, if shoppers trust a brand, 68% are even willing to pay more for their purchase.”
4. Social commerce cools as shoppers stop falling for the algorithm
Impulse buying is down as shoppers tighten spending and pull back from trend-driven behavior. Purchases driven by influencers dropped 16%, livestream shopping declined 12%, viral product purchases fell 17%, and virtual try-ons decreased 9%.
Shopping tendencies can also be cultural, Scarlett claims, as U.S. shoppers had nearly double the participation rate in highlighted shopping trends than their Canadian counterparts (a demographic new to the 2026 report).
But, as spending tightens, fewer people are making purchases based on influencer content or viral moments without doing their own research first. They also increasingly value positive customer reviews and ratings from the everyday shopper, not just big-name or notable influencers. Nearly half (47%) of shoppers cite positive ratings and reviews as a top reason for trusting brands, making it the number two indicator of high-product quality and value. Additionally, 42% of shoppers will abandon a purchase if there are no or low customer ratings or negative reviews, making it the number two driver of abandoned sales behind high price (46%).
“Inspiration still matters, but it no longer outweighs the need for clear information and confidence in the product. The result is fewer impulse buys and more deliberate purchasing decisions,” Scarlett says.
5. Quality defines 2026 and Gen Alpha has a seat at the table
Shoppers are investing in products that feel reliable, long-lasting, and accurately represented. Durability and longevity are the top signals of product value at 54%, with reviews close behind at 47%.
Poor product content remains costly. Forty-five percent of shoppers returned an online purchase due to incorrect or misleading information, with millennials returning at the highest rate at 56%.
The report also shows how the next generation is shaping household spending. Forty-three percent of parents say their Gen Alpha children influence purchases, and 9% say kids drive most household decisions, especially in food and beverage, fashion, and electronics.
