New York, Aug. 05, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Optimove Insights today released its Holiday Shopping Report 2026, finding that AI is now a meaningful part of the holiday shopping journey, with 72% of U.S. consumers regularly or occasionally consulting tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini for shopping ideas and gift recommendations. Optimove Insights is the analytical and research arm of Optimove, the creator of Positionless Marketing.
The report shows that AI-assisted discovery is influencing how consumers find products, compare options, and generate gift ideas. Product recommendation AI features have been used by 55% of respondents, followed by chatbots at 41% and visual search at 31%.
Trust is also relatively strong:almost three-quarters of consumers trust AI-generated recommendations as much as or more than other sources, although data privacy remains the leading factor that could encourage greater adoption.
While the new technologies reshape discovery behaviors, holiday shopping will also be led by brand familiarity and strong spending intent: Fifty-three percent (53%) of consumers plan to shop exclusively at stores they used last year, 55% expect to spend more than last year and another 30% plan to maintain the same budget.
For marketers, the opportunity lies in leveraging customer data and behavioral signals to make every recommendation, offer, and message more relevant.
The report is based on a survey of 648 U.S. consumers conducted in Spring 2026. Respondents were ages 18+ with household incomes of $75,000+. The analysis focuses on shopping behaviors and attitudes, including discovery, decision-making, messaging, payments, multichannel behavior, and the use of AI in shopping.
Key findings of the report:
- Holiday spending intent is strong. Fifty-five percent (55%) of consumers expect to spend more than last year, while another 30% plan to maintain the same budget, creating a strong commercial opportunity for retailers.
- Familiar brands have an advantage, but discovery remains strong. Fifty-three percent (53%) of consumers plan to shop exclusively at stores they used last year, while 47% expect to explore new brands during the season. This shows that loyalty provides an advantage, but not a guarantee.
- AI is now part of holiday discovery. Seventy-two percent (72%) of consumers regularly or occasionally consult AI tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini for shopping ideas and gift recommendations, showing that AI is increasingly shaping holiday consideration.
- AI-powered recommendations are already widely used. Product recommendation AI features have been used by 55% of respondents, followed by chatbots at 41%, visual search at 31%, personalized deals at 26%, and size/fit recommendations at 23%.
- Trust in AI is meaningful, but privacy remains the barrier. Three-quarters of consumers trust AI-generated recommendations as much as or more than other sources. However, data privacy is the leading factor that could increase willingness to use an AI personal shopping assistant, cited by 37% of respondents.
- Established retailers dominate, but specialty brands can still compete. Amazon leads consumer preferences at 81%, followed by Walmart at 71% and Target at 58%. However, fragmented preferences beyond these leaders show that specialty retailers can win through distinct products, stronger relevance, or differentiated experiences.
- Quality defines value for both familiar and new brands. Quality was selected by 81% of consumers as a top factor in holiday purchase decisions, ahead of price at 70% and brand reputation at 46%. For trying a new brand, quality would persuade 85% of consumers, while price would influence 80%.
- Gift giving remains family-focused. Seventy-five percent (75%) of respondents say they always or usually buy holiday gifts. Sixty-seven percent (67%) will spend mostly on relatives, while 24% will divide their budgets equally between family and friends.
- Black Friday and Cyber Monday still shape timing. Although 66% of consumers indicate they are willing to begin shopping between July and October, 63% say they may wait for Black Friday or Cyber Monday before beginning holiday purchases.
- Early shopping can be encouraged, but fatigue must be managed. Seventy-eight percent (78%) cite discounted prices as a reason to shop earlier, followed by the availability of desired items at 67% and shorter shipping times at 40%. At the same time, 27% say they are tired of holiday marketing before July, and by November, more than seven out of ten say they tire of holiday messages.
“AI is no longer a future layer of holiday shopping. It is already part of how consumers discover products, compare options, and decide what to buy,” said Pini Yakuel, Founder and CEO of Optimove. “But the real opportunity is not simply using AI more. It is using AI responsibly and relevantly. Consumers are ready to spend, but they expect recommendations that respect their needs, their trust, and their time. That is what Positionless Marketing makes possible: helping marketers turn customer signals into useful experiences while the moment still matters.”
The full report is available at https://www.optimove.com/resources/reports/holiday-shopping-report-2026
About Optimove
Optimove is the creator of Positionless Marketing. Positionless Marketing frees marketing teams from the limitations of fixed roles, giving every marketer the power to execute any marketing task instantly and independently. Positionless Marketing has been proven to improve campaign efficiency by 88%, allowing marketing teams to create more personalized engagement with existing customers.
For two years running, Optimove has been positioned as a Visionary in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for Multichannel Marketing Hubs, recognized for its AI-driven decisioning, prescriptive insights, and proven ability to orchestrate thousands of personalized campaigns in real time across channels.
Its Positionless Marketing Platform includes Optimove Engage and Orchestrate for cross-channel campaign decisioning and orchestration; Optimove Personalize, a digital personalization engine; and Optimove Gamify, a loyalty and gamification platform.
All are powered by Optimove AI, the marketing AI suite that brings AI everywhere marketers work. Inside the platform through Native AI agents for decisioning, analysis, and creation, outside it to external AI tools like Claude and ChatGPT through the Optimove MCP, and into custom-built applications on top of the platform through Optimove Custom Apps. Optimove has embedded AI in its platform since 2012, paving the way for Positionless Marketing.
Today, its comprehensive AI-powered suite is at the leading edge of empowering marketers to streamline workflows from Insight to Creation and through Optimization. Optimove provides industry-specific and use-case solutions for leading consumer brands globally.
About Optimove Insights
Optimove Insights is the analytical and research arm of Optimove, dedicated to providing valuable industry insights and data-driven research to empower B2C businesses.
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Carolina Lopez Optimove carolina_l@optimove.com
