Repeat-Customer Rate: 50.2% Average, 66.2% Leader

Turn 12 months of sales into one rate

Open your sales list for the last 12 months. The 2026 J.D. Power U.S. Automotive Brand Loyalty Study reported an average brand-loyalty rate of 50.2% across all nameplates and segments, up from 49% the prior year. Ford held the top truck-brand loyalty position for a fifth straight year, with a 66.2% loyalty rate that was the highest in the study. You can compare your rate to that average and that leader.

Repeat-customer rate = customers with two or more purchases in 12 months ÷ total customers in 12 months.

A repeat customer is anyone who makes another purchase during the window. The result is a percentage. That percentage is your repeat-customer rate. The ratio is simple, and it tells you where you stand against a benchmark.

Do not confuse this with revenue. The rate measures behavior, not profit. A small business can have a high repeat rate and a low average order size. A large business can have a low repeat rate and a high average order size.

The benchmark counts a narrow repeat purchase

The study counted an owner as loyal when they traded in an existing vehicle and bought a new model from that brand at a franchised dealership.

The definition is a repeat purchase, but a narrow kind. If your business sells services, subscriptions, or goods that do not involve trade-ins, use the benchmark as a direction, not a rule.

The average is the center, and the leader is the top tier. The gap between the average and the leader is where retention work pays. A business near the average has enough returning customers to stay open. A business near the leader has stronger repeat behavior, and each new customer is more likely to become a repeat customer. The difference comes from consistent service, clear follow-up, and a reason to return.

Five steps give you a defensible rate

• Choose a 12-month window. The benchmark used a 12-month window. You are done when you have a start date and an end date that cover the same period you will use for the rate.
• Define a customer. A finished definition names a person or an account, not an order. The common mistake is to count orders instead of customers. A single buyer with several purchases is still a customer.
• Count total customers. The finished list shows every customer who bought in the window.
• Count repeat customers. The finished list shows customers who bought again in the window.
• Divide repeat customers by total customers. The finished result is a percentage you can compare to the average and the leader.

Check the list before you divide. A duplicate customer in the total list makes the total too high. A missing repeat customer in the repeat list makes the repeat count too low. The calculation is only as good as the list behind it. A clean list makes the rate useful.

Place the number against the benchmark. Below the average means you are losing customers who should be returning. Near the leader means you have a retention advantage. In between, you have room to improve. Keep the window fixed while you compare results. The number is a starting point for the next 12 months of work.

Use the rate to pick one retention move

Do not try to fix every problem at once. Pick the part of the customer journey where you lose the most people: follow-up after the first purchase, a repeat order or service after a return, or value when returns only happen with a discount.

Make a change you can measure. Send a clearer next-step message after a purchase. Ask for feedback after delivery. Offer a reason to return that fits the product. Then run the same 12-month calculation again. The next number should show whether the change helped.