High-Income Americans Go Bargain Hunting and Shake Up Retail’s Royalty

The big trade down is on. Dollar General, long synonymous with serving America’s most budget-conscious consumers, is seeing a marked shift in its customer base. On its first-quarter 2025 earnings call, CEO Todd Vasos disclosed that the retailer is attracting more high-income shoppers than at any time in the past four years — a trend that is reshaping the competitive landscape for mass-market discount chains.

“We saw the highest percent of trade-in customers we’ve had in the last four years,” Vasos told analysts, referring to shoppers from middle- and higher-income brackets seeking value.

“Our data shows that new customers this year are making more trips and spending more with us compared to new customers from last year, while also allocating more of their spend to discretionary categories.”

Vasos attributed this influx to Dollar General’s steadfast focus on value. “We believe these behaviors suggest that we are continuing to attract higher-income customers who are looking to maximize value while still shopping for items they want and need,” he said.

The CEO emphasized that while the core customer remains financially constrained — 25% of shoppers reported lower income than a year ago, and nearly 60% said they expect to sacrifice necessities in the coming year — the retailer’s value proposition is resonating more broadly across income cohorts.

Dollar General’s financial results reflect this shift. The company reported a 5.3% increase in net sales to $10.4 billion and a 2.4% rise in same-store sales for the quarter, prompting an upward revision of its full-year guidance.

Dollar General is not alone in reporting an uptick in higher-income shoppers. Executives across the discount and value retail sector are observing similar patterns:

Walmart: CEO Doug McMillon noted that the retailer continues to gain share among households earning over $100,000, who now account for 75% of Walmart’s share gains in the U.S. during the third quarter. “We’ve been maintaining those price gaps through pandemic periods of time and through inflationary periods of time, and that continues up until this day,” McMillon said during a recent earnings call.

Costco: CFO Gary Millerchip reported during its Q1 earnings call that even affluent members are trading down, with notable growth in value categories like private-label goods and lower-cost proteins. “Our goal is always to be the first to lower prices where we see opportunities,” Millerchip said, underscoring Costco’s commitment to pricing discipline as price sensitivity rises across income brackets.

Kohl’s: CEO Ashley Buchanan described a “pretty challenging” environment for consumers, with value-seeking behavior expanding across all income levels. “If you’re making less than 100 [thousand], it’s also pretty challenging,” Buchanan said, predicting that the quest for value will continue to grow across cohorts in the coming months.

Who’s Winning in Mass-Market Retail?

The mass-market retail category is seeing resilience and, in some cases, outperformance from value-oriented chains. According to PYMNTS research, Walmart leads all non-grocery consumer in-store spending at 27.5%. Target comes in at 9.7%, Dollar General at 5.1% and Dollar Tree at 2.6%.

PYMNTS Intelligence research reveals that high-income shoppers are driving much of the change in retail behavior, both online and in-store:

Omnichannel and Digital Assistance: High-income consumers are more likely to engage in omnichannel shopping, blending digital and physical experiences. According to the 2025 “Global Digital Shopping Index,” half of high-income shoppers made their last purchase using a mobile device, compared to 44% of low-income shoppers. These shoppers are also more likely to use digital tools in-store, with customer satisfaction 65% higher among those who use digital assistance.

Value and Convenience: The “Paycheck-to-Paycheck” series found that 28% of high-income shoppers have traded down on quality in the past year, switching to less expensive versions of products or cheaper merchants. While high-income shoppers transact more online — engaging in digital shopping activities 40% more often than low-income peers — they are also drawn to in-store experiences that offer efficiency, convenience, and the ability to maximize value.

Selective In-Store Shopping: PYMNTS Intelligence reports that while physical stores attract 2.7 times as many shoppers as online channels, high-income consumers tend to be more selective in-store, with smaller average basket sizes but a focus on specific value-driven categories.

Trade-down behavior is not confined to low-income households. PYMNTS Intelligence data shows that 45% of low-income, 41% of middle-income, and 28% of high-income shoppers reported trading down on quality in the past year. Economic pressures, inflation, and a desire to stretch dollars are pushing a wider range of consumers to seek value, even as they maintain spending in discretionary categories.

Dollar General’s surge in high-income shoppers is emblematic of a broader shift in American retail, where value is being prioritized across income brackets. As economic uncertainty persists, discount and value retailers are capitalizing on this trend, leveraging digital innovation and a focus on price to attract and retain a more diverse customer base. PYMNTS Intelligence data underscores that the new face of value retail is omnichannel, digitally savvy, and spans the full spectrum of American households.