Introduction

2026createsawindowofopportunityfororganizationsunlikeanythatwehaveseeninfiveyearsofstudying

consumerexperiencetrends.

Inaglobaleconomicandpoliticalclimatethatisteemingwithuncertainty,andinanongoingtechnological

transformation,peopleareremarkablyopentochange.Afterhittingalowin2025,consumercomfortusingAIhasreboundeddramatically.ButtoomanybusinessesaresquanderingthisopportunitybydeployingAItocutcosts,notsolveproblems,andtheircustomerscantellthedifference.

“Nearly1in5consumerswhohaveusedAIforcustomerservicesawnobenefitsfromtheexperience.Afailureratenearly4xhigherthanforAIuseonaverage.”

AllofthisisgoodnewsforbusinessesthatgettheirAI

strategyright–implementingthistechnologytodeliver

morepersonalexperiencesandresolveissuesinaway

that’ssatisfactory,notjustcheap.Doingsowillbuildtrustandloyalty–anddurablebusinessgrowth.

1in2

badexperiencesresultin

customerscuttingtheirspend

2//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Introduction

3//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Introduction

Introduction

Sincewebeganstudyingconsumerexperiencetrends,onethinghasnotchanged:consumersremainconstantaboutwhatreallymatterstowintheirloyalty–the

experience.Satisfiedconsumersarefourtimesmorelikelytorecommend,almostfourtimesmorelikelytotrust,andalmosttwoandahalftimesmorelikelytopurchasemore.

Soin2026,businessesneedtothinkintentionallyabouttheirpathtosuccessandtheroleAIwillplayinhelpingthemgetthere.Isitashort-termfixtolowerthecost-to-serve?Orisitthebedrockofa

transformationthatredefinestheexperienceyourcustomerskeepcomingbackfor?

Uncertaintimesmeanthere’sspacetoact–andthatisachancefortrulycustomer-centricorganizationstomakeanimpactin2026.

IsabelleZdatny

HeadofThoughtLeadershipQualtricsXMInstitute

ATAGLANCE

THESTATEOFCUSTOMEREXPERIENCE

76%

TRUST

72%

RECOMMEND

79%

SATISFACTION

70%

PURCHASEMORE

+2.7%PTSFROM2025

+2.7%PTSFROM2025

+3.0%PTSFROM2025

+2.6%PTSFROM2025

Metricsarebasedonsatisfaction

andlikelihoodtotrust,recommend,andpurchasemore.

Meettheexperts

MoiraDorsey

HeadofQualtricsXMInstitute

IsabelleZdatny

HeadofThoughtLeadership,QualtricsXMInstitute

TaliaQuaadgras

SeniorResearchProgramManager,QualtricsXMInstitute

LeonieBrown

LeadProductScientist,

CustomerCare,Qualtrics

MaxVenker

ProductMarketing,CX,Qualtrics

JulianaSmithHolterhaus,PhD

MaturityPLGLead,ProductScientist,Qualtrics

MattTrickett

XMStrategist,Qualtrics

TerryAnderson

SeniorProductScientist,

CXforLocations,Qualtrics

4//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Meettheexperts

Contents

6Trend1//AI-poweredcustomerserviceisfailing,sofar

10Trend2//Surveyfatigueleavesbusinessesguessingaboutcustomerchurn

14Trend3//Valuewon’tbeenoughtosecurecustomerloyaltyin2026

18Trend4//Consumersdemandtransparencyoverpersonalizationtactics

23Methodology

5//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Contents

01

TREND1

AI-poweredcustomerserviceisfailing,sofar

USEAITOENHANCETHEHUMANEXPERIENCE,NOTREPLACEIT

AICUSTOMERSUPPORT VERSUSAVGAITASKBENEFITRATE

Afterhittingalowin2025,consumercomfortwithAIhasreboundeddramatically.Today,73%useAIfordailytasksandhalfbelieveitwillpositivelyimpactsociety–upnearly9percentagepoints(pts)from2024.Yetoneapplicationdisappoints:customersupport.Infact,nearly1in5

consumerssaidAIforcustomersupportdidnotprovideanybenefitatall,theworstratingacrossalltasks.

IntherushtocapitalizeonAI,AI-poweredchatbotshavearrivedtocreatemoreefficientcustomerservice.Theproblemistheyarefailingattheirintendedpurpose.

WhenconsumersratedAIapplicationsforconvenience,

timesavings,andusefulness,customersupportrankedatthebottom–only“buildinganAIassistant”scoredworse.

+13%PTS

BROKENPROMISES:

THEREALITYOFAI-POWEREDCUSTOMERSUPPORT

BENEFITSFROM

-12%PTS

-10%PTS

-10%PTS

saiditwas

easytouse/convenient

saidit

savedtime

saidtheyfoundusefulideas/

information

saidtheydidnotreceive

anybene?ts

6//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend1:AI-poweredcustomerserviceisfailing,sofar

7//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend1:AI-poweredcustomerserviceisfailing,sofar

01

Businesseswillonlybeableto

successfullyscaleserviceexcellence

andreducecosttoservewithAIiftheyaddressconsumers’primaryconcerns,assignificantchallengesclearlyremain.

1in2consumersareconcernedthat

AIwillresultinthemhavingalackof

ahumantoconnectto.Consumersareclearaboutwhattheyreallywant

fromtheirAI-poweredexperiencesandwhycurrentapproachesare

missingthemark.

ConsumerswantAItoenhancethehumanexperience,notreplaceit.

GettingthatapproachrightiskeytorealizingthepromiseofAI,

andtheexperiencehastodeliveragoodimpressiontoensure

continuedadoption.

Responsibledatauseisalsopartof

thepicture.Only29%consumerstrustorganizationstouseAIresponsibly,

andmisuseofpersonaldatawas

theirnumberoneconcernaboutAI

(andgrowing),denotingonereasontrustremainslow.Ifbusinesseswantconsumerstocontinuetoengage

withAI–whichisimportanttoscaleitsimpact–trustisfundamentaltosuccessfullyachievingthat.

THEAITENSION:ADOPTIONINCREASES,BUTTRUSTCONCERNSGROW

53%+7.7YOY

MISUSEOFYOURPERSONALDATA

50%-1.6YOY

LACKOFAHUMANBEINGTOCONNECTWITH

47%+1.4YOY

LOSSOFJOBSFOREMPLOYEES

41%-2.1%YOY

POORQUALITYOFTHEINTERACTIONS

31%-0.8%YOY

DON'TTRUSTTHEINFORMATIONPROVIDED

25%-3.5%YOY

EXTRAEFFORTFORYOUINTHEINTERACTION

7%+1.4YOY

NONEOFTHEABOVE

8//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend1:AI-poweredcustomerserviceisfailing,sofar

‘‘There’ssomuchpressuretouseAIforeverything—bemoreproductive,moreefficient,digdeeper

intoinsights.Buttechnologyisatool,experience

isanoutcome,andthey’renotequal.AIdoesnot

equalexperience.Howdoyoutestandvalidatethat

whateverwe’reusingactuallyproducesabetter

customerexperienceversusjusttryingtodeflectcalls?That’scriticalfromacustomer-centriclens.”

samsara

EMMAHEAD

SOPADJIEVA,OFCUSTOMER

EXPERIENCE

STRATEGY

9//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend1:AI-poweredcustomerserviceisfailing,sofar

01

Theviewontheground

ANALYSIS

ThebenefitsofAIinrelationtospeed,efficiencyandscalabilityareclearly

beingseen,yetwhensomethinggoeswrong,consumerswantreassurance,emotionalintelligence,andflexibilitytoreacttotheirneeds.Asaresult,thosecompaniesthatdesignAItosupport

therelational,notjustenhancethetransactionalareofferingthebestcustomerexperience.

MattTrickett

XMStrategist,Qualtrics

ADVICE

CustomerserviceAIfailsbecause

companiesdeployittodeflectcost,notresolveproblems.Successful

organizationswilluseAIdifferently.

They’lldeploycapableAIagentsforsimple,transactionalrequests.

ThenuseAItoarmhumanagents

withcompletehistory,predictedneeds,andsuggestedsolutionsforcomplex

issues.Thegoalshouldn’tbekeepingcustomersawayfromagents—it

shouldbesolvingproblemsthroughwhateverchannelworksbest.

IsabelleZdatny

HeadofThoughtLeadershipQualtricsXMInstitute

ANALYSIS

Asanindustrywe’refarfromnailing

thewaysAIwillhelpusdecreasecosts

whilealsoprovidingamorepositive

customerexperience.Thepromise

istherebutwehavetodevelopnew

methodstoconsistentlymonitor,

understand,andimprovetheexperienceAIagentsareprovidingcustomers.

MaxVenker

ProductMarketing,CX,Qualtrics

ADVICE

ScalingAIisasmuchabouttrustand

changemanagementasitisabout

technology—successreliesongradualadoption,buildingconfidence,and

anchoringontrust.Implementa

processthatenhanceshumancustomerservicewithAI—ratherthaninstillingasenseoffearofreplacement.

JulianaHolterhaus

MaturityPLGLead,

ProductScientist,Qualtrics

02

TREND2

Surveyfatigueleavesbusinessesguessingaboutcustomerchurn

CONSUMERSDON’TGIVEFEEDBACKLIKE

THEYUSEDTO...SOCOMPANIESMUSTLISTENINNEWWAYS

Eventhoughsurveyshavebeenthedefactowayto

gaugecustomerfeedback,consumersarelessandless

likelytotakethem.30%ofconsumersnowstaysilentafterabadexperience(+9ptsoverfiveyears),an

all-timehighsincewestartedfieldingthisstudyin2021.

Butthisisn’tjustaCXproblem,thisisabusinessproblem.Forevery10poorexperiences,5resultinreducedor

eliminatedspending.Businessesthatrelyonsurveysalonetounderstandthecausesofthatchurnare

increasinglyleftinthedark.Only3in10customerswillsharedirectlywhatwentwrong.

Thisisn’tanewtrend–directfeedbackhasfallen

yearoveryearsince2021.Buteachyear,theneed

foractionbecomesmoreurgentasunresolvedissues

leaddisappointedcustomerstotaketheirbusinesstosomeonewhowilllisten.

Here’sthething:customersignalshaven’t

vanished–they’vescattered.Nosingle

listeningchannelwillgetyoualltheanswers.Thebusinessesthatwillthrivein2026will

bethosethatcombineexperience,behavioral,andoperationaldatatounderstandand

improvetheend-to-endcustomerjourneyandquantifytheimpactoftheiractions.

FOREVERY10POOREXPERIENCES,5RESULTINREDUCEDSPENDING

$$$$$

ONLY3IN10CUSTOMERSWILLSHAREDIRECTLYWHATWENTWRONG

10//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend2:Surveyfatigueleavesbusinessesguessingaboutcustomerchurn

11//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend2:Surveyfatigueleavesbusinessesguessingaboutcustomerchurn

02

+9.2%PTS

HOWCONSUMERS

AREPROVIDINGFEEDBACK

ABOUTABADEXPERIENCE...ORNOT

“Thatstartsbybuildingadiverse

portfoliothatincludesunsolicited

datalikecalls,chats,andbehavioralsignals,makingitpossibleto

understandandimproveexperiencesevenwhencustomersdon’texplicitlytellyouaboutthem.”

POINT

DIFFERENCE

-7.5%PTS

-6.4%PTS

-4.7%PTS

-2.6%PTS

SINCE

2021

29%

Sentdirectfeedback

42%

Toldfriendorfamilydirectly

15%

Postedon

socialmedia

19%

Ratedon

3rdpartysite

30%

Didnot

tellanyone

12//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend2:Surveyfatigueleavesbusinessesguessingaboutcustomerchurn

02

Theviewontheground

ADVICE

Responserateshavebeenfallingforyears,andthey’renotcomingback.

Insteadoffranticallychasinghigher

responserates,successfulorganizationswillbuildpredictiveintelligencefromthefragmentscustomersleavebehind–

combiningsparsesurveydatawithrichbehavioralpatternstospotproblems

beforecustomersevenrealize

they’reunhappy.Butfeedbackalone

isn’tenoughtogetthefullpicture,thefutureofcustomerlisteningliesin

synthesizingexperience,operational,

andbehavioraldataintoearlywarningsystemsthatactuallypreventproblemsratherthanjustdocumentthem.

IsabelleZdatny

HeadofThoughtLeadership,QualtricsXMInstitute

ANALYSIS

There’salong-standingpatternwhere

leadersfeeltheylack‘a(chǎn)ctionable’

surveydata,whilesimultaneouslysittingonagoldmineofunsolicitedfeedback.

Thisisn’tanoversight;it’sastructuralissue.Theteamswhoneedtheinsightsmostoftendon’townthechannels

wherethefeedbackarrives,suchasthecorporatecontactcenter.

WithmodernAIreadytoanalyzethis

unstructureddata,thecorechallengeisnoworganizational:Buildingbridges

sothatinsightsgatheredbyoneteam

canfreelyflowtotheteamsempoweredtoleverageandactonthem.

TerryAnderson

SeniorProductScientist,

CXforLocations,Qualtrics

ANALYSIS

We’velongreliedonsurveysinCX

tobetterunderstandourcustomers.

Surveysarestillagreatwaytocollect

verydirectfeedbackbutwithchangesinfoundationaltechnology–GenAI,LLMs,AgenticAI–organizationsarenowabletoopentheaperturetocustomer

signalstheyhaven’tbeenableto

harnessbefore.Theoneswhodothis

wellwillseeanadvantageintheirdepthofcustomerunderstanding.

MaxVenker

ProductMarketing,CX,Qualtrics

13//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend2:Surveyfatigueleavesbusinessesguessingaboutcustomerchurn

‘‘Everyoneknowscustomersareover-surveyed.Wesee

itinthedataeveryyear:There’sadecliningrateofwho’sgoingtoprovidefeedback.That’swhywe’relistening

toallourphonecallstounderstandthethingsthey’re

notsayingtous.It’saboutuncoveringthosechallengesandwins.We’renotjustlookingforwhat’sgoingwrong,butalsocelebratingthegreatthingsourassociatesaredoingduringthoseconversations.”

Nationwide?

JENNDUSKA,

SR.CONSULTANT,VOICEOFCUSTOMER

03

TREND3

Valuewon’tbeenough

tosecurecustomerloyaltyin2026

INVESTINTHEEXPERIENCE-GREATPRODUCTS

ANDSERVICE-TOBUILDLASTINGRELATIONSHIPSWITHCUSTOMERS

Afteryearsofrisingpricesandfreshfearscausedby

theuncertaintyofglobaltariffs,our2026consumer

trendsdatasuggestspriceisnottheonlyconsiderationforconsumers.

Valueformoneyisthenumberonedriverofconsumerchoicein2026.Consumerswillspendiftheythinkit’sworthit.

Butwhilevalueformoneyprimarilydrivesaconsumer’sdecisiontochooseabusiness,experience,amixbetweenagreatproductandcustomerserviceisthemost

correlatedwithloyalty,withconsumersshowinggreatersatisfactionandtrust.

14//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend3:Valuewon'tbeenoughtosecurecustomerloyaltyin2026

15//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend3:Valuewon'tbeenoughtosecurecustomerloyaltyin2026

03

Inatougheconomicclimate,thisdatasuggestsabig

opportunityforbusinesses.Becausewhileconsumers

aresensitivetoprice,aracetothebottomisn’tfinanciallysustainableforbusinesses.Investinginexperiencelong

term–buildingtrustandconfidencethatorganizationswilldeliverqualityandlookaftercustomerswhenthingsgowrong–createscustomerswhovaluetherelationshipbeyondjustprice,makingthemmoreresistantto

competitiveoffers.

WHATMATTERSMOSTTOCONSUMERSIN2026

Whycustomerschoosetodobusiness

withanorganization

Percentageofcustomers

Trustratingwhen

customerschoosetodo

businessforthisreason

Satisfactionratingwhen

customerschoosetodo

businessforthisreason

GOODVALUEFORMONEY

GOOD

PRODUCT/SERVICE

CONVENIENT

I’MCOMFORTABLEWITHTHEM

GOODCUSTOMERSERVICE

SPECIAL

DISCOUNT

OTHER

NOOTHER

OPTIONAVAILABLE

TOODIFFICULT

TOSWITCH

46%

42%

41%

37%

29%

20%

18%

15%

11%

87%83%

90%87%

83%80%

89%86%

92%89%

79%75%

63%60%

64%62%

71%

69%

16//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend3:Valuewon'tbeenoughtosecurecustomerloyaltyin2026

‘‘It’snotenoughtoprovideagreatproduct,becausea

greatproduct’sgonnafailattimes.Youneedtohave

investedinthatecosystemofmoments,sowhenyouhaveanissue,wecanhandleitquickly,delightfully,

andcreateawowforyou.Wewanttowowateach

momentthatmatters.Howdoyouprovidethatholistic360experienceversusjustfocusingononeaspect?

That’swhatdrivescustomerexperience.”

samsara

EMMAHEAD

SOPADJIEVA,OFCUSTOMER

EXPERIENCE

STRATEGY

17//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trends3:Valuewon'tbeenoughtosecurecustomerloyaltyin2026

03

Theviewontheground

ADVICE

Financialinsecuritynaturallyputs

morescrutinyonprice,butfocusing

solelyonpricecompetitionmeans

sacrificingtheserviceexcellencethat

buildslastingrelationships.Truevalue

comesfromoptimizingbothsidesoftheequation–usingoperationalexcellencetomaintaincompetitivepricingwhile

investingintheexperiencesthatcreatelastingloyaltyandsetyouapartfrom

yourcompetition,bothnowandwhentheeconomyimproves.

IsabelleZdatny

HeadofThoughtLeadership,QualtricsXMInstitute

ANALYSIS

It’snaturalthatconsumerschase

value–afterall,thereisnothing

wrongwithseekingoutthebestdeal,giventoday’seconomicpressures.

However,long-termloyaltyisn’t

builtondealsalone.Instead,lasting

customerrelationshipsstemfrom

consistentlydeliveringonexperience–drivenbyattentiveserviceand

qualityofferings.

MattTrickett

XMStrategist,Qualtrics

ADVICE

Companiesmustworkto

understandthepathfromvalue

toloyalty.Onceacustomer

experiencesvaluefromabrand,

it’simperativetounderstandhowthatmomentcantranslateto

aloyalandlongstandingcustomer.

Considermappingacoremomentoftruthwithinthecustomerjourneytofindoutwhereyourbrand

canhighlightandexpanduponthatwindowofopportunity.

JulianaHolterhaus

MaturityPLGLead,

ProductScientist,Qualtrics

04

TREND4

Consumersdemand

transparencyover

personalizationtactics

TRANSPARENCYANDCONTROLOVERDATAWILLINCREASECONSUMERTRUST

Foryears,companieshavebuilttheirdigitalstrategies

onaflawedassumptionthatconsumerswillgladly

tradetheirdata(andprivacy)formorepersonalized,

intuitiveexperiences.Awin-winforboth,withbusinessesbetterabletocreateexperiencesthatcustomerswant,

need,andcontinuecomingbackfor.

Our2026consumertrendsstudytellsastarkly

differentstory.Whilepersonalizationremainsa

differentiator,with64%ofconsumerssayingthey

prefertailoredexperiences(+2.5ptsyear-over-year),only39%believethebenefitsjustifytheprivacycosts.

PERSONALIZATIONISMOREOFADIFFERENTIATORTHANEVER,BUTTHERE’SACATCH

64%

prefercompaniesthattailor

experiencestotheirindividualneeds(+2.5ptsYoY)

39%

trustcompaniestousetheirinformationresponsibly

(+7.9ptsYoY)

18//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend4:Consumersdemandtransparencyoverpersonalizationtactics

19//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend4:Consumersdemandtransparencyoverpersonalizationtactics

04

Consumerswanttailoredexperiencesbutareincreasinglyselectiveabout

datasharing,withdifferentlevelsofcomfortdependingonthelevelofthepersonalization.Infact,

32%areuncomfortablewiththeirinformationbeingusedfor

personalizationinmostforms.

Thisdisconnectstemsfroma

fundamentallackoftrust,which

isevenmorepronouncedregardingAIimplementation,wheredata

misuseranksasthenumberoneconcernat53%.

Thosewhodotrustcompanies

showmuchhighercomfortacross

allpersonalizationmethods(upto

10ptshigher),whichwillpayoffinthelongrunfororganizationsasthey’re

abletobetterunderstandtheir

customer,moredeeplyconnectwiththem,andearntheirlong-termloyalty.

CONSUMERCOMFORTWITH

PERSONALIZATIONFOLLOWSASHARPDROP-OFF

29%

29%

Connect

27%

30%

Remember

infofrom

Guess

16%

32%

Learn

website

di?erent

whatyou

Listenandwatch

Noneof

habits

behavior

places

mightneed

throughdevices

theabove

20//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend4:Consumersdemandtransparencyoverpersonalizationtactics

04

GOBACKTOBASICSTOBUILDTRUSTIN2026

Afewsmalltweakswillincreaseconsumers’willingnesstosharetheirinformation.

45%

BETTER

CONTROLOVER

HOW

IT'SUSED

45%

ABILITY

TOEASILY

DELETE

INFORMATION

46%

MORE

TRANSPARENCY

ABOUTDATA

COLLECTED

37%

CLEARER

EXPLANATIONOFBENEFITSI'LLRECEIVE

14%

NOTHING-

NOTINTERESTEDINSHARINGMORE

43%

COMMUNICATION

ABOUTTHE

SECURITYOF

MYDATA

21//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend4:Consumersdemandtransparencyoverpersonalizationtactics

‘‘Trustisthecurrencyofthecustomerexperience,andcurrent

advancementsinAImeanbuildingandmaintainingcustomertrust

ismoreimportantthanever.Thatmeansmakingsureourtechnologyisnotjustpowerful,butalsounderstandableandfairforeveryone.

AtExpediathatincludesourtravelers,partners,andourowninternalteams.Weholdourselvestohighstandardsoftransparencyandaccountability,

that’swhywebuiltandvalidatedourownmetrictomeasuretrust

directly—it’snotjustabuzzword,it’sameasurableoutcomeatscale.”

expediagroupT·OHER,ESEARCH

22//Qualtrics2026ConsumerExperienceTrendsReport//Trend4:Consumersdemandtransparencyoverpersonalizationtactics

04

Theviewontheground

ADVICE

Companieshavetheprivacy

equationbackward.Theystockpiledataaboutwhocustomersarewhilemissingwhatcustomersactually

needatanygivenmoment.

Successfulcompanieswillfocusoncustomercontextovercustomer

profiles,makingpersonalizationfeelhelpfulratherthaninvasive.

Butthisshiftrequirestransparency.

Showcustomerswhatyoucollect,givethemcontrolanddeletionrights,and,critically,demonstratehowtheirdataimprovedtheirspecificexperience.

IsabelleZdatny

HeadofThoughtLeadership,QualtricsXMInstitute

ANALYSIS

Theprivacy-personalization

paradoxisanongoingbalancingact.