Havas CX 2025 X INDEX Report Reveals Growing Gap Between Brand Promises and Customer Reality

NEW YORK, Jan. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ – Havas CX has released its seventh annual X INDEX Report, a proprietary global barometer of customer experience, revealing a warning for modern brands: the gap between what companies promise in advertising and what they deliver in experience is widening.

One surprising finding is that in an era of endless news coverage about the impact of tariffs or inflation, consumers are actually less forgiving of poor experiences than of higher costs. While 55% of consumers said they have stopped buying from a brand due to price increases, 59% report abandoning a brand after a single bad experience.

“In today’s environment, customer expectations are higher than ever before. For brands, loyalty can only be earned by delivering unwavering consistency, authentic personal connection, and experiences that create lasting emotional memories,” said David Shulman, Global CEO of Havas CX.

The 2025 report surveyed more than 59,000 consumers across eight global markets, evaluating the performance of 580 brands.

 The X INDEX identifies three core actions brands must prioritize.

1. Deliver Consistent Quality Across Channels: Consumers expect seamless quality experiences. Delivering a consistent quality experience, whether online or in-store, emerged as the top CX driver, accounting for 25% of the X Index weight in the UK, 22% in the US, and 21% in Germany.
2. Get Personal: Shoppers want experiences tailored to them. Brands centered on customer needs, ranked among the top 10 most impactful CX criteria across all eight markets.
3. Create Emotional Connections: CX is emotional as well as functional. Emotional factors make up 34% of the overall CX performance, edging out functional factors at 33%.

The X INDEX offers a global view of customer expectations and experiences, and it recognizes performers in each market. This year’s rankings reveal which brands are setting the standard for consistency, personalization, and connections, ultimately identifying the top five brands in each market, offering a closer look at who is winning on customer experience.

“The data speaks volumes: brands can no longer afford to let promises outpace reality. It’s time to close the gap—because in a world where every experience counts, delivering on your word isn’t just good business. It’s the foundation of lasting loyalty,” said Sebastien Houdusse, Chief Strategy Officer Havas CX.

The X INDEX highlights Havas CX’s commitment to helping brands move from insight to action in customer experience, equipping them with the tools to close the gap between promises and experiences. 

For more information on the 2025 X INDEX, visit our website.

Methodology 

The X INDEX 2025 is based on a survey of 59,000 consumers across eight markets (France, Germany, India, Mexico, Portugal, Spain, the UK, and the US), evaluating 580 brands purchased within the past six months. Each brand was scored on 19 functional, emotional, personal, and collective criteria, with results analyzed using hierarchical linear regression and feature selection models to pinpoint the most impactful CX drivers. 

About Havas CX

Havas CX is a global network dedicated to delivering meaningful experiences across the entire customer journey. It brings together more than 2,300 people across 19 countries, combining the power of rich insights, user-centric technology, and experience-led design to transform businesses. Havas CX believes that winning brands must stand for something meaningful, deliver brand communications that set customer expectations, and then deliver on those promises through outstanding experiences. We are pioneering how companies unite Brand and Experiences to ensure there are no broken promises. For more information, visit havascx.com and follow @havascx on social media. 

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SOURCE Havas CX