2026年英国消费者洞察报告

Executive Summary Marketplaces continue to dominate UK non-grocery online spend, driven by convenience, pricecomparison, and perceived safety during uncertain times. Yet this dominance is not absolute.Younger consumers, especially Gen Z and Millennials, show greater openness to buying directlyfrom brands when the value exchange is clear. Better pricing, loyalty rewards, faster delivery, andgenuinely personalised experiences meaningfully increase willingness to bypass marketplaces.In this environment, marketplaces function as efficient volume drivers, while long-term valuecreation increasingly depends on a brand’s ability to build trusted, direct relationships. As the UK enters 2026, brands are navigating a consumer landscape shaped bysustained economic pressure, political recalibration, and structurally changedshopping behaviour. While inflation has moderated from its peak, cost-of-livingconcerns remain front of mind, with household budgets still under strain fromelevated interest rates, housing costs, and energy volatility. At the same time, theUK’s post-election environment and ongoing trade and regulatory uncertaintycontinue to dampen consumer confidence, reinforcing cautious, value-leddecision-making rather than signalling a return to pre-pandemic spending norms. Against this backdrop, the 2026 UK Consumer Insights Report reveals aconsumer who is not disengaging from digital commerce, but is increasinglyselective about where, how, and why they spend. Online shopping is firmlyembedded across all age groups, yet growth expectations are modest.Most UK consumers plan to shop online at similar levels to 2025, indicating amature eCommerce market where incremental gains must be earned throughrelevance, trust, and experience rather than volume or frequency alone. Mobile has become the baseline for participation, with near-universal smartphoneusage across demographics. However, the persistence of desktop and tablet usage,particularly among older consumers and men, signals that UK shoppers movefluidly across devices depending on context and purchase intent. Brands thatfail to recognise shoppers across devices or sessions risk disrupting momentumat critical decision points, particularly for higher-consideration purchases. Trust remains the decisive factor across channels. Secure payment,transparent data use, and consistent recognition across devices underpinconfidence for UK shoppers. Importantly, consumers do not rejectpersonalisation or AI-driven experiences outright. Instead, acceptanceis conditional. AI-powered recommendations, price alerts, and triggeredmessages are welcomed when they clearly reduce effort, improve relevance,and respect consumer control. When these experiences feel excessive,opaque, or poorly timed, trust erodes quickly, particularly among youngeraudiences who are more sensitive to relevance and explanation. by louder marketing or expanded reach. It will come from intelligently orchestratedexperiences that recognise consumers, respect their preferences, and engageonly when it genuinely adds value. Brands that use identity to remember, AI todecide, and owned channels to build trust will be best positioned to convertstability into sustainable growth, regardless of economic or political headwinds. Messaging tolerance reinforces this point. UK consumers consistently preferfewer, more relevant interactions over higher-frequency communication.Email remains the most trusted re-engagement channel, while SMS, pushnotifications, and paid retargeting perform best when tightly linked todemonstrated intent. Brands that rely on broad, interruptive messagingrisk accelerating fatigue in an already crowded attention economy. For UK brands facing margin pressure, rising acquisition costs, and constrainedconsumer confidence, the path forward is clear. Growth in 2026 will not be driven UK TL;DR: 10 Quick Insights from Our 2026 Consumer Data 1.Mobile Is the Baseline, Not the Advantage 5.Friction Kills Conversion at the Finish Line 8.Ads Are Accepted When They’re Relevant, Restrained, and Controlled Unexpected shipping costs (33%), stock issues (19%), checkoutcomplexity (18%), and trust gaps (13%) are the primary reasonsshoppers abandon purchases late in the journey. Conversionlosses are often preventable when brands reduce friction, clarifyvalue, and reinforce confidence at checkout. Smartphones are omnipresent, used regularly by 97% of consumers,with near-universal adoption among Gen X and Millennials (99%).Desktops (71%) signal high-intent research, while tablets (52%)bridge casual and considered browsing, showing consumers fluidlyswitch devices based on context, intent, and purchase complexity. Consumers tolerate cross-channel ads from brands they’veopted into when messaging feels coordinated, relevant, andlimited. Ad sentiment improves most when shoppers see fewer,more relevant ads and are given clear control over frequency,categories, and opt-out options, making restraint and agencymore powe