August 2022 Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index

Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index growth was flat YoY in August, as the in-store recovery slowed significantly and online decelerated after several highly publicized summer events such as Amazon Prime Day in July. Gas Stations spending followed Online Marketplaces as the second fastest decelerating subcategory, as falling fuel prices brought down average checkout prices at the pump. Restaurants all decelerated notably, with QSR falling YoY for the first time in several months, and Delivery Aggregators (incl. DoorDash) posting a rare YoY decline. Travel spending rebounded, reversing months of decelerations, led by double digit YoY growth for Air Travel, and a smaller recovery for Online Travel Agency. Apparel saw slight sequential accelerations as the school year began, but largely remained below 2021 levels.

(Note: Historical numbers could vary slightly due to methodology updates.)

*About the Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index:

The Earnest Analytics (FKA Earnest Research) Spend Index (ERSI) is an alternative data-driven measure of consumer spending that tracks spend across 2,500+ large national brands in major consumer discretionary and staples subcategories. The near real-time data is derived from the credit and debit spend of millions of de-identified U.S. consumers. Advantages of using ERSI include better representation of e-commerce spend, disaggregation by geography, and online versus in-store breakouts.