Retail sales, Great Britain: March 2026

The quantity of goods bought (volume) in retail sales is estimated to have risen by 1.6% in Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2026, compared with Quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2025. Non-food stores’ sales volumes grew, with art selling well in January and February, alongside a strong quarter for cosmetic and toiletries stores, with new collections being launched. Beyond this, non-store retailers also had a strong Quarter 1.

Retail sales volumes are estimated to have risen by 0.7% in March 2026, following a fall of 0.6% in February 2026 (revised down from a 0.4% fall in our previous bulletin) and a rise of 1.8% in January 2026 (revised down from a 2.0% rise in our previous bulletin). Fuel sales rose sharply on the month, with retailers reporting that motorists stocked up on fuel as prices rose.

Total retail sales, excluding automotive fuel, rose by 0.2% on the month. Clothing stores' sales volumes rose, which retailers attributed to the improved weather. Computer and telecoms stores, and non-store retailers, saw an increase in sales volumes as retailers reported new product launches.

Sales volumes rose by 1.6% in Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2026, compared with Quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2025. Sales volumes were 2.7% higher than in Quarter 1 2025.

Sales volumes rose by 0.7% over the month during March 2026, following a fall of 0.6% in February 2026. When excluding automotive fuel from the total, volumes rose by 0.2% over the month to March 2026.

Sales volumes (including automotive fuel) rose by 1.7% over the year to March 2026. Volumes were down by 0.1% compared with their pre-coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic level in February 2020.

These data are available in our Retail Sales Index dataset.

Good Friday (3 April 2026) was included in the reporting period which covered 1 March 2026 to 4 April 2026. In 2025, Good Friday was included in the April release. This shift is accounted for in our seasonal adjustment.

Sales volumes rose by 1.6% in Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2026, compared with Quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2025. Other non-food stores rose by 4.7%, its largest three-monthly rise since March 2024. Within this, commercial art galleries did well earlier in the quarter, while cosmetics and toiletries stores rose across all three months of Quarter 1 as retailers reported launching new collections. Non-store retailers (which are predominantly online) also rose, with boosts from retailers selling sports supplements in January. There were also suggestions that the spring sales went well, with some non-store retailers mentioning new product launches.

Sales volumes rose by 0.7% over the month to March 2026. This was largely because of a rise in fuel sales, with many retailers reporting motorists stocking up on fuel because of the war in the Middle East.

All retail, excluding automotive fuel, rose by 0.2% over the month. Non-food stores (the total of department, clothing, household, and other non-food stores) rose by 0.7% as sales of clothing improved, with retailers reporting better weather. Within other non-food stores, both auction houses and computer and telecoms retailers also performed well, with reports of new product launches. This was offset by a fall-back in commercial art galleries following a strong January and February 2026. Non-store retailers also rose on the month amid the spring sales and new products being released, with volumes at their highest level since February 2022.

The amount spent online, known as "online spending values", rose by 2.5% when comparing Quarter 1 (Jan to Mar) 2026 with Quarter 4 (Oct to Dec) 2025. It rose by 11.7% when comparing the same period with Quarter 1 2025.

Within the monthly series, online sales values rose by 2.4% over the month to March 2026. They rose by 10.5% when comparing March 2026 with March 2025.

The total spend (the sum of in-store and online sales) rose by 1.8% over the month. As a result, the proportion of sales made online rose from 28.2% in February 2026 to 28.7% in March 2026.

For March 2026, the Retail Sales Index (RSI) survey response rates were 59.4% based on returned forms, which is 1.6 percentage points below the average of the past 12 months. This accounted for 89.1% of total turnover coverage of the sample population, 0.6 percentage points above the average of the past 12 months. Historical response information is available in our Retail sales quality tables dataset.

Information on how we calculated the data, including strengths and limitations, and a glossary of relevant terms, is available in our Retail Sales Index quality and methodology information (QMI) report.

Seasonal adjustment

Seasonally adjusted estimates are derived by estimating and removing calendar effects (for example, Easter moving between March and April) and seasonal effects (for example, increased spending in December because of Christmas) from the non-seasonally adjusted estimates.

We use the X-13ARIMA-SEATS approach to seasonal adjustment. Seasonal adjustment parameters are monitored closely and are regularly reviewed. More information is available on our Seasonal adjustment methodology.

Seasonal adjustment is applied at the industry level, and the seasonally adjusted series are aggregated to create estimates by industry sector and total retail. As part of our quality assurance approach, residual seasonality checks are completed regularly by our time series analysis team on both the seasonally adjusted series and the indirectly derived aggregate time series. Based on current data, we find no residual seasonality in the main aggregate for monthly retail sales estimates.

Accredited official statistics

These accredited official statistics were independently reviewed by the Office for Statistics Regulation in March 2015. They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality, and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics and should be labelled "accredited official statistics".