©JGalione via Canva.com
June 2, 2025
Majority of Americans Aware of New Tariffs, but 40% Aren’t Making Any Changes to Purchasing Behavior: Will This Trend Continue?
Tariffs have been the buzzword of 2025 so far, whether one works in the retail business or simply partakes of news headlines on a daily basis. Whatever one’s position on President Donald Trump’s tariff policy, the fact remains that the ongoing trade disputes (and/or negotiations) between the U.S. and other nations are having an impact on the American consumer.
Modern Retail and New-York based consumer research platform Attest teamed up to conduct a survey of approximately 1,000 consumers on May 28, on the eve of a U.S. Court of International Trade ruling that the president had “overstepped his authority” in issuing many of his tariffs. The results were interesting, to say the least.
Most Americans Up-to-Date on Trump Tariffs, but Nearly Half Have No Plans To Stop Buying
Over three-quarters (76%) of those polled indicated that there were either very familiar (40%) or somewhat familiar (36%) with the latest tariffs introduced by Trump — and of the total pool of respondents, more than half indicated that “tariffs are harmful because they raise prices for consumers.”
The impact of said tariffs, however, doesn’t appear to be slowing American consumer spend — at least significantly. About half of those polled said that tariffs on goods they purchase regularly might account for “a bit” of a price hike, and two-fifths (40%) indicated that they would be making no “notable” changes to their existing buying habits.
More than half of respondents were actually cheery about their personal financial portrait in the near future, with more than half of those surveyed suggesting that their checkbooks would improve by either “a little” or “a lot” over the course of the coming six months.
As the outlet underscored, however, this still left a majority of respondents who indicated that they would either be delaying anticipated purchases over higher prices or had previously purchased desired items to preempt the costs added by tariffs.
In Retail: Electronics, Clothing Purchases Most Likely To Be Affected by Tariffs
Closing out the data roundup, when it comes to consumer product categories most likely to be affected by tariff concerns, Americans seemed most likely to single out clothing and electronics spending.
That data jives with an earlier survey of 1,000 U.S. consumers carried out by the same entities, with 57% saying earlier this year that they had curtailed spending on clothing, while 45% said they had cut back on buying electronics.
“Right now, while consumers say they are worried about tariffs, they don’t appear to be sweating it that much — but that could change if prices increase further,” Modern Retail concluded.
Discussion Questions
Will a significant proportion (~40%) of U.S. consumers continue to spend as usual, regardless of tariffs? Why or why not? Do you believe the data to be accurate?
Will clothing and electronics continue to lead the retail categories in which consumers are pulling back from purchases? Which other categories come to mind as potentially taking significant losses due to prolonged tariffs?
As retailers such as Walmart and Amazon begin to increase prices (at least to some degree), will these survey numbers change as the year drags on? Why or why not?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Anil Patel
Founder & CEO, HotWax Commerce
Mark Ryski
Founder, CEO & Author, HeadCount Corporation
Cathy Hotka
Principal, Cathy Hotka & Associates
Recent Discussions
More Discussions
Which Brands Are Missing the Boat on Advent Calendars?
Advent calendars appear to be trending upward in popularity, with potential to move to other holidays…Will Walmart’s AI Tools Spur In-Store Shopping?
Walmart has launched six new AI-powered shopping tools. Will this drive more in-store spend?Will Shrinking Help Puma Re-Spark Brand Heat?
Puma is gearing up for a significant push to restructure operations. Will it be able to…
The first thing to say is that 60% of consumers making changes is a heck of a lot of people. The second thing to say is that the impacts of tariffs have not really hit home yet; if and when they do, that’s when we will see more widespread changes. The third and final point is that some impacts won’t be on the consumer; some, such as potentially lower margins and profits will fall on retailers. Retail will not collapse, but there will be fallout and challenges. To pretend otherwise is just silly.
Exactly, Neil. Add to your list is that nobody knows where the tariffs will end up. The continuing changes are confusing to the consumer and economists alike.
Trees, meet forest: the crucial takeaway here is the implication that 60% do plan to change them.
Americans these days are notoriously under-informed, with many getting their “news” from a single source. I wouldn’t assume that they’re informed about tariffs; when prices get jacked up, let’s see what they think then.
Many Americans still believe the admistraion that the tariffs are paid by the exporting country. If the administration says it, it must be true. Talk about misinformed and uneducated.,
I’m with Neil that 60% having made changes is highly significant. That said, the 40% who haven’t yet made changes is not surprising. While change is coming many consumers will not shift spending habits until they encounter the change. At this point, only a portion will have clearly encountered pricing changes they will attribute to tariffs. Further, when I encounter a price change as a shopper I don’t immediately assume it’s a result of tariffs. Consumers know many things contribute to change so they’re unlikely to clearly say “change X is a result of tariffs.”
Maybe that 40% includes families…who might feel an impact of apparel & electronics during upcoming Back to School.
If the 40% is the wealthier who can keep affording to spend regardless… great!!! Retail (and the USA economy) need people who are not price sensitive
Because retailers have pulled forward inventory to avoid tariff price increases, the biggest potential effects haven’t happened yet. And the latest tariffs (50% on foreign steel and aluminum) will raise the cost of canned food. That 40% number is likely to drop.
I’m not convinced of that as I saw Walmart & food markets raising prices long before their press announcement to do so. (Tho maybe retailer food item purchasing is much tighter purchase turnaround; less lag time.)
Certainly not as bad as the gasoline marketplace, but there could be a retailer pre replenishment price hike to consumers, to help cover the cost of the incoming purchase.
True on the steel & aluminum tariff… everything from corp construction to homes to cans in the pantry, and electronics.
No win situation… these tariffs are an anger/vendetta response, and never initiated with global market rationale or precision.
If there’s one thing we’ve learned since the COVID pandemic, it’s that consumer surveys that ask about changing behaviors due to pricing changes are often misleading and do not seem to be accurate predictors of actual consumer behavior. Just think about every sustainability survey you’ve seeing the last 5 years where a majority of consumers indicated they are willing to spend more for sustainable options. “More” is a very relative term and most consumers don’t know how they will react when they see “more” reflected in actual prices.
How much is too much? If consumers see what was a $20 price increase to $20.99, will they change behaviors? If that $20 price increases to $25 will they change? How about an item that normally costs $50 increasing to $60 – will they change? Most consumers when responding to such surveys are not thinking it through to this level of detail. Or perhaps 60% of those surveyed are thinking this way. We will see what happens if and when prices change during to tariffs. It will also be interesting to see if consumers attribute the increases to tariffs or to something else at that moment. For now, consumers seem to be expecting increases due to tariffs, but will they still think so in a few months time?
Great points. Product category by product category…household by household. We are about to get abundant lessons in price elasticity.
I think attribution will remain on “tariffs” for a while… if only due to dt’s daily (if not hourly) talk about what he WANTS. The signed papers he waves as some sort of proof that USA is (laughably) outsmarting another country. The tariff categories & countries are broad enough to support that price hike attribution.
In pandemic… it became hard to believe that every, single, “supply chain” was equally snarled and for such long stretches of time. Price gouging had found a nice cover to hide under… not provable & not unprovable. .
You nailed it, Ricardo! Survey responses about future price sensitivity are notoriously unreliable. The real test comes when that $50 item hits $65, not $52. And unlike gradual inflation, tariffs do create attribution clarity—consumers will know precisely why prices jumped.
It’s not surprising that many consumers are avoiding overreacting to fear-based tactics from Democrats and the anti-Trump media.
Smarter consumers are noticing contradictions, like inflation remaining stable, contrary to media warnings. Positive effects of tariffs include job growth, foreign companies investing in U.S. manufacturing, and non-partisan economists supporting fair trade strategies. While the media often overlooks these benefits, even CNN occasionally acknowledges the truth.
Many Americans understand that the White House’s tariff approach aligns with “Art of the Deal” tactics, aiming for fair trade without excessive tariffs, even with China. Global cooperation is essential to resolve these issues.
Smarter consumers are noticing the high likelihood of increased inflation as tariffed products hit the shelves in the coming weeks and months. Negative effects include foreign countries and consumers enacting boycotts of “Made in the USA” products. Negative effects include a precipitous drop in foreign tourists visiting the USA. Negative effects include lower levels of profitability across many businesses as they squeeze margins in an attempt to lessen consumer pain and protect market share. Negative effects include smaller businesses going bankrupt because they couldn’t pay outrageous tariff bills that were never even remotely anticipated.
Many Americans understand that the White House’s tariff approach aligns with “Art of the Ambush” tactics.
Not to mention that this story changes daily, and sometimes hourly… Hard to pinpoint consumer reactions when their heads are spinning from all the back and forth on tariffs, including the latest TACO storylines from Wall Street analysts. There have already been more negative effects than positive ones (and honestly, I can’t point to a single positive from all of this, not sure anyone legitimately can).
If Art of the Deal means steaks, ties, airlines, vodka, universities and casinos, I think I’d be looking to other ideas.
Your narrow world view is tiring and just wrong. How anyone on Retail Wire could say tariffs don’t matter and it’s just Democrats and anti-Trumpers lives in dreamland.
That’s what they do.
100% spot on, Bob.
Intentions expressed in surveys often don’t match actual behavior. Consumers aren’t really feeling the pinch from the tariffs yet, but they will, and when they do, purchasing will be impacted. When Walmart and Amazon announce that they’re raising prices, you should take their word for it. These are still early days of Tariff World, and their effects will eventually hit consumers in a way that feels very real. And ultimately, this will be reflected in consumer spending writ large.
Maybe not such a happy holidays?! [Poor Mattel, a former client of mine, being smacked by name by dt. Though Hasbro, et al are in same global procurement space]
I know not many track their own monthly spending the way I do… but the cume effect by end of 2025, summer 2026, and on… will be harder for people to shake. Esp if their vote was (shortsightedly) on the 1 complaint of high prices.
The party that dislikes “education” neatly thrives on the US population being under educated in personal & commerce economics.
In our retailer survey, we found similar kinds of disconnects. A strong majority of retailers don’t think they can survive beyond 6-9 months in a world of tariffs. But they also think that “tariffs are a good tool” and even though the jobs returning to the US will mostly be taken over my robots (their opinion!) there were also be lots of new job creation. Go figure.
I’d have to know a lot more about the demographics of that 40% who think they’re not gonna change.
Perhaps Mitt Romney was right after all. We will have a TACO truck on every corner.
“A strong majority of retailers … also think that tariffs are a good tool.” That is bizarre.
Yes, it is. No denying it. They must’ve seen Matt Shay’s video…his words exactly.
What a misleading headline- 60% of Americans have changed their buying habits as a result of tariffs. As @Neil Saunders noted below, the real impact of these import taxes will be felt in June. Whether or not more Americans make changes to their consumption habits depends on how deeply the tariffs impact their budgets. Given the seemingly random way the president threatens and backs off on his policy, it’s hard to predict anything.
Hmmm. Don’t consumers think they will change their buying habits? They ain’t seen nothin’ yet!
Notably, forward buying minimized the increase in prices.
In March 2025, the United States saw its highest recorded monthly import value at $419 billion, surpassing the previous high of $401.12 billion in February 2025, according to Trading Economics. This increase was a significant $17.8 billion more than the import value in February, according to the Census Bureau.
Hard to react to what appears to many consumers to be a possibility. They’ll let you know concretely when it becomes a reality.
Consumers might not be changing how they shop right now, but they are aware of rising prices. This quiet phase is not a sign of comfort, it’s a sign of caution. The moment a product feels overpriced, buying behavior will shift. Retailers who wait for that moment to act will already be behind.
This is the time to review sourcing strategies, improve pricing flexibility, and get inventory closer to where demand exists. Categories like apparel and electronics are already showing early signs of pressure. Retailers need to look beyond surface-level promotions and focus on the operational changes that protect both margins and customer experience.
What matters most in this environment is trust. When consumers understand why prices are changing, they stay loyal longer. Brands that lead with clarity and agility will be in a stronger position as the market tightens.
This is the right time to act. Strengthen your retail strategy while you still have room to move.
Trust.
That is why I support retailers who want to line item the Republican Tariff (dt + Congress!). 1) yes, it is another tax line 2) small hope that if tariff goes away in distant future, that line item may also decrease
Education
While the US population is starting to understand ‘tariff’ I think most still don’t understand ‘inflation’. Esp the difference between DISinflation and DEflation.
When I’m “aware” that a storm is coming I get ready. A little rain? Umbrella…check. Done. Blizzard with a foot of snow? That’s a different level of prep and a different level of behavior during the storm. Right now we have a little sprinkle of tariffs with no clear vision of what is about to hit…or how long it will last. I think the “cheerful” folks are in for a very rude awakening. If they want to continue to believe that “countries will pay” or “companies will eat” the tariffs, then they aren’t paying very close attention.
I actually think tariffs are a good thing…a useful tool in the hands of adults with a long term plan. And we may very well have needed a thorough check under the hood of the whole tariff apparatus. But the masterclass we needed and the masterclass we are experiencing are two vastly different things.
The weather analogy is spot on, Jeff. Taking it a bit further, this is like reading a forecast on Monday that there will be storms on Wednesday, Then on Tuesday, the forecast changes to light rain on Wednesday, possible Tornado watch on Thursday. Then on Wednesday it turns into clear skies on Thursday, but hurricane season coming on Friday. By the end of the week, how does any consumer know what to buy or do next? And with that level of whiplash, how does a retailer price umbrellas vs things like gutter extensions for hurricane level rains and so on?
Bottom line, we’re still early in the game. There isn’t yet enough visible or major impact for consumers to react to. We’ll soon learn more what portion of the tariffs will be absorbed by manufacturers, and what will be passed on to consumers. Fine to anticipate in the media what consumers will do, but let’s get into the weeds once widespread implementation is under way and everyone feels the impact.
The lowest income levels are there…plus bothered by news of job layoffs.
Retailers need to know their customer base… communicate, ask, survey… but know and plan before the USA gets to the “everyone feels impact” level.
e.g. vast majority use Amazon. When you have things stored in your cart (or the ‘for later’ section)… everytime you open the cart the price changes per item are shown. Increase or decrease. And you can click thru to see the country of the seller.
The price swings are much greater now. I’m seeing this am swings of $20+ dollars. And far more on electronics. (why I did used car, laptop & desktop shopping by end of Feb’25)
I’m not seeing any definitive date that we “know” any great insight. For each income level, there will be a continuum. A checking in with self & family about discretionary items.Overall, sad to see a decent country economy be purposely assaulted (from within). Retailers could have been so outward, CX, focused… instead of constant internal tactics.
Tariffs? What tariffs? Taco Trump keeps trumpeting about how he is going to impose all of these tariffs, yet never does. Where is the 145% China tariff? The Apple tariff? The 50% steel and aluminum tariff? The “everyone” 10% additional tariff? None of these has happened, despite Trump saying that they will happen. The consumer hasn’t felt anything, because there isn’t any tariff to feel. If any of these tariffs ever happen…give them 6 months or more, and then ask consumers what they think.
The daily policy acrobatics are not indifferent to the economic impact. They’re amplifying volatility by preventing rational planning by both businesses and consumers.
The real story is that 60% of consumers are already modifying their purchasing patterns before tariffs have fully materialized. This represents a massive demand shock that’s being underestimated.
Consumers are exhibiting three distinct response patterns: (1) Forward buyers who accelerated purchases (explaining those record March import numbers Gene mentioned); (2) Category switchers already cutting back on electronics and apparel; and (3) Wait-and-see holdouts who haven’t felt the direct impact yet.
The 40% “no change” group likely represents higher-income consumers with lower price sensitivity, but here’s the kicker: their behavior will be the last to change, but potentially the most dramatic when it does. Affluent consumers often have the most elastic demand for discretionary categories because they have more substitution options. That 40% represents the calm before the storm, not evidence that tariffs won’t matter.
Consumers may keep spending but for many it will be unsustainable in the second half of the year if purchasing power declines. Credit card delinquencies are on the rise, and companies are already warning of price hikes and anticipating product shortages.