Fiserv: Small business sales flat in November outside of Black Friday bump
Holiday shopping gave small businesses a needed boost during an otherwise slow November.
Year-over-year sales in November (0.8%) grew slightly despite transactions (-0.7%) declining compared to 2024, according to Fiserv’s Small Business Index for November 2025. Month-over-month sales (-0.6%) and transactions (-0.7%) both declined, while average ticket sizes rose (1.5%) compared to November 2024.
Fiserv’s seasonally-adjusted Index dropped a point from October to 142.
Small businesses saw gains as a result of the holidays, however. Thanksgiving Day saw core retail sales (which excludes volatile categories like gasoline) increase 3.9%, which helped lift overall retail (+1.9%). Black Friday maintained strong growth across core retail, which rose 3.1%, and restaurants, which rose 2.9%. However, retail momentum slowed over the weekend, with small business sales falling (-2.1%) on Saturday.
[READ MORE: NRF: Holiday weekend drew record shoppers; online and in-store up over last year]
“With the holiday shopping season in full swing, consumers continue to be pragmatic in their spending – opting for lower-cost options, and prioritizing the essentials over discretionary items,” said Prasanna Dhore, chief data officer at Fiserv.
Seasonally-adjusted small business retail sales were down slightly (-1.1%) year over year in November, despite a 1.1% jump in foot traffic. The decline in growth was driven by a significant decrease in average ticket size (-2.3%), according to Fiserv.
Compared to October, sales were down 1.4%, a result of lower foot traffic (-0.8%) and lower average ticket sizes (-0.7%). The only retail categories showing annual sales growth were general merchandise and sporting goods (+2.3% and +3.3%, respectively).
Small business restaurant sales in November were nearly flat (-0.1%) year over year and compared to October (-0.1%). Year-over-year foot traffic fell (-1.7%) while average tickets grew (1.6%). Compared to October, foot traffic at restaurants declined (-0.7%) as average tickets slightly increased (0.6%). Limited-service restaurants (0.4%) continued to outperform full-service establishments (-0.7%) on an annual basis, according to the data.
Discretionary sales growth was limited (-0.1%) in November while spending on essentials grew (+2.1%) year over year. Total goods sales declined (-0.5%) year over year while services grew (1.4%).
The Fiserv Small Business Index 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.
