For many American shoppers, the cost of convenience afforded by e-commerce platforms could be getting just a little too costly. According to a new survey, online retail sales saw their biggest overall decline in more than a decade, largely driven by the Trump administration’s tariff policies.

The survey, conducted by consulting firm AlixPartners, took the temperature of 1,100 adult U.S. consumers across generations and income brackets, as well as retail and transportation executives between late May and early June.

The weight of tariffs

What they found is that more than one-third of respondents (37%) said President Donald Trump’s tariffs are influencing their online shopping habits. More specifically, 34% said they had delayed a purchase due to uncertainty over prices, while 28% said they purchased something sooner to avoid extra import costs.

Perhaps true to Trump’s goal, however, 66% also said they will seek domestic options if overseas prices increase, and 20% are looking to “buy American.”

“Elevated consumer awareness of tariffs is clearly flowing through into buying decisions,” Chris Considine, a partner in AlixPartners’ retail practice, said. “You can see how people are timing their purchases and the conscious effort among a sizeable minority to ‘Buy American.’”

Largest overall decline in more than a decade

In the short term, though, retailers across industries are feeling the squeeze. Between 2024 and 2025, e-commerce saw its largest year-over-year slump since AlixPartners started conducting its survey in 2012.

Office and home office supplies were the hardest hit, experiencing a 14% decline in sales. Next in line is sporting goods at 12%, followed by cosmetics, furniture, home furnishings and large electronics, which all declined by 10% each.

The only industries to come out unscathed were groceries, which saw no year-over-year change, and auto parts, which only dipped 2%.

The true cost of fast, free shipping

For retailers, the financial pain of fewer sales is exacerbated by a rising demand for both fast, free shipping and historically lax return policies.

According to AlixPartners, 77% of survey respondents said that free shipping “greatly impacts” their purchasing decisions. But at the same time, nearly 75% of shipping executives said per-package delivery costs have gone up over the past year.

As a result, more retailers are attempting to curb the number of free deliveries they’re required to send out through measures such as higher minimum purchase orders, memberships and stricter return policies.

“Shippers, carriers, consumers –– they’re all feeling the effects of geopolitical unrest, spiking oil prices, economic uncertainty and trade turmoil,” AlixPartners wrote in its report. “Consumer confidence is down –– and so are consumer self-reported order volumes, across the board.”