Retail loses top spot in UK Customer Satisfaction Index for first time since 2008

Nationwide is the UK’s best-performing brand for customer satisfaction, according to the latest UK Customer Satisfaction Index (UKCSI). The Index also reveals a fourth consecutive increase in customer satisfaction, reaching 78.3 (out of 100), a 1.0-point increase year-on-year. However, The Institute of Customer Service cautions that the rate of increase has significantly slowed, with the Index sitting just 0.1 higher than six months ago.

Nationwide scored 87.3 out of 100 and was followed by John Lewis (87.1) and first direct (86.0). Meanwhile, the most improved brands are OVO Energy (up 7.9 points year on year), Northumbrian Water (up 7.3 points) and Land Rover (up 7.1 points).

Banks & building societies have overtaken the retail sector for the first time

Retail has traditionally led all sectors for customer satisfaction since the UKCSI was launched in 2008, reflecting the industry’s longstanding focus on competitive positioning, personalisation and responsive customer service. Some retailers have found it harder to differentiate on service in the online space, with digital offerings becoming increasingly similar – and vulnerable to logistical or service failings by delivery partners.

The latest data shows that the banks & building societies sector has overtaken retail as the highest-performing sector for customer service, surpassing it for the first time since the UKCSI began.

The Institute of Customer Service attributes this improvement to the growing emphasis placed on customer satisfaction, loyalty and retention by the best-performing banks and building societies in recent years, which has been driven by investment in training and technology, healthy competition and the customer-outcome focused Consumer Duty standard.

The data reveals a significant rise in sector performance since the introduction of Consumer Duty in 2023, which made it mandatory for financial services firms to focus more on customer outcomes.

Jo Causon, CEO of the Institute of Customer Service says: “Customer satisfaction with banks and building societies has been improving steadily for some time now, in what has been a long-term turnaround for an industry whose reputation was severely damaged with the financial crisis. The sector has led the way in app development, with many providers now offering an excellent digital experience for routine transactional elements combined with well-trained, motivated and empowered employees for more complex requirements. Regaining trust has been paramount.

Higher customer satisfaction correlates with better financial performance

The Institute’s research continues to show the link between good customer service and sales. Three times as many people are willing to spend more for a higher level of customer service than are price-sensitive above all – 34.4% to 11.6%. The latest UKCSI data also shows that customers who score an organisation as a 9 or 10 for customer service are almost twice as likely to recommend it to others as those who give a score of 8 (by 94.8% to 54.3%), and 50% more likely to remain a customer (97.0% to 65.8%).

Trends in both current account switching at banks & building societies, and sales growth at supermarkets, bear this out in reality. Between 1 October and 31 December 2025, banks & building societies with a UKCSI score at least 1 point above the sector average saw 17,389 net current account gains, while those with scores at least 1 point below the average lost 3,098 current accounts on average. Nationwide was the leading beneficiary of current account switches, with 64,527 net current account gains.

Meanwhile, food retailers that outperform their sector by at least 1 point in the UKCSI saw an average sales growth of 4.3%, in 12 weeks to 17 May 2026 compared to overall market growth of just 2.3%.

Published every six months by the Institute of Customer Service, the UKCSI is the country’s largest and longest-running longitudinal study of customer service performance. It tracks 13 sectors across the UK economy, all of which saw an increase in customer satisfaction versus last year.

The UKCSI also tracks consumer confidence. It finds that since January, the proportion of people who feel better off compared to a year ago has fallen from 38% to 35%, while those predicting they would be better off in a year’s time has fallen from 43% to 39%. Respondents were also less confident about the economy as a whole, with the proportion predicting it would be in better shape in a year’s time declining from 31% to 27%.

Falling confidence has a direct impact on willingness to spend on ‘big ticket’ purchases, with 36% saying it was now a bad time to buy ‘major items’, compared to 31% in January.

Jo Causon says: “The latest UKCSI reveals a levelling off of the customer satisfaction increases we’ve seen over the last two years, which sits at the highest level since July 2022.

“Our data shows consumers are less confident in their outlook for both the UK economy and their own personal finances than they were six months ago. This, when taken alongside the slowdown in our Service Nation’s recovery, should reinforce to businesses the importance of doubling down on their service offering at this moment; those that continue to invest, strike the right line in their approach to AI and sharpen the end-to-end customer experience will be best-placed to keep customers engaged and grow their business.

“Businesses are still managing through a period of volatility, and we may need to accept that this is the new normal. In a competitive landscape, we are seeing winners emerge who build trust, do the right thing and deliver a product and service experience that their customers genuinely value.”

The top-performing organisations overall are as follows:

FIG 1. Highest rated organisations in the UKCSI