Political consumption refers to consumers making purchasing decisions based on political, ethical, or social values. They use buying choices to influence society, businesses, and even politics.

As a result of increased social and environmental awareness, but also due to global crises such as armed conflicts or trade disputes, researchers and political observers expect an increase in political consumption patterns, particularly in affluent Western societies.

On the other hand, retailers and market researchers report that political consumption is barely visible in sales figures. For example, a broad boycott of U.S. products has hardly taken place in Germany to date, despite political tensions and public calls for such a boycott.

This raises numerous questions for companies and politicians: How significant are political criteria in purchasing decisions? How large is the proportion of "political" consumers, and what criteria do they use when choosing products? Should companies position themselves politically?

Using exclusive data from a representative study in Germany, this study aims to answer these questions. The results are intended to provide orientation in a world that increasingly seems to be wavering between market and morality. 

Nearly 60% of surveyed Germans say consumption is more political now than five years ago. This indicates that many people feel that their consumption decisions have a political context. This perception is shared across all groups. In every social group analyzed, a majority agrees with the finding. The feeling is particularly strong among people with high incomes and those with fundamental ideological convictions.

"Classic" products, such as those that have been widely available for a long time, are only perceived as political by very few people in Germany. These products include cars with combustion engines, sausages made from meat, and cow's milk. Newer products or those that are still gaining mainstream acceptance–such as e-cars, vegan sausage, or plant-based milk–are more frequently associated with a political characteristic.

The analyzed groups of people are largely in agreement as to which products are purchased in particular to send political messages, and no major differences can be identified. In all groups, e-cars, vegan sausage, and plant-based milk are classified on average as political products whereas this is not the case for cars with combustion engines, sausage made from meat, and cow's milk.

Consumption is more political today than before, according to Germans. Politically conservative people in particular express this view. The impression that political consumption is gaining in importance is apparently fueled by the political connotations of certain products. These include electric cars and vegan food, but many people also seem to view the purchase of organic food or secondhand fashion as politically motivated. In contrast, the purchase of products that have been on offer for a long time–such as sausages made from meat, cow's milk, or cars with combustion engines–is not interpreted as a political activity. It seems that habit and cultural identity determine what is considered political and what is not.

The desire for consumption to be less political is above average among older people and politically conservative people. However, it is also shared by the majority of people who describe themselves as values-oriented shoppers. Politically progressive and younger people tend to take a different view. Most of them seem to believe that consumption is inherently political or should be more political.

A clear majority feel that consumption is more political today than before. The findings are less clear when it comes to the question of whether people are categorized into political camps based on their purchasing behavior. A relative majority (40%) agree with this statement, with around 30% disagreeing and 30% undecided. The assessment is shared with above-average frequency by people with high incomes and those who see themselves as (rather) conservative politically. 

Six out of 10 people in Germany think that consumption is more political today than in the recent past. Just as many are of the opinion that this is not a good development. For the majority of people in Germany, the perceived increasing politicization of everyday life is therefore a problem. Interestingly, one in two people also believe that buyers of electric cars and vegan sausages want to make a political statement with their purchase. Certain products therefore seem to be perceived as political symbols, at least at present–regardless of the actual motives of the buyers. This can create social pressure or stigmatization–with consequences for customers and companies.

Political purchasing criteria, such as the manufacturer's origin, greenhouse gas emissions during production and operation, and fair trade and organic certifications, play a minor role in purchasing decisions for certain products. This is certainly true for product categories such as cars, food, and clothing, especially compared to opportunistic criteria like price and quality. When comparing political criteria, country of origin is considered more important than greenhouse gas emissions or fair trade/organic.

For values-oriented shoppers, criteria such as country of origin and greenhouse gas emissions are consistently more important than for other groups of people. This is particularly the case when buying food, where 55% of values-oriented respondents consider CO₂ emissions to be somewhat or very important (overall: 36%). CO₂ emissions are also consistently more important to political progressives than the average of those surveyed. In contrast, people from this group do not appear to place an above-average value on origin.

Around one in two Germans (55%) state that they have recently taken part in boycotts. Younger people (67%) and political progressives (69%) are particularly active in this regard. High-income and values-oriented shoppers are also more activist than average. The findings are very similar, albeit at a slightly lower level, when it comes to buycotting. 46% of Germans state that they have recently deliberately bought products from certain manufacturers for values-related reasons.

Boycotts are slightly more widespread in Germany than buycotts, though both seem to be commonplace. The most frequently cited reason for or against the conscious purchase of a brand/manufacturer is the treatment of animals or the environment (27% and 26%, respectively). While scandals and doing business with or in certain countries are definitely reasons for boycotting (20% and 18%, respectively), supporting shared political positions (13%) or other values (14%) play a lesser role in conscious purchasing.

In addition to the boycott, there is another way how consumers react to political consumption: They refrain from buying certain products because they don't want to be pigeonholed politically. As many as 21% of Germans state that they have refrained from making a purchase for this reason. Particularly noticeable here are 18- to 39-year-olds (28%) and people for whom values are (rather) important when shopping (32%). Conservatives are also more likely than average to refrain from making a purchase for this reason (25%).

Four out of 10 people in Germany state that greenhouse gas emissions play an important role in their purchasing decisions. Special product characteristics, such as organic and fair trade as well as origin, are even more important. This means that although many respondents already have political criteria on their radar, price and quality-related criteria are described as (very) important much more frequently in comparison. Political consumption is therefore not a widespread and generally guiding phenomenon. However, political motives can have a strong effect in certain areas. This can be seen in behaviors such as boycotts and buycotting, which around one in two Germans claim to have participated in recently.

Consumers who care about ecological or political factors mainly trust brands and product labels. For one in three Germans, the brand offers a strong point of orientation. Product labels or seals also play a major role in this context, with 33% of respondents paying attention to them. Smartphone apps or online tools are still used rather sparingly when checking ecological or political criteria, with only 10% of respondents currently using them.

Brands play an important role for people who pay attention to ecological or political criteria when buying products. They are particularly important for people with a high income, for particularly value-oriented shoppers and for political progressives. However, the latter pay even more attention to product labels than all other groups of people surveyed. Online tools are more widespread than average among younger respondents, although they still play a rather minor role overall.

Consumers who pay attention to political/ecological criteria when shopping rely in particular on trustworthy brands and product labels. For around one in three consumers in Germany, the choice of product–if social or origin-related criteria play a role–is made via the brand or a label. This has several implications for manufacturers who want to appeal to an ecologically oriented audience. For example, brand management is worthwhile, and independent labels are also an important element of trust. Manufacturers targeting a broader audience, on the other hand, need to be careful with their political positioning, as the majority of Germans would like to see less politicized consumption.

People for whom values are less important when shopping and those who place themselves politically in the center or conservative spectrum are particularly critical of companies taking an active political stance. Conversely, values-oriented shoppers and people in the politically progressive spectrum are somewhat more open to this. But even among them, there is no majority that demands political commitment from companies.

Younger, values-oriented shoppers and political progressives in particular are in favor of the amount of VAT on products being based on their social or ecological quality. In these groups, the proposal is supported by a small majority. Meanwhile, the proposal enjoys much less support in the political center and among people for whom values are not important when buying products.

Consumers in Germany demand political restraint from companies. Only 35% think it is positive when companies actively comment on political or social issues. This attitude is presumably a reaction by consumers to a perceived politicization of shopping in recent years. However, for brands aimed at a target group that attaches more importance to social and ecological criteria–such as values-oriented and politically progressive consumers–this also represents an opportunity. After all, this group is strongly oriented toward credible brands, whereby public positioning is certainly an important indicator.

The study and questionnaire were designed by the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions (NIM). The data was collected via the NIQ eBUS. A total of 2,009 people aged between 18 and 74 were surveyed, representing the German-speaking resident population in this age group. The survey was conducted between August 28 and September 8, 2025.