mckinsey -2026 年消费者现状报告：科技提速与成本压力的碰撞 State of the Consumer 2026 When tech acceleration and cost pressures collide

June2026

StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentech

accelerationandcostpressurescollide

Theconsumerischangingfast.Fourtrends—thetech-drivenpath

topurchase,thehealthrevolution,theexperienceeconomy,andtheresourcefulconsumer—willredefinethesector.Willbrandskeepup?

Contents

CHAPTER1

3

Thenewtech-drivenpathto

purchase:Howpeoplediscoveranddecideischangingrapidly

CHAPTER2

8

Thehealthrevolution:Wearablesandscientificbreakthroughsareinfluencingconsumergoals

CHAPTER3

12

Theexperienceeconomy:

Consumersprioritizemeaningandmemories

CHAPTER4

15

Theresourcefulconsumer:

Sustainedpricepressureleadstosavvierspending

Intoday’scomplexandfast-changingconsumerlandscape,twoforces—therapidadvancementof

technologyandsustainedcostconsciousness—standoutfortheirbreadthandpersistenceinshapingthesector.

Already,weareseeingthatconsumers’pathtopurchaseisincreasinglycomplicated,brandinfluenceismorediffuse,andthepriorityconsumersplaceonvaluenowcutsacrossincomesegments

andcategories.Scalewithinestablishedchannelsislesspowerfulthanitoncewas.Brandsmustconsistentlyearntherighttobechosenbyprovingvalueacrossamorefragmentedandmediateddecisionlandscape.

Theseshiftsarebeginningtocrystallizeintobroaderbehavioralpatterns.Together,advancesin

technologyandrisingpricesensitivityunderpinfourglobaltrendsthatwebelievewilldefinethesector

intheyearsahead:thenewtech-drivenpathtopurchase,thehealthrevolution,theexperienceeconomy,andtheriseoftheresourcefulconsumer.

Eachtrendissignificantonitsown;collectively,theyareprofoundlychanginghowconsumersdiscover,decide,andspend.Forinstance,consumersareturningtowearabledevices,AI,andDIYinfluencersforinspirationonhowtolivewellandgetmorefromtheirbudgets.Companiesneedtounderstandeach

trendindividually—andhowtheyinteractwithoneanother—toshapeanincreasinglycomplexspace.

Drawingonourongoingconsumersentimentresearchandsurveydata

1

acrossfivemarkets,aswellasinsightsfromourglobalclientwork,weoutlinethestrengthandnatureofthesetrends,examinehowthesetrendsareaccelerating,andexplorewhattheymeanforconsumer-facingbusinessmodels.

1The2026McKinseyStateoftheConsumerSurveygarneredresponsesfrom4,863consumersfromMarch31toApril8,2026,infivecountries:Brazil,France,Germany,theUnitedKingdom,andtheUnitedStates.

2StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide

StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide3

Thenewtech-drivenpathtopurchase:How

peoplediscoveranddecideischangingrapidly

Foryears,digitaltoolshavebeenchangingtheconsumerpurchasejourney.Accordingtoourconsumersurvey,socialmediaisnowincreasinglyrelevantacrossallstagesofthatjourneyandhasbecomethe

mostimportantchannelforGenZ.Morerecently,rapidlyevolvingAImodelshavebeguntoshapehowpeopleshop.Wecallthecombinedandgrowingimpactofthesechannelsthenewtech-drivenpathtopurchase.

Youngerconsumersareleadingtheshift.Twenty-eightpercentofGenZerssaytheyarealreadyusing

genAItoolsforshopping(versus16percentofbabyboomers),while60percentsaytheyregularlyuse

the“AIoverview”atthetopoftraditionalsearchplatforms(versus29percentofbabyboomers)(Exhibit1).And23percentofGenZers(comparedwithonly7percentofboomers)saytheydiscoverednewbrandsonsocialmedia—lessthanthesharewhosaytheydidsothroughaphysicalstore(28percent)but

morethanthesharewhosayfriendsandfamilyledtotheirbranddiscovery(18percent).Socialmedia

becomesevenmoreimportantforGenZersduringpurchasedecisions.Atthatstage,34percentof

GenZers(versus16percentofbabyboomers)saysocialmediaplaysakeyrole,farhigherthananyotherchannel(Exhibit2).

Socialmedia’sroleintheconsumerdecisionjourneycouldcontinuetogainimportance,particularly

ifsocialmediaplatformsdeveloptheirownAIshoppingagents.AnotherfactorthatwillinfluencetheuptakeofsocialmediaandgenAIforshoppingisconsumertrust.Notably,acrossmostchannelsusedforproductresearch,GenZersreportlowerlevelsoftrustcomparedwithbabyboomers.AnddespitetheirwidespreadadoptionofsocialmediaandgenAI,theyareskepticalofboth(Exhibit3).

Meanwhile,innovationsinsearchandAIarereshapinghowconsumersgatherinformationonline.Since2023,overallopenwebtraffic

2

isdown8percent.Butthisdataonlytellspartofthestory:Traditional

searchremainshighlyrelevant,andoverallsearchactivitycontinuestogrow,evenifthenumberofsearchesperuserdeclines.AsAI-generatedsummariesandconversationalinterfacesevolve,theexperienceofusingasearchplatformischangingrapidly.

2Openwebtrafficisgeneratedbypeoplevisitingasitedirectlyorclickingthroughviaasearchengine.Thesealsoincludetotalvisitsessionsonpublisherwebsitesthatcanbemonetizedviaadvertising(forexample,news,media,andcontentsites),excludingtrafficwithinclosedecosystems(forexample,walledgardens,retailmedianetworks,andCTV).

4StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide

Exhibit1

GenAIuseismorethantwiceashighforGenZersthanbabyboomers,whileaboutaquarterofallconsumerssaytheyusegenAIforshopping.

Consumersusingatleast1genAItool,1%ofrespondents

Boomer

0

Overal

6080100

l

GenXMillennialGenZ

2040

GenAIuse,byagecohortandusecase,2%ofrespondents

GenZ

Millennial GenXBoomer

Overall

26

26

19

14

22

ManaginghealthShoppingandwellness

28

27

23

16

22

Gettingfinancialadvice

26

26

18

8

19

Planningtripsandoccasions

21

21

16

10

18

1Question:“Which,ifany,ofthefollowinggenAItoolshaveyoupersonallyusedinthepast3months?GoogleAIOverview(AIsummaryatthetopofGoogleSearch),GoogleGemini,MicrosoftCopilot,Perplexity,Claude(Anthropic),Grok(fromX/Twitter),other(pleasespecify),noneoftheabove.”

2Question:“ForwhichofthefollowingusecaseshaveyouusedgenAItools(eg,ChatGPT,GoogleAIOverview,Gemini,Perplexity)inthepast3months?”Topicsaskedaboutbutnotincludedinthechart:researchandunderstandgeneraltopics,writeandimprovecontent,accessreal-timeortrendinginformation,createvisualsandcreativeassets,planandorganizetasks.

Source:ConsumerWiseGlobalSentimentSurvey2026,Feb2026(GenZ,n=2,769;millennial,n=6,580;GenX,n=5,590;boomer,n=5,245;overall,

n=20,184);countriesincluded:Brazil,China,France,Germany,Italy,Japan,Mexico,Netherlands,SaudiArabia,SouthKorea,Spain,Sweden,UAE,UK,andUS

McKinsey&Company

Forconsumers,thisoftenmeansfindinganswersdirectlywithinAI-generatedresultsand,subsequently,completingfewerclicksthroughtobrandwebsites,retailersites,andpublishers.Forbrands,this

reducesopportunitiestoinfluencedecisionsthroughtraditionalorganicandpaidsearchstrategies.

Historically,searchhasoftenservedasahigh-intentstageoftheconsumerjourney—whenconsumersactivelyevaluatebrandsandoptions.AsAI-generatedresultsincreasinglyanswerthosequestions

directly,brandsmayhavefeweropportunitiestoenterconsumers’considerationsetsatthemomentintentisexpressed.

Asaresult,brandsmayneedtoplacegreateremphasisonshapingconsumerperceptionsupstreamofpurchasedecisions.Theyalsoneedtohelpshapethefirst-andthird-partycontentthatlargelanguagemodels(LLMs)drawontopositiontheirproductseffectivelywithinAI-enabledenvironments.When

AsAI-generatedsummariesandconversationalinterfacesevolve,theexperienceofusingasearchplatformischangingrapidly.

Exhibit2

StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide5

SocialmediaisGenZers’mostimportantsourceforbranddiscoveryandpurchase,whereasbabyboomerscontinuetorelyonstores.

Sourcesfornewbranddiscoveryandpurchasedecision,1%ofrespondents

Traditional

Digital

In-store

Traditionalads

Friendsandfamilyrecommendation

Professionalrecommendation

Onlinestore

Traditionalonlinesearch

Reviewsites

Socialmedia

Brand

discovery1

GenAIresponse

GenZ(n=1,494)Boomers(n=1,387)

4

6

5

4

23

12

34

2

52

10

20

3

3

3

7

31

16

4

14

14

16

4

Brand

discovery

Purchaseevaluation

28

9

18

21

14

7

7

3

6

Purchase

evaluation2

Note:Figuresmaynotsumto100%,becauseofrounding.

1Question:“Thinkingaboutthelasttimeyoudiscoveredanewbrand,wheredidyoufirsthearabout/seeit?”

2Question:“Whenyoudecidedwhethertopurchasethebrand,whichchannelsinfiuencedyouthemost?”

Source:McKinseyCustomerDecisionJourneySurvey,Mar3–10,2026

McKinsey&Company

answeringauserquery,genAIplatformsaggregateinformationfromawiderangeofthird-party

sources—includingonlineforums,reviewsonretailerwebsites,blogs,andvideoplatforms—makingitharderforbrandstocontrolhowtheyarepresented.Whenthosesourcesprovideinconsistentorincompleteinformation,creating“signaldissonance,”AImodelsarelesslikelytoreliablyincludeoraccuratelyrepresentabrandintheirresponses.

Inconsumergoods,abrand’sownwebsiteplaysalimitedroleinhowthebrandisrepresentedingenAIresults.Overall,only1percentofthesourcescitedbyLLMscomefrombrand-ownedwebsites(Exhibit4).Evenamongthetenmostfrequentlycitedwebsites—whichtogetheraccountforroughly22percent

ofallcitations—brandwebsitesmakeupto10percent.Thishighlightshowdiffusetheinformationecosystemhasbecome.3

Brandownersarethereforethinkinghardabouthowtheyshowupinthisenvironment.Theyshould

seektocreatevisibilitynotonlythroughtraditionalSEObutalsowithinLLMs—anemergingcapabilityoftenreferredtoasgenerativeengineoptimization(GEO).Bestpracticesarebeginningtosurface:forexample,ensuringthatbrandwebsitesincludeclear,structured,andscannablecontent(suchasFAQsandlists)andpublishingdetailedmaterialsaboutproductsorservicesthatwerenotpreviouslypublic(suchasclinicalresearchortechnicaldocumentation).Thisalsomakesearnedmediaandthird-partyvalidationmorecritical.Proactiveefforts—suchasstrengtheningpublicrelations,ensuringaccurate

andconsistentmessagingacrossplatforms,andhavinganactivebrandpresenceinforumswhere

3BasedonXEO360data,October2025toMay2026.

Exhibit3

6StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide

Despitetheirgrowingroleinproductresearch,consumersdon’ttrustsocialmediaandgenAIasmuchasothersources.

O邗inechannels

Friendsandfamilyrecommendation

Professionalrecommendation

Salesassistanceadvice

Directdigitalchannels

Traditionalonlinesearch

Brand’sownonlinestore

Onlinestore

Algorithm-drivenchannels

YouTube

Onlinereviews

Socialmedia

GenAIresponse

0

GenZ(n=929)Boomer(n=1,448)

20406080100

Netleveloftrustonsourcesforproductresearch,1%

1Question:“Howmuchdidyoutrusteachofthefollowingsourceswhenyouresearchproductsandservices?”Nettrustrepresentsdi仟erencebetweentop2boxes,“mostlytrusted”and“completelytrusted,”andbottom2boxes,“didnottrustatall”and“mostlydidnottrust.”

Source:McKinseyStateofConsumerSurvey,Mar31–Apr8,2026(n=4,863);countriesincluded:Brazil,France,Germany,UK,andUS

McKinsey&Company

consumersarealreadydiscussingthebrand—canhelpreinforceaclear,crediblenarrativethatAImodelsaremorelikelytorecognizeandamplify.

NewformsofadvertisingandbrandparticipationwillalsoemergewithinAI-poweredshopping

experiences.Earlyexperiments,suchasGoogle’sDirectOfferspilot,allowbrandstosurfacepromotionsdirectlywithinAI-generatedrecommendations.

Lookingahead,genAItoolswillbecomemorewidelyusedinthelaststageoftheconsumerdecisionjourney:completingpurchases.TheriseofAI-enabledpurchases—knownasagenticcommerce—willintroducea“dualfrontdoor,”whereconsumerscancompletetheirpurchasejourneyseitherthroughretailerAItoolsorwithingenAIplatforms.Majorcommerce,technology,andpaymentscompanies—includingShopify,Amazon,andWalmart—arebeginningtoalignaroundcommonstandardsfor

AI-enabledtransactions,andovertime,thesestandardscouldallowAIagentstomovemoreeasilyacrossretailers,comparingproducts,applyingloyaltybenefits,andcompletingpurchaseson

GenAItoolswillbecomemore

widelyusedinthelaststage

oftheconsumerdecisionjourney:

completingpurchases.

Exhibit4

StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide7

Forlargelanguagemodelqueriesaboutbrands,thebrands’ownwebsitesdrivejust1–2percentofcitations.

OwnbrandwebsiteOther

Sourcemixbycategoryforlargelanguagemodelresponses,25consumer-packaged-goodsbrands,%oftotalcitations(n=~2.6million)

Competitors/otherbrandwebsitesRetailersande-commerceReferencecontent

4

2

30

12

8

ChatGPT

4

20

15

PublishersandcontentSocialmediaReviewandcomparison

23

18

Gemini

32

5

11

4

Perplexity

40

29

20

13

22

7

4

1

4

100%

Note:Figuresmaynotsumto100%,becauseofrounding.

Source:XEO360,Oct2025–May2026,dataincluded89,119uniquedomainsfromUKandUS,aggregatedacrossChatGPT,Gemini,Perplexity

Consideringjustthetoptensources,brands’ownwebsitesdrive3–10percentofcitations.

Retailers

Reddit

YouTube

Facebook

ComparisonandreviewOwnbrandwebsite

Top10citedsourcesforlargelanguagemodelresponses,25consumer-packaged-goodsbrands,%oftop10sources(n=~2.6million)

Competitors

Publishersandcontent

30

26

ChatGPT

17

1287

Gemini

46

1424

610

19

39

23

3

Perplexity

34

100%

Source:XEO360,Oct2025–May2026,dataincluded89,119uniquedomainsfromUKandUS,aggregatedacrossChatGPT,Gemini,Perplexity

McKinsey&Company

consumers’behalf.Tothatend,theperformancegapbetweenretailerswithamaturedigitalpresenceandthosewithoutislikelytowiden.

Finally,thistrendhasimplicationsforthebalanceofpoweracrosstheconsumersector.Largedigital

marketplacesandomnichannelretailersaremovingquicklytoembedAIintotheirplatforms,further

strengtheningtheirpositionasdiscovery,research,andpurchasedestinations.Forbrands,thisdeepensanexistingtension:Whilelargeretailplatformsandmarketplacesofferscaleandconversion,theyalso

limitdirectaccesstoconsumerdataandrelationships.AsAIusegrows,brandswillneedtobemorestrategicaboutwheretheyparticipateandwheretheyseektoretaincontrol.

8StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide

Thehealthrevolution:Wearablesandscientificbreakthroughsareinfluencingconsumergoals

Healthisbecomingmoreimportanttoconsumers,andthey’redefiningitmorebroadlytoincludearangeofdimensions—fromhearthealthandcognitivefunctiontosleep,stress,andguthealth.Inoursurvey,

mostconsumerssaytheseareasmattertothem,yetlessthanhalffeeltheyareachievingtheirwellnessgoals,afindingthatwasmostpronouncedinGermanyandFrance(Exhibit5).

Whatisdrivingthisexpansionofhealthgoals?Onekeyfactoristechnology,whichismakingabroaderrangeofconsumerhealthtopicsaccessibleandmeasurable.

4

Consumerscannowusedevicessuchassmartwatches,continuousglucosemonitors,andfitness

trackerstomeasuresleepquality,glucoselevels,nutrientintake,andhearthealthinrealtime.Agrowingnumberofthemaredoingso:AmongconsumersinourrecentStateofFoodandBeveragereport,

75percentofGenZand73percentofmillennialsreportusingsuchtools,comparedwith55percentofGenXand32percentofbabyboomers.(Related,22percentofconsumersreportusingLLMsforhealthandwellnesssubjects,whilethisfigurerisesto26percentamongGenZ).Asmoreconsumersgain

accesstoreal-timehealthfeedbackthroughdigitalmonitoringtools,theymaymakebehavioralchangesmorequickly.Health-consciousconsumerswhoseealower“sleepscore”ontheirwearabledeviceafteranightofdrinkswithfriends,forinstance,maybelesslikelytoimbibeagainsoon.

GLP-1medicationsarequicklygainingtractionacrossgeographies,too.RoughlyoneinsixUS

householdshadatleastonememberwhotriedGLP-1sasofJuly2024.Thesehouseholdsreducedtheirgroceryspendbyabout6percentwithinsixmonthsofadoption(although34percentofusersstoppedtakingGLP-1sinlessthansixmonthsand,onaverage,subsequentlyresumedtheirpre-adoption

spendinglevels).

5

Morerecentprojectionsanticipatethat25millionpeopleintheUnitedStatescouldbeonGLP-1treatmentsby2030.

6

4Consumersoftenalsorelyonsocialmediaforhealthandwellnessinformationinsteadofmedicalproviders.Ina2024McKinseysurvey,59percentofbabyboomersreportedturningtotheirdoctorsforhealthinformation,whileonly42percentofGenZdidthesame.Thirty-eightpercentofGenZerssaidtheyturntosocialmediaforhealthinformation.

5SylviaHristakeva,JuraLiaukonyte,andLeoFeler,“TheNo-HungerGames:HowGLP-1medicationadoptionischangingconsumerfooddemand,”CornellSCJohnsonCollegeofBusinessresearchpaper,December27,2024.

6“Howdemandfor(andsupplyof)weightlossdrugsisplayingoutin2026,”JPMorganChase,February27,2026.

Exhibit5

StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide9

Mostconsumerssaymultidimensionalhealthisimportanttothem,butfewerfeelthattheyaremeetingtheirwellnessgoals.

Importanceofhealthareatoconsumers,1%ofrespondents(n=4,863)

CognitivefunctionHearthealthSleephealth

PhysicalhealthandfitnessMindfulness/mentalhealth Managingstress/anxietyGuthealth

Agingprevention/healthyagingWeightmanagement SkinandhaircareSexualhealth

30

27

32

33

31

31

34

36

35

38

33

58

60

55

53

53

52

48

42

43

36

36

10

11

11

12

12

13

15

12

VeryimportantModeratelyimportantSomewhatimportantNotimportantatall

15

16

19

19

2

2

2

2

3

4

3

7

6

7

Consumersentimenttowardachievingtheirwellnessgoals,2%ofrespondents(n=4,863)

BrazilFranceGermanyUKUS

47

44

34

28

Iammostly/definitelyachievingmywellnessgoals

31

10

16

30

6

17

33

16

17

35

24

13

47

32

2

20

IamsomewhatmeetingmywellnessgoalsIdonothaveanyexplicitwellnessgoalsIamnotachievingmywellnessgoals

Note:Figuresmaynotsumto100%,becauseofrounding.

1Question:“Howimportantareeachofthefollowingareasofhealthandwellnesstoyou?”

2Question:“Whichofthefollowingstatementsbestdescribeshowyoufeelaboutyourwellnessgoals?”

Source:McKinseyStateofConsumerSurvey,Mar31–Apr8,2026(n=4,863);countriesincluded:Brazil,France,Germany,UK,andUS

McKinsey&Company

InBrazil,GLP-1medicationuptakecouldaccelerateasstrongdemandandpatentexpirations,

whichoccurredinMarch2026,bringlower-costoptionstomarket.InaMarch2026McKinseysurvey,35percentofconsumersinBrazilinterestedinGLP-1medicationssaytheyarenotcurrentlyusing

thembecauseofpriceconcerns,while44percentsaytheywouldbemorelikelytousethemifprices

declinedfollowingpatentexpirations(weestimatethesizeoftheGLP-1marketinBraziltobeabout

$3billion,includingaboutthreemillionconsumers,conservatively).AndinEurope,penetrationremainsmorelimited—estimatedataround2percent7ofthepopulation,reflectinglowerdrugavailability,moreconstrainedreimbursementenvironments,and,insomecountries,lowerobesityrates.

7ThijsGeijerandDiederikStadig,“Transformativeoroverhyped?Theimpactofweight-lossdrugsonEuropeanfooddemand,”ING,March20,2026.

10StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide

Forconsumercompanies,greateraccessibilitytoreal-timehealthdatacreatesbothriskand

opportunity.Asconsumersbecomemorediscerningandresults-oriented,growthforfoodandbeverageplayersisshiftingtowardofferingsthatminimizetrade-offsbetweentaste,price,andfunction.These

shiftsarealreadyshowingupinwhatconsumerschoosetoeatanddrink.AgainlookingatourState

ofFoodandBeverageresearch,roughlyhalfofconsumersacrossmajormarketssaytheyareactivelyreducingtheirconsumptionofartificialingredients,highlyprocessedfoods,sugar,andalcohol(Exhibit6).Meanwhile,consumersarealsoseekingfoodsassociatedwithhealthandnutritiongoals,including

thoserichinprotein,fiber,andothernutrients.

Exhibit6

Abouthalfofconsumerssaytheyavoidorlimittheirconsumptionofartificialingredients,alcohol,highlyprocessedfood,andsugar.

Shareofrespondentsreportingreductioninconsumptionofproductsinthepast12months,byregion,1%

Artificial

Artificial

Highly

fiavors

sweetener

Alcohol

processedfoods

Sugar

Fat

Brazil

60

55

61

68

56

55

China

59

62

53

53

50

46

France

63

64

59

70

58

52

Germany

56

55

53

49

50

42

India

56

53

59

44

46

42

Japan

30

30

32

20

21

24

Mexico

59

59

57

61

49

41

SaudiArabia

55

50

n/a

43

51

43

UK

54

53

49

56

50

42

US

53

55

54

55

47

42

1Question:“Foreachofthesefoodsoringredients,pleasesharehowmuchyouareconsumingthemcomparedwith12monthsago.”

Source:McKinseyGlobalFoodandBeverageSurvey,Dec2025(Brazil,n=1,525;China,n=1,521;France,n=1,524;Germany,n=1,520;India,n=1,503;Japan,n=1,515;Mexico,n=1,514;SaudiArabia,n=1,515;UK,n=1,517;US,n=1,516)

McKinsey&Company

Still,theimpactofthesetrendsextendsfarbeyondfoodtoawiderangeofcategories,fromvitamins

andsupplementstofashion,fitness,beauty,andwellnessservices.Newneedsareemergingalongsidenewinterventionsandtools.Forexample,GLP-1usehasbeenlinkedtoreducedmusclemass,spurringinnovationsaimedatpreservingstrengthandbonedensity.Apparelincumbentsandstart-upsare

creatingweightedvestsdesignedspecificallyforwomen,reflectingagrowingdemandforhealthsolutionsthatarebothtargetedandtailoredtospecificphysiologicalneeds.

Andasgeneralizednotionsofwellnessgivewaytomorespecificdemandsdrivenbylifestagesand

physiology,areassuchasperimenopause,age-relatedtestosteronedeclines,guthealth,andmetabolicaging—whicharehistoricallyunderaddressed—aregainingattention.Inadditiontocreatingvalue

propositionsthatfulfillunmetneeds,segmentingconsumersaccordingtotheirspecificwellness

approachisusefulforbrands.Ourownwellnessresearchpointstofivedistinctconsumersegments:

“maximalistoptimizers,”whoactivelyexperimentwithscience-backedproductsandtechnologies

toimproveoutcomes;“healthtraditionalists,”whotendtorelyonestablishedroutinesandfamiliar

approachestowellness;“healthstrugglers,”whovaluewellnessbutoftenfeeldissatisfiedwiththeirprogressandoverwhelmedbythedifficultyofachievingtheirgoals;“confidententhusiasts,”who

StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide11

Deliveringonconsumerneedsacrosssegmentswillrequirefasterandmoreiterativeconceptdevelopmentand

morepreciseconsumersegmentation.

prioritizewellnessandfitnessandareself-assuredintheirroutines;and“wellnessshirkers,”whoengagelessactivelywithwellnessoverall.Maximalistoptimizers,whoaremorelikelytobeGenZandmillennials,representabout25percentofwellnessconsumersandmorethan40percentofmarketspend.

Forcompanies,deliveringonconsumerneedsacrosssegmentswillrequirefasterandmoreiterative

conceptdevelopmentandmorepreciseconsumersegmentation—capabilitiesthatAIcanhelpsupport.

12StateoftheConsumer2026:Whentechaccelerationandcostpressurescollide

Theexperienceeconomy:Consumersprioritizemeaningandmemories

Eveninanenvironmentdefinedbyinflationarypressureandmoredeliberatespending,consumersin

bothmatureandemergingmarkets

8

continuetoprioritizeexperiencesthatmaketheirtimefeelwell

spent.Inmanycases,thedesireformomentsthatfeelmeaningful,memorable,orrestorativeoutweighstheinstincttocutback.

Thelong-termdemandforexperiencesisclear.Between2023and2025,theglobalexperiencesmarketgrew2.6percent,similartoitspre-COVID-19growthrate.Growthfornonessentialgoods,however,wasonly0.8percentoverthisperiod(comparedwith2.3percentfrom2015to2019).

Traveltellsabiggergrowthstory:Themarketfortravelexperiences(whichincludestourism,flights,andlodging)grew4.4percentfrom2023to2025,aboutthesamerateastheprepandemicperiod.Growthinrestaurants,anothercommonexperience-relatedcategory,hasslowedcomparedwithpre-COVID-19levels(1.2percentgrowthversus2.2percent).Theseshiftsarereshapinghowphysicalspaceisused

andwherebusinesseschoosetoinvest.In2025,USlandlordsleasedmorecommercialspaceto

service-orientedtenantsthantotraditionalretailers,withwellness,fitness,andexperientialconceptsamongthefastest-growingcategories.

9

Atthesametime,theboundariesof“experience”areexpanding.Digitalandat-homeformats—fromstreamingtogamingtosocialplatforms—arebecominglegitimatesubstitutesorcomplementsto

in-personexperiences,forcingcompaniestothinkbeyondphysicalchannelsandtowardamoreintegrated,omnichannelexperiencestrategy.

Oursurveydatashowthatconsumersareprioritizingexperiencesthatmakethemfeelconnected,

relaxed,orexcited.Often,thosefeelingstranslatetoadesiretosplurge.Whenweaskedc