US Trade Commission Seeks Personalized Pricing Data From 9 Companies, Including Walmart and Uber
Key Facts
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission requested information from 9 companies, including Walmart and Uber, about the use of personal data to set individualized prices, wages and job offers, according to a Reuters report published on October 28, 2026. The request covers data such as location, browsing history and income, and how it is used to personalize what consumers and workers are offered. The other companies are Target, Lyft, DoorDash, Instacart, Delta, United and JetBlue. Reuters said the commission will use the information to prepare a study to help regulators and lawmakers understand pricing practices and set personalized wages. The request comes as personalized pricing is difficult to detect from the outside because prices may vary from one person to another.
The inquiry extends beyond prices for goods and services to include wages and job offers, placing personalized pricing practices within a broader debate about the use of individuals' data in corporate decisions. Reuters reported that these practices are difficult to detect because the prices shown vary among people, an issue the study seeks to address by gathering information from the companies involved. According to the report, the information will be used in a subsequent study to inform regulators' and lawmakers' understanding of these practices. The data request does not in itself mean the commission has found that any of the companies violated the law. The findings of the commission's previous study also concerned documents from pricing intermediaries and did not establish that the 9 companies used data in this way.
In January 2025, the commission said preliminary findings from its study showed that precise location and browser history can often be used to target consumers with different prices for the same good or service. The study examined documents from pricing intermediaries, and the commission said those intermediaries had worked with at least 250 clients selling goods or services. That figure describes the client base of the intermediaries examined by the commission, not the number of companies covered by the current request. The commission staff report described the examples it included as hypothetical, and the commission said it would publish information from the study only after it was aggregated or anonymized to protect trade secrets. These findings provide regulatory context for the new request, but on their own they do not establish personalized pricing by any particular company.
In August 2026, the commission invited comments on a draft enforcement policy statement concerning personalized pricing, and commissioners voted 2-0 on August 19 to publish it. The draft says companies should clearly disclose that a price is personalized, the basis for the personalization and the types of data used. It does not propose banning personalized pricing in all cases, saying Congress has not authorized the commission to impose a blanket ban. But it states that the commission intends to enforce laws against deceptive or unfair practices that violate Section 5 or other laws it enforces. In September, the commission extended the comment period by 7 days and set September 25, 2026, as the new deadline for submitting comments.
On October 5, 2026, Walmart denied using or intending to use customer data to set an individualized price and said it does not use dynamic pricing. The company wrote in its statement: "We price products, not people," and said it would not use personal information, income, shopping history, a customer's urgency or willingness to pay to set an individualized price. The commission's request places that denial in the context of gathering information about companies' practices, without itself determining their compliance. EL7 data showed Walmart shares closed at $118.67 on October 28, while Uber shares closed at $65.78 on October 27. Market data shown with the Reuters report also showed Walmart down 0.59% and Uber down 0.98% when the report was published on October 28; this is a snapshot of trading at the time, not closing prices or evidence that the commission's request caused the moves.
The federal action coincides with a broader legislative debate in the states, as the Associated Press reported that lawmakers in at least 30 states considered pricing-related bills during 2026, including measures concerning algorithmic and personalized pricing. The National Retail Federation, meanwhile, criticized laws banning personalized pricing and defended data-driven discounts as a way to encourage loyalty, according to Reuters. Reuters also said hundreds of commenters urged the commission to ban the practice entirely after it opened the draft to public comment. But the draft itself says the commission lacks authority to impose a blanket ban and sets out its proposed approach through disclosures and enforcement of existing laws against deceptive or unfair practices. The last documented deadline for comments on the draft was September 25, 2026, after the period was extended by a week.