Brand Trust Research
Brand Trust Research
BrandSpark International has measured brand trust continuously for 12 years across Canada, the USA and the UK, through the BrandSpark Most Trusted Awards study. In 2026 that study covered 888 categories. Brand trust is our specialty, and the lens we bring to every research engagement.
Up to 30%
Price premium
Trusted brands command higher prices and greater resilience to competitive pressure.
68%
Future purchase intent
Resilient Trust brands achieve 68% future purchase intent. Brands with merely equal trust achieve 17%.
+50%
Repurchase lift
Trust drives a 50% repurchase lift across the categories we measure.
The Core Insight
Trust Is an Outcome, Not an Input
Consumers do not pull a trust lever independently at purchase. Trust emerges when a brand delivers on value and quality, then builds credibility through consistency and transparency, then earns distinction through innovation and heritage, and finally connects at a values or identity level.
Brands that pursue trust without the foundation do not get it. BrandSpark's research consistently shows that the highest-return investment for most brands is completing Tiers 1 and 2, rather than launching a purpose or ESG campaign at Tier 4.
91% of consumers say value for money matters. 89% say quality matters.88% say trust matters, because trust is produced by the first two.
Four lenses of trust measurement
Trust Share
"Which brand do you trust most in {category}?"
Leadership positioning and competitive set, measured unaided and open-end.
Trust Resilience
"To what degree do you trust this brand vs. others?"
Intensity of trust, price premium support, and switching risk.
Reasons and Connection
"Why this brand?" plus open-end moments
Proof points in consumers' own language, revealing what is actually working.
Trust Drivers
Agreement with category-specific trust statements
What to build, defend, and credibly claim, ranked by impact.
Proprietary Framework
The Hierarchy of Trust™
Trust is built bottom-up, sequentially. Skipping tiers creates fragile trust that is easily lost when competitive conditions change. The framework diagnoses where a brand actually stands and what the next move should be.
The Hierarchy of Trust™ · BrandSpark International
Tier 1
Build Value
Fair Price · Quality
What it means
The foundation every brand must earn first. Without a working Value Equation the upper tiers do not stabilize. Practical, proven performance that consumers can judge quickly.
Strategy
Lead with tangible benefit claims, demos, value-for-money cues, and third-party ratings.
Tier 2
Reassure
Transparency · Consistency
What it means
Risk reduction through familiarity, credibility, and social proof. Consumers need to know the brand will perform the same way every time and that it is honest about what it offers.
Strategy
Over-invest in trust signals: third-party validation, guarantees, expert endorsement, and consumer reviews.
Tier 3
Differentiate
Innovation · Heritage · Recommendation
What it means
Competitive distinction that goes beyond the basics. Meaningful innovation that changes the experience, or heritage that signals earned authority. This tier builds resilience among a loyal base.
Strategy
Make the new-to-category advantage unmistakable. Authority positioning with a clear before and after.
Tier 4
Connect
Values Alignment
What it means
Identity-level alignment through routine integration, personal relevance, and life-stage resonance. Values messaging without a strong Tier 1 and 2 foundation rarely pays the expected dividend.
Strategy
Habit formation, community, personalization, and narrative work best once the foundation is solid.
Only 22% of trusted brands have all four tiers working. Most have a specific gap to close.
What the Data Shows
The Business Case for Trust
From BrandSpark's 12-year multi-country dataset, and used by brands to build the internal case for trust investment.
Up to 30%
Price premium trusted brands command over untrusted competitors
15%
Of consumers pay premium prices for Resilient Trust brands, compared to 9% for brands with merely equal trust
68%
Future purchase intent for Resilient Trust brands, compared to 17% for merely equal trust
+50%
Repurchase lift driven by trust
71%
Of consumers will try new products from the brand they trust most
22%
Of trusted brands have all four Hierarchy of Trust tiers working. The other 78% have a specific gap to close.
The Evidence Base
Trust Research at Scale
BrandSpark's trust dataset is built from continuous annual measurement rather than a single study. Category norms developed over this period give clients context no ad-hoc study can provide.
15,000+
Canadian consumers surveyed each year (32,000+ in expanded years)
888
Categories measured in 2026: 363 Canada, 359 USA, 166 UK
4,000+
Brand-category combinations profiled
100,000+
Open-end trust reasons per year
12 years
Longitudinal data across Canada, the USA and the UK
71%
Of consumers will try new products from the brand they trust most
What We Find
Patterns From the Trust Research
Patterns that recur across categories, countries and competitive landscapes in 12 years of trust measurement.
Oat Milk
Silk Oat Milk
Moved from number two to number one trusted in their category. They achieved the largest simultaneous Trust Share and Resilience increases in CPG that year, driven by improving the Value Equation on fair price combined with a heritage narrative.
Key Lesson
Tier 1 improvements, when communicated clearly, drive disproportionate Trust Share gains.
E-Commerce
Amazon
Dominates 10 of 11 leading e-commerce categories on consumer trust. The exception is cosmetics, where Sephora, a category specialist, is the only brand more trusted than Amazon.
Key Lesson
Category expertise and specialist heritage can beat scale on trust, even against the most dominant platforms.
Fishing / Navigation / Appliances
Rapala, Garmin, Dyson
Fortified Niche examples, with lower Trust Share than category leaders and high Resilience. These brands command premium prices and high repurchase among a deeply loyal base.
Key Lesson
Resilience determines price premium power. Niche trust is often more valuable than broad recognition.
Methodology
How the BrandSpark Most Trusted Awards Are Decided
The BrandSpark Most Trusted Awards are decided by an annual 18-minute online survey of consumers in Canada, the USA and the UK. The Canadian study surveys 15,000+ consumers each year (32,000+ in expanded years). In 2026 the program covered 363 categories in Canada, 359 in the USA and 166 in the UK.
Respondents are screened for each category, and each sees a random subset of categories so no one answers too many. For each category they name, unaided, the brand they trust most, then explain why in their own words. A brand wins when it holds the highest Trust Share in its category among brands that meet a minimum response threshold.
Brands do not apply, submit or pay to be measured or to win. Winners may license the Most Trusted seal after results are final, and a brand that declines the licence keeps its award.
In the USA and the UK, results are published with Newsweek: The Most Trusted Brands in the U.S. 2026 and The Most Trusted Brands in the U.K. 2026. Canadian winners are listed at brandsparkmosttrusted.com.
Brand Trust: Frequently Asked Questions
What is brand trust?
Brand trust is a consumer's confidence that a brand will deliver what it promises, every time. BrandSpark research finds that trust is produced by value and quality first, then reinforced by transparency, consistency, innovation and heritage.
How is brand trust measured?
BrandSpark measures brand trust through four lenses: Trust Share (which brand consumers name, unaided, as the one they trust most in a category), Trust Resilience (how strongly they trust it against alternatives), the reasons they give in their own words, and agreement with category-specific trust drivers. The BrandSpark Most Trusted study is an 18-minute online survey.
What is the Hierarchy of Trust?
The Hierarchy of Trust™ is BrandSpark's four-tier framework for how trust is built: Build Value (fair price, quality), Reassure (transparency, consistency), Differentiate (innovation, heritage, recommendation) and Connect (values alignment). Only 22% of trusted brands have all four tiers working.
How are the BrandSpark Most Trusted Award winners chosen?
Winners are chosen by consumers. Survey respondents name, unaided, the brand they trust most in each category, and a brand wins when it holds the highest Trust Share in its category among brands that meet a minimum response threshold.
Do brands pay to win a BrandSpark Most Trusted Award?
No. Brands do not apply, submit or pay to be measured or to win. Results are decided by the consumer survey. Winners may license the Most Trusted seal after results are final, and a brand that declines the licence keeps its award.
How much more will consumers pay for a trusted brand?
BrandSpark trust data shows trusted brands command a price premium of up to 30%. 15% of consumers pay premium prices for brands they hold with Resilient Trust, compared with 9% for brands with merely equal trust.
Want to Know Where Your Brand Stands on the Trust Hierarchy?
Start with a conversation about your category. We will tell you what the data shows and what a research program to fill the gaps would look like.
Start a Conversation