Over-55s Drive UK Card Spending as Online Share Stalls

Two findings in this release cut against assumptions that are baked into a lot of UK marketing plans.

First, the spending recovery is generational. Card spending by the over-55s reached an index of 143.3 on 25 May 2026, against 112.3 for 18 to 34 year-olds. The older cohort has also grown faster over the year (from 122.1 to 143.3), while younger spenders have crept up far more slowly. Brands that default to a youth-skewed targeting strategy are fishing in the slowest-growing pool. For most consumer clients, the data argues for shifting a meaningful share of audience targeting and creative budget towards the 45-plus and 55-plus segments, who hold both the highest spend index and the steepest growth. This is a core part of how we approach audience strategy in our digital marketing services.

Second, the much-repeated story that spending is migrating relentlessly online does not hold in card-transaction terms. Online accounted for 42.4% of card transactions in the week to 25 May 2026, down slightly from 43.0% a year earlier. In other words, roughly 58% of card transactions still happen in person. That is not an argument against investing in ecommerce, but it is a strong argument against starving store-level, local and omnichannel marketing on the assumption that physical retail is in terminal decline. Note this card-transaction share is a different measure from the 28.1% online share of total retail spending in our earlier report on UK retail sales, which weights by spending value across all retailers.

The footfall split reinforces the point. With town and city centres at 108.8 and local centres at 110.6, but retail parks at 95.9, the recovery in physical visits is concentrated in high-street locations. Hospitality and leisure clients can take some comfort too: restaurant card spending sat at 124.4, suggesting discretionary and experience-led spend is holding up.