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ACSI: Chewy, Sam's Club, TJX shine in latest satisfaction survey

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Chewy
Chew increased its customer satisfaction 1%, reaching a score of 85.

Consumer satisfaction with retailers appears to be slipping, while a select few are standing out.

Nearly two-thirds (65%) of tracked brands in the new American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) Retail and Consumer Shipping Study 2025 saw decreases in customer satisfaction scores. Overall customer satisfaction with the sector inched up only 0.4% to a score of 78.3 (out of 100) compared to last year.

Among online brands, pet supplies retailer Chewy bucked the overall dissatisfaction trend and topped the industry again after increasing 1% to a score of 85. It has ranked number one among online retailers in all three years it has been measured by the ACSI.

[READ MORE: ACSI: Best retailers for customer satisfaction include…]

Second-place Amazon remained steady at 83, followed by eBay (unchanged) at 81. Kohl’s (unchanged), Costco (down 2%), Etsy (down 1%), and Home Depot — up 3% and the only company outside of Chewy to improve year-over-year — all finished with an industry average score of 79.

Despite being the most downloaded app in the United States for the past two years, Temu debuted with an ACSI score of 75, trailing many of its direct competitors in terms of customer satisfaction. Apparel brands Nike (76) and Gap (72) experienced notable declines in satisfaction of 5% and 6%, respectively, from last year. Apple Store's satisfaction, driven by frequently updated products that lack new features and AI-integration, fell 5% to 74.

The brand with the largest satisfaction downturn was Groupon, which slid 11% to 70, while Staples (72) and GameStop (69) each suffered 9% drops. GameStop's slide puts the company in last place among online retailers.

“Though there wasn’t much movement in retail customer satisfaction overall, we're seeing a clear divide emerge between brands that are meeting the needs and expectations of younger consumers versus those that are falling behind,” said Forrest Morgeson, assistant professor of marketing at Michigan State University and director of research emeritus at the ACSI. “Factors like mobile shopping capabilities, website quality, and perceptions of value are becoming increasingly important, especially for the 18-25 age group, who expressed significantly lower satisfaction levels compared to older demographics.”

Customer satisfaction with general merchandise retailers improved 1% to an ACSI score of 78 with associates and checkout improvements helping drive the increase.

Sam's Club rose 5% to 85 — making it the leader among warehouse clubs and general merchandise retailers overall. Consumers have gravitated towards the company's Scan & Go service, used regularly by one in three members, helping customers skip checkout lines completely. Sam’s Club is also piloting technology to improve the receipt checking process to get customers out the door faster.

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TJ Maxx
Marshalls and TJ Maxx both improved 4% to reach ACSI scores of 82.

TJX brands Marshalls and TJ Maxx improved 4% to scores of 82 as they took advantage of shoppers' value focus. These brands have become go-to spots for deals, TJX has cut into the market share of strong ACSI performers such as Macy’s (unchanged at 82) and Target (down 1% to 80).

While results across the customer experience are mixed, general merchandise retailers did well in 2024 overall, led by the value of store credit cards (up 1% to 85), mobile app quality (unchanged at 84), and mobile app reliability (up 1% to 84).

Improvements in both courtesy and helpfulness of staff (up 3% to 79) and speed of checkout process (up 3% to 77) also aided the small gain for general merchandise retailers. Despite being the highest-scoring customer experience element a year ago, accuracy of order fulfillment for pickup dips 2% to 83. Call center satisfaction (77), speed of checkout process (77), and frequency of sales and promotion (76) made up the bottom end of the customer experience.

Customer satisfaction with specialty retailers is stable with an ACSI score of 79. Pet Supplies Plus took the top spot after climbing 2% to 84. The company received high marks for customer service, including courtesy and helpfulness of staff and checkout speed.

In the personal care and accessories segment, Ulta Beauty (up 4% to 83) and Bath & Body Works (up 3% to 82) made the biggest jumps since last year. 

Among technology and office companies, Best Buy improved 3% to 81, overtaking last year's leader Apple Store, which slid 6% to 76 amid difficulties with Apple's AI rollout.

Ace Hardware and Menards both showed strong performance in the hardware and home improvement segment last year, tying with top scores of 83 (up 1% and 2%, respectively). Other specialty retail leaders include O'Reilly Auto Parts (down 1% to 81), Hobby Lobby (up 1% to 81), and Dick's Sporting Goods and Foot Locker (both had unchanged scores of 79). American Eagle Outfitters and Gap also tied atop the apparel segment at 78, down 4% and 1%, respectively.

While satisfaction with the specialty retailer industry is unchanged overall, ACSI says most aspects of the customer experience show some deterioration. Accuracy of order fulfillment for pickup (85), mobile app reliability (83), ability to provide brand names (82), speed of order readiness for pickup (82), value of store credit card (82), and speed of checkout process (80) all slipped 2% year-over-year. The only improved customer experience metric is website satisfaction, which increased 1% to 84.

Following 2023's 4% surge, customer satisfaction among supermarkets remained steady with an ACSI score of 79. Trader Joe’s (unchanged) and Publix (down 1%) tied for the lead at 84. Sam’s Club (unchanged) and Wegmans (up 1%) followed at 83 apiece, with H-E-B (down 4%) and Whole Foods (unchanged) right behind at 82 each.

Along with Wegmans, only three grocers — Ahold Delhaize (up 1% to 78), Kroger (up 1% to 78), and Walmart (up 1% to 75) — experienced satisfaction gains. ACSI says can be attributed mostly to improvements in quality and value.

Costco (81) and BJ’s Wholesale Club (77) suffered the biggest satisfaction slides in the industry, dipping 5% and 6%, respectively. Although not as severe, Giant Eagle fell 3% into last place with an ACSI score of 74.

Looking at customer satisfaction by region, Wegmans took the top spot in the Northeast while Sam's Club won the Midwest. Trader Joe's is the favorite in the West, and H-E-B and Publix shared the lead in the South.

Among customer experience benchmarks, ease of pickup process, convenient store hours and locations, and quality mobile apps all score 84 to lead the industry. The frequency of promotions (79), checkout speed (78), and call centers (76), on the other hand, received the worst marks.

The ACSI Retail and Consumer Shipping Study 2025 is based on 41,850 completed surveys. Customers were chosen at random and contacted via email between January and December 2024. 

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