Americans’ Top Retailers Are Getting Billions In Tariff Refunds—Including Walmart, Target—But Many Consumers Still Aren’t

Aug 22, 2026 12:29 AM - 1 hour ago 4

Topline

U.S. retailers reported receiving much than $5 cardinal successful national tariff refunds successful net reports released this week alone, arsenic the Trump management undoes its signature tariff argumentation and pays backmost the money it took in—but contempt studies showing that consumers bore the brunt of the first tariff costs, companies are still mostly keeping the windfalls for themselves.

Shoppers caput retired of a Walmart shop Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, successful Englewood, Colo.

Key Facts

The Trump management is successful the process of refunding billions successful tariff gross aft the Supreme Court struck its astir sweeping tariff argumentation down, reporting successful an August court filing that it has truthful acold refunded $100 cardinal of the astir $166 cardinal it’s group to springiness backmost successful total.

That’s resulted successful immoderate of the country’s biggest companies and importers receiving millions successful tariff refunds successful caller months, pinch companies including Apple, Nike, GM and much reporting nine-figure refunds past 4th that person boosted their bottommost lines.

In net this week, retailers that reported elephantine tariff refund checks included Target ($994 million), Home Depot ($730 million), TJ Maxx proprietor TJX ($331 million), Lowe’s ($80 million) and Ross ($253 million), pinch Walmart reporting the biggest refund astatine $2.9 billion.

Those refunds, totaling $5.3 billion, travel aft Amazon reported $600 cardinal successful tariff refunds successful July, on pinch immoderate smaller retailers for illustration Ace Hardware, which sewage $11.8 cardinal backmost this quarter.

In net calls pinch investors, unit executives person mostly suggested they intend to put their tariff refund gross backmost into their companies, alternatively than passing it connected to shoppers who paid higher prices erstwhile tariffs went up, though immoderate person committed to lowering prices.

Though consumers person revenge a number of class-action lawsuits against companies receiving tariff refunds, nary person vanished playing retired successful tribunal yet, and Americans different person small recourse to retrieve tariff costs if companies don’t walk connected refunds voluntarily.

What to Watch for

A number of awesome retailers still person to merchandise their net for the past quarter, including Macy’s, Dollar General, Dollar Tree, Kohl’s and Dick’s Sporting Goods. Discount retailers for illustration Dollar General, Dollar Tree and Five Below have so far excluded tariff refunds from their net successful past quarters arsenic the refund process remains ongoing, making it difficult to show really overmuch they’ve taken in. Costco, which is facing a class-action suit from consumers complete tariff refunds, said successful its astir caller May earnings call that it was only starting to taxable requests for tariff refunds, truthful it remains to beryllium seen really overmuch the large container elephantine receives.

Which Retailers Are Using Tariff Refunds On Lower Prices?

Walmart was 1 of the fewer retailers this week to perpetrate to utilizing its monolithic refund cheque to little prices for consumers, pinch CEO John W. Furner saying connected an net call, “Our intent was to deploy overmuch of that backmost into price, and that's what we're doing.” Amazon has besides antecedently said it would walk a information of its tariff refunds straight backmost to consumers, successful cases wherever customers paid import fees, and would different usage the money to trim prices. Best Buy CEO Corie Barry said successful a May earnings call that the institution isn’t arsenic impacted by tariff refunds, arsenic it only straight imports astir 2% to 3% of its products, but Best Buy’s "goal is that immoderate betterment of duties we person will beryllium utilized to present worth backmost to our customers.” While it’s still unclear really overmuch tariff refund money Costco will person successful total, activity has antecedently suggested it will beryllium astatine slightest partially passed connected to consumers, pinch CEO Ron Vachris saying the institution would return tariff costs “in immoderate form.”

How Are Tariffs Impacting Consumers?

The New York Federal Reserve reported successful February that astir 90% of the tariffs’ “economic burden” has been felt by U.S. firms and consumers, including tariffs getting passed connected to consumers successful the shape of accrued prices. The slope antecedently found successful 2025 that astir three-quarters of businesses surveyed passed tariff costs onto consumers successful immoderate form, and the Yale Budget Lab estimates the Trump administration’s tariff policy—which includes different tariffs beyond the ones now being refunded—is raising each household’s yearly costs by astir $1,100 per twelvemonth arsenic of August. A moving paper published successful the National Bureau of Economic Research successful July likewise estimated 26% of the government’s tariff increases were passed done via higher prices. Those value increases are expected to continue, pinch the New York Federal Reserve reporting astir half of the companies it surveyed successful May were still readying further tariff-related value bumps.

What Are Retailers Spending Their Tariff Refunds On?

Other retailers person suggested they intend to usage their tariff refund money to put backmost into their companies and operations. Home Depot and Lowe’s executives said this week their refund money will beryllium utilized to offset different rising costs, specified arsenic connected fuel, moreover arsenic Lowe’s CEO Marvin Ellison noted competitors were utilizing their refunds to little prices and summation promotions. Target CFO Jim Lee suggested successful an net telephone the institution was managing tariffs pinch a “continual attraction connected protecting worth for our guests” and plans to “continue lowering prices” overall, but did not remark connected whether its tariff refund money—which accounted for much than a 4th of the company’s net per share—would beryllium utilized for that. TJX, which owns different stores for illustration HomeGoods, Marshalls and Homesense on pinch TJ Maxx, said it would usage $112 cardinal of its tariff refund money connected worker compensation and bonuses, but didn’t remark connected wherever the different two-thirds of its refund cheque would beryllium directed.

Tariff Refunds Spark Political Debate

Democratic lawmakers person harshly criticized corporations receiving millions successful tariff refunds without passing those benefits connected to consumers. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., sent letters successful August to leaders of Walmart, Apple, Nike, Target and different awesome corporations, which urged them to walk connected refunds to consumers. “While American families and mini businesses struggle to support up pinch rising prices, your institution has raked successful sky-high profits,” Warren wrote, asking companies to taxable accusation connected their tariff refunds, immoderate tariff-related value increases they made and what they intended to do successful position of passing refunds connected to consumers. The Trump administration, meanwhile, has been captious of the tariff refunds because they’re being forced to undo a signature economical policy, but officials haven’t shared Democrats’ outrage complete wherever those refunds are going. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters Thursday he believed Democrats were responsible for the “corporate welfare” that companies are now receiving, because Democratic attorneys wide were the ones who sued against the Trump administration’s tariff policy. “The American group had that money,” Bessent said, referring to erstwhile the tariff gross was successful the government’s coffers. “If I perceive different Democratic legislator opportunity … ‘the American group should get the money’ — the American group had the money, successful the U.S. Treasury, and we were forced to springiness it back.”

Key Background

President Donald Trump has made tariffs 1 of his signature economical policies, imposing sweeping tariffs contempt concerns from economists that doing truthful would harm consumers and the broader economy. The centerpiece of Trump’s tariff schedule was his “Liberation Day” tariffs, which were announced successful April 2025 and took effect months later, imposing tariffs connected equipment from astir each countries. The Supreme Court yet struck those tariffs down successful February, ruling he did not person authority to enforce them nether the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, arsenic he had claimed. Trump has railed against the precocious court’s rulings and imposed different tariffs to dress up for those the tribunal struck down, contempt polling showing his tariff argumentation is broadly unpopular. The president first implemented impermanent 10% tariffs crossed the committee instantly aft the Supreme Court’s decision, followed by new fees of betwixt 10% and 12.5% connected equipment from 60 countries erstwhile the first replacement tariffs expired.