Visa Business and Economic Insights released new research finding that consumers are increasingly shopping, dining, streaming and managing daily life from home, driving the rise of the "couch economy." The report, The Great Indoors: How the "Couch Economy" Is Redefining Consumer Spending Habits, examined spending trends across six markets: Australia, Brazil, Poland, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States. In three illustrative markets, the share of domestic payment volume occurring online and in-app rose from 48% to 58% in the U.S., 10% to 24% in Poland and 35% to 55% in the UAE. Streaming subscriptions now appear on a larger share of cards than cinema and concert spending across all markets studied, with more than 17% of U.S. cards used for streaming subscriptions compared to roughly 6% associated with cinema and concert spending. Food delivery has become a mainstream service, with the share of UAE cards active on delivery apps rising from approximately 2 percent in 2018 to nearly 30 percent in 2026, and roughly 8 percent of U.S. domestic cards show regular pet-related spending.
Visa Inc. Class AVisa's own research shows rising online/in-app and subscription payment volumes across its network, signaling greater card usage.
