Assortment Satisfaction: Where Innovation and Choice Take Centre Stage

Our 2026 US Shopper Satisfaction Report is out, and we’re taking a closer look at what the data tells us pillar by pillar. Having covered Price and Product, we’re moving on to Assortment.

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Key Takeaways

Assortment is about range and innovation, not product attributes — it captures how well retailers meet shopper needs through breadth of choice and how fresh the range feels, which is a distinctly different question from product quality.
Innovation is the biggest mover in 2026 — the retailers climbing fastest, from Costco online to ShopRite in grocery, are doing it through stronger innovation scores, not just stocking more.
Leading retailers aren’t standing still — the top performers are actively building on their positions, signalling that assortment leadership requires constant attention, not just a strong starting point.

What the Assortment Pillar actually measures

Our Assortment Pillar often gets confused with our Product Pillar, and it’s easy to see why. Think back to the classic four Ps of marketing: price, product, placement and promotion. We’ve deliberately split product into two separate pillars because the distinction matters more than it might first appear.

The Product Pillar is about attributes, the specific qualities of what’s on the shelf. The Assortment Pillar is about the bigger picture: innovation, national brand availability, and overall choice within a category. It captures how well retailers meet shopper needs through the breadth of what they stock and how fresh that range feels.

This is one of the first things we talk about with retailers when the conversation turns to a category. Understanding where there’s room to lead on innovation, and where shoppers already have the right choice, shapes many of the assortment discussions on the category.

Online: Amazon holds firm, Costco makes the biggest leap

Amazon keeps its position at the top of the Online Retailer Group. The real story here is Costco, which posted the largest improvement of any online retailer, driven by stronger innovation rankings. Target, Walmart and CVS all moved up in the Online Retailer Group too, on the back of gains in choice, while Sam’s Club climbed thanks to a better innovation score.

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Grocery Brick & Mortar: ShopRite takes the top spot

ShopRite moved into first place within Grocery Brick & Mortar, powered by strong performance across a wide breadth of assortment and national brands. Meijer, H-E-B and Ahold Delhaize all moved up as well, each improving on innovation and choice. Publix dropped two places on the shift.

Non-Grocery Brick & Mortar: Costco and Walgreens lead the gains

Costco and Walgreens delivered the strongest improvement in this group, with gains across both choice and brands pointing to a more competitive assortment overall. Target holds the top spot, while Walmart and Dollar General each slipped a place.

The bigger picture

Across all three groups, the pattern is consistent: positive movement in the Assortment pillar is being driven mainly by gains in choice and innovation, with the retailers already leading continuing to build on strong positions rather than standing still.

For retailers, that’s the real signal here. Assortment isn’t just about stocking more, it’s about knowing where a category has genuine innovation potential and where shoppers simply need broader choice. Get that balance right, and it shows up fast in how satisfied shoppers feel.

Read the Full 2026 US Shopper Satisfaction Report