75 Key Customer Loyalty Stats and Trends to Watch as You Enter 2026

With the year wrapping up and planning cycles in full swing, loyalty leaders are stepping into one of the most decisive moments we’ve seen in years. Customer expectations are shifting fast, AI is rewriting the rules of engagement, and program fatigue is becoming very real. The question now is not whether your loyalty strategy needs to evolve—but how quickly and how boldly you can move.

The insights below capture the key signals from 2025’s loyalty landscape—from changing consumer behaviour to the rise of personalisation, gamification, and loyalty economics. Use them as you shape your 2026 roadmap and reimagine what meaningful, high-impact loyalty can look like for your brand.

Loyalty 2026 – Broader Stats and Trends

• 1. Top loyalty drivers: Customers prioritize financial rewards, simplicity, and ease of use, with 86% rating these attributes as “important” or “very important.” (Deloitte)
  2. Loyalty formation threshold: Consumers typically need repeat buying to feel loyal, with 88% requiring three or more purchases to build loyalty. (Exploding Topics)
  3. Budget momentum: Loyalty budgets are rising, with 63% of US executives reporting increased spend on loyalty programs. (PwC)
  4. Planned investment growth: CMOs are accelerating loyalty investment, planning to increase spending by 41% by 2025. (Gartner)
  5. Trust-based loyalty strength: Shoppers continue to consolidate around trusted brands, with 60% staying loyal and 20% increasing purchases from those brands. (The Australian)
  6. Market size outlook: Loyalty is becoming a larger strategic category, with the customer loyalty management market projected to reach $44B by 2032. (Allied Market Research)
  7. Program fatigue: Loyalty participation is intensifying, with ~50% of consumers now in more than five programs; participation in 1–5 programs fell from 62% (2024) to 51% (2025), while participation in 11–15 programs rose from 7% to 11%. (EY)
  8. Retention driver ranking: Loyalty programs are a primary retention lever, with 41% of consumers saying rewards are the main reason they stay loyal, ahead of product/service quality at 33%. (EY)
  9. CX pressure on loyalty: Customer experience quality continues to weaken, with Forrester’s 2025 CX Index reaching a new low after four consecutive years of decline. (Forrester)
  10. CX stagnation signal: CX rankings are deteriorating across markets; in the US, 25% of brands declined for a second straight year vs 7% improving, while globally 21% declined, 6% improved, and 73% stayed flat. (Forrester)

1. Emotional connection is weakening: Only 50% of customers say loyalty programs make them feel more positive about a brand, signaling a widening gap between participation and genuine affinity. (EY)
2. Switching intent is rising: Consumers are 5–10% more likely to switch to another program within the same category, with 35%+ planning cancellations, rising to 50%+ among 18–34-year-olds. (BCG)
3. Mobile is the primary engagement layer: Over 80% of customers are willing to download a loyalty app, and 41% use these apps once or twice a week, making the app experience a core loyalty touchpoint. (EY)
4. Top app features are benefit access and progress visibility: The most valued app features are exclusive deals and offers (61%) and real-time loyalty points tracking (52%), reinforcing that value and progress visibility drive repeat engagement. (EY)
5. Engagement is shallow despite high enrollment: More than 50% of loyalty points go unredeemed, and customers actively engage with only 18% of the programs they join, highlighting a need for more relevant and meaningful loyalty experiences. (NetGuru)
6. Experiences Over Discounts: 55% of consumers rank experiential offers as the most critical feature. (Gartner)

The Power of Personalisation, Data & AI

1. Personalization is table stakes: 71% of consumers expect personalized interactions, and 76% feel annoyed when it doesn’t happen, making personalization a baseline expectation rather than a “nice to have.” (McKinsey)
2. AI strengthens loyalty: 73% of consumers say AI enhances their loyalty experience. (Capgemini)
3. AI improves campaign performance: AI-driven campaigns deliver 21–22% hit rates versus 7–10% for traditional methods. (Capillary case study)
4. Personalized rewards matter most: 73% of consumers prioritize personalized rewards within loyalty programs. (Deloitte, 2024)
5. Execution gap remains: Only 60% of consumers say they are satisfied with the personalization they receive today. (Deloitte, 2024)
6. Liability impact is measurable: Personalized offerings reduced unidentified points liabilities by 75%. (Capillary case study)
7. Engagement lifts are real: Weekly AI-driven emails doubled annual engagement for an energy client. (Capillary case study)
8. Gen Z and Millennials raise the bar: 88% of Gen Z and Millennials speak positively about AI-powered shopping experiences, signaling higher expectations from the next generation of spenders. (MarTech Edge)
9. Commercial lift is already visible: A CPG conglomerate working with Capillary doubled customer transactions using AI-powered segmentation and targeting, demonstrating direct revenue impact from intelligent personalization. (Capillary case study)
10. Value exchange is clearest for 25–44: 52% of consumers aged 25–44 cite increased product personalization as the main benefit of sharing their data, indicating higher willingness to exchange data for tailored experiences when used responsibly. (EY Loyalty Report, 2025)
11. Hyper-personalization remains rare: Only 16% of corporations have achieved hyper-personalization, highlighting a significant execution gap despite data availability and tooling. (EY Loyalty Report, 2025)
12. Primary blocker is operational, not intent: Most brands lack the integrated platforms, governance, and real-time decisioning required to turn personalization ambition into consistent customer outcomes. (EY Loyalty Report, 2025)
13. Consumer Willingness: 58% of Americans are willing to allow third parties to collect sensitive personal data in exchange for services or benefits (Data Innovation)
14. Fraud Risks: Loyalty fraud costs $3.1 billion in redeemed fraudulent points annually. (Loyalty Security Association)
15. Inactive Accounts: 45% of loyalty accounts are inactive, increasing fraud risk. (Merchant Risk Council)

Generational Loyalty Trends: Engaging Younger Consumers

1. Emerging Market Youth: By 2030, 75% of consumers in emerging markets will be aged 15 to 34. (McKinsey)
2. Generational Impact: Millennials remain the most active loyalty users (71%)
3. Digital Priorities: 75% of Gen Z and millennials demand high-quality digital interactions. (Deloitte 2024 Report)
4. Community Appeal: More than half of younger consumers value community participation in loyalty programs. (Deloitte 2024 Report)
5. Sustainability Focus: 73% of millennials factor sustainability into purchasing decisions. (Deloitte 2024 Report)

Regional Trends in Loyalty

1. US Market Expansion: The loyalty market in the US is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.6% from 2024 to 2028. (Statista)
2. UK’s Personalization Shortfall: Only 50% of UK consumers feel their loyalty programs offer adequate personalization—10% below the global average. (Deloitte)
3. India’s Premium Trend: 61% of Indian consumers are willing to pay for enhanced loyalty services. (Deloitte)
4. Philippines Growth: The loyalty market in the Philippines will grow at a CAGR of 9.1% between 2024 and 2028. (Statista)
5. Singapore’s Preferences: 53% of Singaporean consumers want rewards redeemable across multiple retailers. (WARC)
6. Saudi Arabia’s Market Boom: Expected to reach USD 1.59 billion by 2028. (Statista)

Emotional Loyalty: The Key to Long-Term Connections

1. Value Driver: Emotional attachment accounts for 43% of business value, making it the most significant loyalty driver. (Forbes)
2. Customer Appreciation Impact: When brands make customers feel appreciated, 76% of them continue their business, 80% spend more, and 87% recommend the brand to others. (Forrester’s CX Index)
3. Cross-Brand Emotional Loyalty: Delivering relevant rewards across multiple brands created a strong emotional bond with customers, resulting in 2x growth in reactivated customer numbers. (Capillary Case Study – Lifestyle Brand)
4. Behavioral Psychology in Loyalty: A behavior psychology-based reward campaign boosted retail sales by 75% for Capillary’s clients who struggled to establish emotional connections with their customers. (Capillary Case Study)
5. Emotional Value: Customers with an emotional bond are 52% more valuable than those who are just satisfied. (Harvard Business Review)
6. Simplicity and transparency: As customer expectations evolve, simplicity and transparency will become indispensable in building emotional loyalty, fostering trust, and creating seamless, meaningful connections. (Capillary Opinion)

Gamification and the New Era of Customer Engagement

1. Repeat purchase lift: A gamified tier structure increased repeat purchases by 68% for a leading Capillary client, showing how progression mechanics can shift buying behavior. (Capillary case study)
2. Active user growth: A seasonal gamification strategy for a super app delivered a 55% increase in active users, demonstrating how time-bound mechanics can re-energize dormant and low-engagement segments. (Capillary case study)
3. Membership and retention impact: For a global sports brand, a gamified loyalty platform drove 68% membership growth and a 91% retention rate, underscoring the long-term stickiness of well-designed game loops. (Capillary case study)
4. Revenue upside: A gamification-powered loyalty program achieved a 1450% uplift in sales, highlighting the commercial upside when engagement, incentives, and experience design align. (Capillary case study)
5. Category adoption is accelerating: In food and beverage, brands are increasingly using surprise daily deals and “2x points” days in apps to nudge customers toward the next reward and build habitual engagement. (EY Loyalty Report, 2025)
6. Game-led revenue contribution: A footwear client generated $82M in sales through interactive games such as Spin the Wheel, showing that gamification can convert engagement into measurable revenue. (Capillary case study)
7. Frequency lift at scale: A seasonal gamification campaign increased transaction frequency by 1.5x and engaged 500M+ users, proving gamification can drive both depth and breadth of engagement. (Capillary case study)
8. MAU lift: Gamification strategies increased monthly active users (MAUs) by 15% for conglomerate clients, demonstrating sustained in-app engagement gains. (Capillary case study)
9. Incremental retail sales: Gamification delivered 75% incremental retail sales for a retail client, validating its impact on commercial performance in-store and online. (Capillary case study)
10. Store visit growth: Brands using gamified mechanics such as digital treasure hunts reported a 35% increase in in-store visits, indicating gamification’s ability to drive footfall. (Paytronix)
11. Loyalty uplift: Brands leveraging gamification reported a 22% increase in customer loyalty, reinforcing gamification as a repeatable engagement lever. (Snipp Interactive)
12. Behavioral impact: Gamification improves behavioral loyalty by creating more engagement touchpoints that influence frequency, participation, and habit formation over time. (Capillary insights)

Loyalty Across Industries

1. Luxury Travelers’ Preferences: 68% of luxury travelers consider loyalty programs critical when choosing accommodations, compared to 41% of mass travelers. (McKinsey)
2. Fuel Loyalty Transformation: Capillary’s fuel client achieved a 4.4x increase in sales by transforming routine fuel stops into high-end loyalty experiences. (Capillary Case Study)
3. Conglomerate: Capillary’s conglomerate client saw a 60% rise in cross-brand promotions by integrating experiences across multiple brands. (Capillary Case Study)
4. Footwear Retail: Personalizing experiences on special occasions led to a 24% increase in repeat purchases for Capillary’s footwear client. (Capillary Case Study)
5. CPG: Capillary’s CPG client achieved double the hit rate using AI-driven segmentation compared to traditional approaches. (Capillary Case Study)

Omnichannel Strategies: Winning Customers Everywhere

1. Active Membership Growth: Omnichannel integration drove a 110% increase in active members for Capillary’s retail clients. (Capillary Case Study)
2. Higher Purchase Rates: Customers using omnichannel platforms show a 250% higher purchase rate and a 13% higher average order value compared to single-channel users. (Better Commerce)
3. Customer Retention: Companies with strong omnichannel strategies retain an average of 89% of their customers, compared to just 33% for those with weak strategies. (Aberdeen Group)
4. Consumer Demand: 42% of consumers prefer consistent and unified brand experiences across digital and traditional channels. (Oracle)
5. Repeat Transactions: Using an integrated omnichannel approach resulted in a 24% increase in repeat customers and a 27% increase in repeat transactions for Capillary’s retail clients. (Capillary Case Study)

The Profit Power Behind Loyalty

1. Third-purchase tipping point: After a customer’s third purchase, the probability of buying again rises to 62%, highlighting the value of nudging first-time buyers into repeat behavior early. (Smile.io)
2. CX-to-financial impact: Customer-obsessed organizations see 41% faster revenue growth, 49% faster profit growth, and 51% better customer retention than those that are not, reinforcing that CX discipline is a direct driver of loyalty and performance. (Forrester)
3. ATV uplift through gamification: A Spin-the-Wheel gamification campaign increased average transaction value (ATV) by 33% for a leading Capillary client, showing how playful mechanics can encourage customers to trade up. (Capillary case study)
4. Loyalty share of revenue growth: For a major Capillary client, loyalty-driven sales grew to 85% after shifting from a purely transactional program to a more emotional, relationship-led strategy. (Capillary case study)
5. Member spend premium: A wellness brand that moved toward emotional loyalty saw members spend 80% more than non-members, demonstrating the revenue upside of trust-led engagement. (EY Loyalty Report, 2025)

If there’s one clear takeaway from these trends, it’s this: loyalty is moving faster than most brands are. Customers are switching more, expecting more, and rewarding the few programs that genuinely get it right. The brands that act decisively now—on data, AI, personalisation, and smarter engagement design—won’t just keep up, they’ll set the benchmark for everyone else.

The signals are on the table, the upside is proven, and the next 12–18 months will separate incremental optimisers from true loyalty leaders. 2025 isn’t just another planning cycle; it’s your opportunity to rebuild loyalty into a real competitive advantage—and to design programs customers would genuinely miss if they disappeared.

If you’re ready to reimagine loyalty for the new year, Capillary is helping global enterprises do exactly that. Let’s build what’s next.

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With a knack for creating engaging content and crafting effective social media campaigns, Anjali wants to make it her mission to leverage the power of content as a strategic marketing tool for businesses. When she is not working, she is either binging movies or writing about them on her blog.