Reverse shopping spree: US shoppers returned $743B in merch this year, report says
Photo / Renee Cordes
American shoppers returned $743 billion worth of merchandise in 2023, according to a report by the National Retail Federation and Appriss Retail. As a percentage of sales, the return rate amounts to 14.5%.
‘Tis the season of gift returns. U.S. shoppers returned a total of $743 billion in merchandise this year, according to a new report. The return rate amounts to 14.5% of sales.
The findings come from the the Washington, D.C.-base National Retail Federation and Appriss Retail, a data science firm whose customers include 60 of the country's top 100 retailers.
The report shows that for every $1 billion in sales, the average retailer incurs $145 million in returns. Online sales have a higher return rate, with 17.6% or $247 billion of merchandise purchased returned. That compares with 10.02% for pure bricks-and-mortar returns (excluding online orders that are returned in-store).
“Retailers continue to test and implement new ways to minimize losses from returns, particularly those that are fraudulent, while at the same time optimizing the shopping experience for their customers,” said Mark Mathews, the National Retail Federation’s executive director of research.
While the holiday season is one of the biggest shopping period, retailers surveyed for the report said they expect only a slight uptick in the return rate compared with the rest of the year.
To stem losses from returns, some retailers are offering more detailed descriptions on sizing and fit of products for online purchases or requiring a receipt with returned items.
Fraudulent returns, however, remain a problem, costing retailers $101 billion in losses, according to the report. And for every $100 in returned merchandise, retailers will lose $13.70 to return fraud.
Among the types of fraud experienced by retailers in the past year, 49% cited returns of used, non-defective merchandise, also known as wardrobing, while 44% cited the return of shoplifted or stolen merchandise.
In addition, 37% said they experienced returns of goods purchased on fraudulent or stolen tender and 20% reported return fraud from organized retail crime groups.
More information
Find the full report here.
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