The new edition of the Consumer Pulse study, conducted annually by strategic consultancy Bain & Company, indicates that 26% of Brazilians believe that their financial situation has deteriorated compared to the previous year. The perception of rising prices has also intensified, with 90% of respondents noticing an increase in the value of goods and services in 2025, up from 81% who reported this perception in 2024. The items identified as the main drivers of inflation were food, followed by energy bills, personal care, clothing and healthcare.
With the rising cost of living, 83% of Brazilians said they have reduced or intend to reduce their personal expenses, especially on clothing and food delivery. Only 14% of Brazilians are able to save without giving up on buying what they want, and 11% save by buying only the essentials. Another change aimed at greater savings was the willingness to try new, cheaper brands, a behavior adopted by 42% of consumers.
The study also identified differences in consumer behavior among different income brackets. While those with higher incomes seek to cut spending on restaurants and delivery services, consumers with fewer resources reduce their purchases of food and clothing and seek to save on their energy bills. Among the 45% of respondents who joined loyalty programs, high-income consumers relate participation to rewards and converting expenses into benefits, while the others are mainly motivated by the possibility of saving money in their daily lives.
The search for lower prices has also driven changes in where Brazilians shop. Online commerce and wholesale have gained more space, with 39% of respondents increasing the frequency of online purchases and 32% buying more from wholesalers. In e-commerce, the factors most mentioned as attractive to consumers are more affordable prices (mentioned by 61%), free delivery (55%) and discounts (54%).
Different profiles, different habits
The research also identified different behaviors among consumers, according to income and generation:
- 47% of Gen Z purchased products from new brands in the last three months, compared to 36% of boomers;
- Low-income consumers trust financial institutions less, registering a rate 1.7 times lower than that of high-income consumers.
- Despite claiming to reduce spending, 16% of low-income consumers continue to spend on entertainment, a behavior maintained by 26% of high-income consumers;
- 80% of high-income people participate in loyalty programs, compared to 25% of low-income people.
“The data collected by the survey show that, despite the pessimism regarding the present, there is resilience in Brazilians’ optimism for the future. Companies that pay attention to the trends presented in the survey and the generational differences that are emerging in the consumer landscape have the chance to better adapt to the market in the coming years,” says Ricardo De Carli, partner and leader of Bain’s Consumer Goods practice in South America.
The Consumer Pulse survey was conducted by Bain & Company in January 2025 with approximately 7,500 respondents in Latin America, including 2,000 Brazilians, with divisions by age group and income segmented according to demographic data from the region.
