For many Americans, the ripple effects of global trade policy are no longer abstract debates on television. They are now evident in empty spaces on some grocery store shelves and rising prices on many everyday goods, from avocados to swimsuits to sofas. What used to be a matter of abstruse geopolitics has become a personal financial burden, particularly for households already struggling.
As tariffs and supply chain disruptions reshape what’s available for purchase—and their price tags—U.S. consumers are increasingly finding themselves on the front lines of a global trade war. Nearly half of shoppers have been unable to buy the products they wanted, either in-store or online, because they were out of stock or no longer available for domestic purchase. These are not isolated gaps and frustrations. They are signals of a deeper vulnerability within a consumer economy that relies on well-oiled global supply lines and affordable imports.
As shoppers confront missing products and rising costs, many are being told outright by retailers that tariffs are to blame. One in three consumers report having heard this explanation directly from a merchant. For the most financially strained, these messages are more than boilerplate disclaimers—they’re constant reminders that economic policy has morphed into day-to-day pocketbook hardship.
These are some of the findings in “Stock Out. The Impact of Tariffs on Consumer Product Prices and Availability,” a PYMNTS Intelligence exclusive report. This edition examines how shoppers see tariffs impacting product availability and prices. It draws on a survey of 2,262 U.S. consumers conducted from May 21, 2025, to June 6, 2025.
Nearly Half of Consumers Encounter Product Shortages
Trade disruptions are making their way into stores, both digital and physical. Nearly half of U.S. consumers have experienced product shortages because the items they wanted to buy, including food, household goods, apparel, electronics and health and beauty products, were out of stock or no longer available for purchase in the U.S. Those living paycheck to paycheck and struggling to pay their bills are hit the hardest of all. But with more than 68% of all U.S. consumers now living paycheck to paycheck, tariff-driven shortages and price increases affect a broad swathe of the country.
For instance, 22% of consumers overall say they have tried to buy food products but could not for these reasons. That figure soars to 31% among those struggling as they live paycheck to paycheck.
Just 42% of these financially struggling consumers say they have not experienced issues when buying any products included in the survey. This share is considerably lower than the 53% of consumers overall who said the same.
The U.S., the largest goods importer in the world, brings in several trillion dollars’ worth of goods every year, mostly from the European Union, China, Mexico and Canada. That means most product shortages faced by consumers are related to tariffs or supply chain difficulties. When it comes to clothing and apparel, 39% of consumers report that sellers attributed a product’s current unavailability to tariffs. Another 33% say sellers informed them that the shortages were due to “supply chain issues,” without specifying further. These issues do not just affect nice-to-have items. Most consumers who have faced food product shortages report that merchants attributed the tight supplies to tariffs or supply chain issues.
One-Third of Consumers Have Directly Faced Tariff-Related Price Hikes
Americans are under no illusion about why prices are rising. One in three U.S. consumers have been explicitly told by businesses where they shop that tariffs have driven up prices. Nearly another one in four has seen merchants refer to “increased costs,” without specifically blaming tariffs. These issues are hitting younger and more financially vulnerable shoppers the hardest. Millennials, Gen Z consumers and those living paycheck to paycheck are more likely to hear that tariffs are driving up prices at checkout. This is likely because they tend to shop for the lowest-priced items, and those tend to be imported.
“Everything’s going to be skyrocketed from eggs to milk…it’s going to hurt the little man.”
–Millennial earning less than $50k who reported being somewhat familiar with tariffs
It’s a delicate pocketbook balancing act: Four in 10 consumers whose money flies out the door the month it comes in have “super-prime” credit scores of 720 or higher, according to a recent PYMNTS Intelligence report with LendingClub. Tariff-fueled price inflation could potentially alter the credit profiles of consumers who, until now, had been able to avoid skipping their monthly bills. Either way, consumers expect nothing good. Nearly half of U.S. shoppers expect tariffs to raise prices at double the current inflation rate.
Financially struggling consumers are not just seeing tariff-related inflation on discretionary purchases. Those who live paycheck to paycheck with difficulty paying their bills are the most likely to have been told by businesses that tariffs are boosting the prices of items they need to get by. These individuals report hearing tariff-related explanations for food price increases 60% more often than those not living paycheck to paycheck. They experience such explanations 54% more for household goods and more than twice as often for health and beauty products.
“Gasoline has gone up already. Groceries are starting to climb again. People are just not gonna be able to afford things like they used to.” –Baby boomer earning less than $50k a year who reported being very/extremely familiar with tariffs
Financially Vulnerable Shoppers, Dependent on Imported Products, Feel the Tariff Burn
Part of the reason these financially struggling consumers may be disproportionately bearing the brunt of price increases is that they tend buy more lower-cost, imported goods, likely because they are particularly price-conscious.
Take food, for instance. Among consumers who live paycheck to paycheck with difficulty paying monthly bills, 22% prefer to mostly buy imported goods. In contrast, just 12% of those not living paycheck to paycheck said the same. For household goods, these shares amount to 23% and 17%, respectively, and for clothing, 28% and 22%.
Millennials and Gen Z consumers are seeing tariffs take a toll on their budget management strategies. These younger generations are the most price-sensitive to American-made products, opting for imported items when domestic products are more expensive. They are more likely than older shoppers to forgo domestically manufactured products due to price concerns. As tariffs make imports less available and costlier, these younger consumers face a disproportionate impact from the global trade war.
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Methodology
“Stock Out. The Impact of Tariffs on Consumer Product Prices and Availability” is based on a survey of 2,262 U.S. consumers conducted from May 21, 2025, to June 6, 2025. The report explains how consumers see tariffs impacting product availability and prices. The sample is census-balanced to reflect the U.S. population by age, gender and region.
