Fiserv: Consumers continued to shop small businesses in August
Small business sales held steady in August as consumers continued to remain cautious about their spending.
Month-over-month sales in August were relatively unchanged despite a 1.4% increase in foot traffic, according to the Fiserv Small Business Index for August 2025. Average ticket sizes fell 1.5% compared to July, driven by consumers prioritizing value-driven purchases.
“August saw consumers continue to show up to small businesses, but often spending less at checkout compared to July,” said Prasanna Dhore, chief data officer at Fiserv. “This shift to budget-conscious decisions was prevalent in restaurants, as consumers opted for fast and affordable options when dining out. In other industries such as wholesale trade, where macroeconomic pressure is pushing ticket sizes higher, foot-traffic is declining.”
Year-over-year sales rose 3.9% and transactions increased 3.7% in August. Average ticket sizes rose 0.3% compared to 2024.
Small business retail sales increased 1.1% and foot traffic rose 0.9% month over month in August. All retail subsectors grew sales compared to July except health & personal care. However, inflation-adjusted sales fell 1.4% year over year, continuing a contracting trend in retail that began in April.
Restaurant sales grew 2.1% month over month, fueled by an 1.8% increase in foot traffic, Year-over-year sales growth at restaurants was +2.2% and foot traffic grew +3.4%. Fiserv noted that these gains were almost entirely from quick-serve restaurant growth (+8.3% year over year).
[READ MORE: Consumer confidence down in August amid rising worries about jobs, recession]
Discretionary spending rose 1.2% month over month in August, led by QSR and budget-friendly entertainment. Essentials fell 1.5% month over month, which Fiserv says suggests that consumers were reallocating spend over the short term as summer neared its end.
Month over month small business sales shifted toward goodsm rising 0.6% in August, while services slipped 0.5%. Groceries, gasoline, and clothing led goods growth, while professional services and small contractor services saw pullbacks. Compared to August 2025, services sales growth rose 4.8%, and outpaced goods, which rose 2.0%.
Fiserv Small Business Index’s is derived from point-of-sale transaction data, including card, cash and check transactions in-store and online across approximately 2 million U.S. small businesses, including hundreds of thousands leveraging the Clover point-of-sale and business management platform.
