Retail & E-Commerce
All About Middle-Income Consumers
Report summary
Middle-income consumers’ reality doesn’t match their aspirations. The pandemic and subsequent inflation dampened middle-income consumer sentiment considerably, resulting in behavior shifts. Yet, the mindset of these consumers didn’t necessarily follow. The middle-income financial outlook is less rosy than it once was, but consumption attitudes and frequency still track that of the high-income cohort. Their spending is another story. Based on survey interviews conducted monthly since October 2021 and Morning Consult Intelligence and Economic data, this report provides insight into the trends and behaviors impacting middle-income consumption.
Key Takeaways
- Middle-income consumer sentiment has shifted to look more like their low-income counterparts. The post-pandemic economy has made the rich richer, and the not rich more pessimistic. Near the end of July, the sentiment gap between middle-and high-income consumers was over 7 points.
- They’re still traveling, but with trade-offs. Typically, we see a spike in middle-income hotel spending hit at least $140 on average in June each year, but this June’s number was a mere $90. Trips are still happening, but shorter stays and budget-friendly options are dampening spend.
- Middle-income shopping frequency closely resembles their high-income peers. The number of shopping trips and online orders made by middle-income shoppers aligns more closely with the high-income segment. For example, the share of middle-income consumers who reported making an apparel purchase in the last month trailed the high-income share by just 3 percentage points.
Methodology
Morning Consult data featured in this report draws from monthly surveys conducted from October 2021 to May 2024 among roughly 2,200 U.S. adults per month. All survey interviews were conducted online, and the data were weighted to approximate populations of adults based on age, gender, race, educational attainment, region, gender by age and race by educational attainment. Top-line results from the surveys have a margin of error of +/-2 percentage points.
Morning Consult audience data comes from Morning Consult Intelligence. The platform helps you understand your audience, brand, competitors and market in a way traditional helps you understand your brand, competitors and market in a way traditional research companies can’t. Learn more here.
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