LOYALTY
Data & ResearchMarch 24, 2026•Updated: 9 November 2026

Customer loyalty &
retention statistics 2026

50+ verified data points on customer retention, loyalty and churn. From acquisition costs and CLV data to churn rates, NPS and loyalty program statistics. Every figure links to its source: Harvard Business Review, Bain, Recurly, Qualtrics, Merkle, Klaviyo and more. Turned into revenue by our marketing automation agency.

5-25x

more expensive to acquire a new customer than to retain one

Source: Harvard Business Review, 2014

+95%

maximum profit increase from 5% higher retention (Bain research)

Source: Harvard Business Review, 2014

70%

of loyalty members say they spend more with a brand once enrolled

Source: Merkle Loyalty Barometer via Consultancy.eu, 2026

Statistics overview

Acquiring new customers is important, but retaining existing customers is more profitable. Yet most companies invest the majority of their budget in acquisition. What are the real costs? Where are the opportunities? Smart brands balance email marketing lifecycle flows with strong acquisition to compound growth. For Dutch companies, how to use these figures to convert more visitors: read more about conversion optimization (in Dutch).

This page compiles 50+ up-to-date statistics on customer loyalty and retention, sourced from research by Harvard Business Review, Bain & Company, Recurly, Qualtrics XM Institute, Merkle, Antavo, Klaviyo and other reputable sources. Every figure links to the source we opened when checking it. Whether you're optimizing your retention strategy or building a business case for a loyalty program: this data gives you the evidence you need, or let our online marketing agency handle it end to end.

COSTS
Section 1

Acquisition vs. retention costs

5-25x

more expensive: new customer vs. retention

Source: Harvard Business Review, 2014

+25-95%

profit increase from 5% higher retention (Bain research)

Source: Harvard Business Review, 2014

85%

of CX leaders say customers drop brands over unresolved issues, even on first contact

Source: Zendesk CX Trends, 2026

1 in 4

new subscription sign-ups: nearly one in four comes from a former subscriber

Source: Recurly State of Subscriptions, 2026

Share of bad experiences after which customers spend less

Fast food62%
Online retail58%
All industries (worldwide)47%

Source: Qualtrics XM Institute, 2025

CLV
Section 2

Customer lifetime value (CLV)

Annual Plans
50-60%

higher revenue per user from annual plans

Source: Recurly State of Subscriptions, 2026

Big Spenders
27%

of loyalty members spend at least 50% more once enrolled

+17 points vs. last year

Source: Merkle Loyalty Barometer via Consultancy.eu, 2026

Emotional Bond
85%

of customers with high emotion ratings say they will buy more (US)

5.1x as often as low ratings

Source: Qualtrics XM Institute, 2026

Net revenue retention, private B2B SaaS (ACV $25k-50k)

Top quartile111%
111%
Median102%
102%
Lowest quartile97%
97%

Source: SaaS Capital, 2025

LOYALTY
Section 3

Loyalty program statistics

4 in 10

consumers are more likely to join a loyalty program than last year

Source: Antavo, 2026

90%

of UK adults belong to at least one loyalty scheme

Source: American Express Rewards Report via ChannelX, 2026

12

loyalty schemes per UK adult on average

Source: American Express Rewards Report via ChannelX, 2026

4%

of US consumers stay enrolled because they genuinely like the brand

Source: Braze, 2026

What loyalty members say (Merkle, 2,000 consumers)

Expect different treatment as a member91%
Trust the brand they are most loyal to71%
Spend more once enrolled70%
First purchase experience is a top-2 factor62%
Bought less or stopped after a program change53%
Always feel recognized across channels18%

Source: Merkle Loyalty Barometer via Consultancy.eu, 2026

  • 89% of businesses are confident that loyalty drives value they would not get otherwise, but 91% of program owners struggle to analyze their loyalty data (Antavo, 2026)
  • 86% of US shoppers say loyalty rewards matter to them; the average member belongs to 2-3 competing programs in the same category (Upside, 2026)
Section 4

Churn rates by industry

3.60%

median churn across all industries

Source: Recurly, 2026

2.34%

voluntary churn (customers cancel)

Source: Recurly, 2026

1.25%

involuntary churn (failed payments)

Source: Recurly, 2026

+337%

year-over-year growth in pause usage where pausing is offered before cancelling

Source: Recurly State of Subscriptions, 2026

Median churn rate by industry (Recurly network)

IndustryMedian churnVoluntary / involuntary
SaaS3.22%2.16% / 1.06%
Business & professional services3.44%2.27% / 1.18%
Travel, hospitality & entertainment3.91%2.63% / 1.28%
Digital media & entertainment4.14%2.55% / 1.59%
E-commerce4.25%2.87% / 1.38%
Education4.99%3.30% / 1.69%

Source: Recurly, 2026 (network data July 2026; Recurly calls these median annual churn rates)

  • Below 2% churn is strong in almost any segment; 2-4% is where most well-run subscription businesses operate, above 5% is worth investigating (Recurly, 2026)
  • 47% of bad experiences lead customers to cut spending (Qualtrics XM Institute, 2025)
  • 74% of customers find it frustrating to repeat their story to different agents (Zendesk CX Trends, 2026)
NPS
Section 5

NPS & customer satisfaction benchmarks

2x

higher NPS for sustained value creators than for the average company

Source: Bain & Company, Net Promoter System

73 vs 7

NPS of customers with high vs. low emotion ratings (US)

Source: Qualtrics XM Institute, 2026

3 in 10

customers give direct feedback to the company

Source: Qualtrics Consumer Experience Trends, 2026

High vs. low emotion ratings (US, 354 brands)

Trust the brand: high emotion80%
80%
Trust the brand: low emotion14%
14%
Forgive a mistake: high emotion67%
67%
Forgive a mistake: low emotion15%
15%

Source: Qualtrics XM Institute, 2026

CRM
Section 6

Email & CRM retention strategies

+760%

email revenue from segmented campaigns

Source: DMA via Campaign Monitor, 2015

30%

of email revenue came from automated emails, which were just 2% of sends

Source: Omnisend, 2026

+100.95%

more clicks on segmented vs. non-segmented campaigns

Source: Mailchimp, 2017

Revenue per recipient by email flow

Abandoned cart$6.77
Welcome series$5.75
Browse abandonment$2.08
Post-purchase$1.80
Win-back$0.82

Source: Klaviyo, 2026 (110,000+ Klaviyo customers)

  • An automated email earned $2.87 versus $0.18 for a campaign email, with open rates of 38% vs. 30.7% (Omnisend, 2026)
  • Segmented campaigns get 14.31% more opens and 9.37% fewer unsubscribes than non-segmented ones (Mailchimp, 2017)
  • Abandoned cart SMS earns $4.48 per recipient; welcome emails get a 6.5% click rate, post-purchase 5.1% and win-back 2.8% (Klaviyo, 2026)
  • 71% of customers feel increasingly protective of their personal information, a reason to use CRM data with care (Salesforce, 2026)
Summary

Key takeaways

1

Retention is more profitable

Acquiring new customers costs 5-25x more than retention, and Bain research links 5% higher retention to 25-95% more profit.

2

Value grows with the relationship

Annual plans bring 50-60% more revenue per user, and 27% of loyalty members spend at least 50% more once enrolled.

3

Churn is mostly a choice

In the Recurly network, voluntary churn (2.34%) is almost twice involuntary churn (1.25%). And 3 in 4 subscribers who pause come back.

4

Emotion drives NPS

Customers with high emotion ratings give an NPS of 73, those with low ratings 7. Sustained value creators have twice the average NPS.

5

Automation pays

Automated emails were 2% of sends but 30% of email revenue. Abandoned cart flows earn $6.77 per recipient.

6

Loyalty programs must earn it

70% of members spend more once enrolled, but 53% bought less or stopped after a program change, and only 4% of US members stay for the brand itself.

Methodology & sources

Key sources include:

Disclaimer: Every figure on this page was checked against a source we opened ourselves on 9 November 2026; figures we could not verify were removed. Most figures are international or US data, labeled as such. This page is compiled for informational purposes and does not constitute financial or strategic advice.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

How much more expensive is it to acquire a new customer vs. retaining one?

Depending on the study and industry, acquiring a new customer is 5 to 25 times more expensive than retaining an existing one (Harvard Business Review, 2014). Research by Frederick Reichheld of Bain & Company shows that increasing customer retention by 5% increases profits by 25% to 95%.

What is the average churn rate by industry in 2026?

In the Recurly subscription network (July 2026), median churn across all industries is 3.60%: 2.34% voluntary and 1.25% involuntary. By industry: SaaS 3.22%, business and professional services 3.44%, travel and hospitality 3.91%, digital media 4.14%, e-commerce 4.25% and education 4.99%. Recurly considers below 2% strong and above 5% worth investigating.

What is a good NPS score?

There is no single benchmark we could verify, so compare against your own industry and your own trend. According to Bain, sustained value creators have a Net Promoter Score twice as high as the average company. Qualtrics XM Institute found that US customers with high emotion ratings give an NPS of 73, versus 7 for customers with low emotion ratings.

RETAIN
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Ruud ten Have

Compiled by

Ruud ten Have

Ruud is a digital marketer with 10+ years of experience in online advertising and AI implementation. At Searchlab, he combines strategic thinking with hands-on AI tooling to deliver measurable results for businesses.

About Searchlab

We don’t just collect this data, we apply it daily as an AI-first marketing agency in Amsterdam. Dutch businesses can explore our conversie-optimalisatie bureau services.