Never has been a more exciting time to be into loyalty than now. Year over year, we saw loyalty program metrics, like satisfaction rates, share of budget and ROI increase. This year, they have reached a critical new height, and we are confident to say that the loyalty industry is ready to enter a new golden age. AI is also playing a crucial role in loyalty – or is it the other way around? And how valued do customers feel in this new era? All of these and more are answered in Antavo’s Global Customer Loyalty Report 2026; THE report of the loyalty industry.
Introducing the Global Customer Loyalty Report, with 750+ global, regional, industry and demographic statistics
Our report is designed to help decision-makers make sense of
today’s loyalty landscape. It brings together data, visuals, and practical insights to showcase loyalty programs in the new era of loyalty.
The data in the report comes from three sources, as well as input from countless loyalty experts, leading to the most comprehensive report on the market today:
- 3,000 survey responses from CMOs, Marketing, IT and Loyalty experts
- A consumer panel filled out by 10,000 loyalty program members globally
- 500 million member actions tracked via Antavo’s AI Loyalty Cloud platform (vs. last year’s 230 million)
In addition, starting from this year, we are bringing readers more segment-based breakdowns for each global statistic. Therefore, you find loyalty insights for:
- 19 industry sectors, like fashion, retail and airlines
- 17 countries all across the globe
- 10 consumer age groups, like Gen Z
The current loyalty program landscape: we are at the doorstep of a new golden age
Loyalty programs have never been in a stronger position. Year over year, brands are seeing stronger engagement, better retention, and clearer ROI. Because of this consistent and observable performance, we are confident to say: loyalty programs are no longer add-ons, but strategic assets for companies.
- Satisfaction: 83.0% of loyalty program owners are satisfied with their loyalty program (last year, 69.2%)
- ROI: 9 out of 10 program owners who measure performance reported positive ROI. The average ROI reported by those who measure a positive ROI was 5.3X; another new height (last year it was 5.2X)
- Value: 89.4% are confident that loyalty is driving value that they wouldn’t get otherwise
- Budget: Among program owners, 51.5% of the marketing budget is allocated to CRM & loyalty. 21.2% more budget is allocated by existing program owners than those who plan to launch
- Technology: Among both program owners and those planning to launch a loyalty program, ease of management is the #1 most valuable feature
Transforming AI with loyalty
Phil Shelper, CEO of Loyalty & Reward Co and author of ‘Loyalty Programs: The Complete Guide’, attributes the growing popularity of loyalty programs to a single factor: they are the best source of consented first- and zero-party that can be fed to AI. Our data backs this up: those with a loyalty program feel more prepared to use AI than those planning to launch one.
- AI usage: AI: 51.4% of marketers now use AI in loyalty program management, a big leap from last year’s 37.1%. Also, 50.9% of program owners said that they are offering AI-driven personalization
- AI readiness: On a 1-10 scale, the average readiness score of program owners is 6.3, noticeably higher than companies that are only planning to launch (5.6) and far above those not considering loyalty programs at all (4.9)
- Challenges with data: Only 9.0% of program owners face no challenges when analyzing loyalty data (so the other face some kind of issue)
- 36.3% says that data quality issues or data fragmentation make it hard to analyze
- 34.5% says that limited integration prevents clear performance analysis 31.6% says that they have difficulty specifying which purchases happened because of the loyalty program
- 31.2% says they need specialized skills or analysts to make sense of the data
- Benefits of loyalty data: 90.7% of loyalty program owners use loyalty data in pricing and promotions. Also 31.1% of leadership teams expect weekly analysis, while 33.5% expect it monthly
Bringing value to customers & the perception gap
But what do consumers think of loyalty programs? Our findings indicate that consumers recognize the value these programs bring, especially in the face of rising costs and increased competition. However, beware of the “Perception Gap”.
- Customer loyalty: 43.2% of consumers say that they are more likely to join a program now than they were last year. In addition, 65.9% of customers say that using a loyalty program is now part of their lives
- Top reasons why consumers are disappointed with a loyalty program
- 49.1% said it takes too long to earn rewards
- 41.1% said rewards expire before they can use them
- 38.9% said unattractive rewards
- Unspent loyalty program points & expiration: In 2025, 27% of the points customers earned were left unspent. Among loyalty programs that use point expiration, 12% of the total points earned expire
- Perception gap: 82.6% of marketers believe loyalty programs make customers feel valued. Yet far fewer (56.2%) of customers feel the same
The Big Consumer Wishlist, 2026 Edition
The market reality is that customers show interest in a large variety of features, and there is no clear-cut strategy to win them over. Whether it be coupons and promotions, community-driven features, or even partner rewards, loyalty programs need to be versatile and diverse.
- Promotions: 68.6% of customers say promotions influence their shopping behavior, and 81.9% of customers use promotions frequently
- Favorite way to interact with a loyalty program
- They log in to a mobile app – 44.1% vs 59.0% in 2025
- They use a digital loyalty card saved on their phone – 42.4% vs 34.7% in 2025
- They carry a plastic card – 41.0% vs 29.3% in 2025
- Point pooling & friend referral: 36.1% of customers would do point pooling if it were available. 68.5% of customers say they refer friends.
The “Age of Value” is coming
Of course, all of these statistics are just the tip of the iceberg. By downloading the Global Customer Loyalty Report 2026, you find breakdowns and rankings associated with these insights, as well as data tables for various regions, and countries, case studies, technology showcases and expert insights. It’s 66 pages packed full of loyalty knowledge!
If you are already in the process of technology shopping, make sure to check out Antavo’s AI-powered loyalty platform and our product offerings:
- The Loyalty Engine, our core platform that does the complex math behind the scenes, keeps customers in the right tier and instantly issues the right reward at the right time.
- The Planner, where you can upload a transcript of a brainstorming meeting, a PDF of a strategy deck, or a photo of a whiteboard sketch. With our AI co-pilot, it analyses these inputs and instantly builds a visual map of your program structure.
- The Optimizer, which uses our in-house AI to let you “speak to your data”. It helps you dive deeper into analytics and uncover insights in minutes that would typically take hours.
Together, they form the Antavo Operating System, which allow loyalty teams to run programs that evolve continuously instead of repeating the same campaigns.
If you are interested in what Antavo has to offer, be sure to strike up a conversation by booking a call with our experts! And don’t forget to download our report!
