Full Breakdown
Retailers Scale Back Self-Checkout Amid Theft Concerns and Customer Frustration
By Drooid · · How we work
Decline in Self-Checkout Adoption
An April survey by Toast, a point-of-sale and restaurant-management platform, found that about 36 percent of 340 small and midsize retail operators used self-checkout this year, down from 43 percent in 2025. The same poll noted that three-quarters of the surveyed convenience stores, grocery stores and bottle shops still plan to invest heavily in other technologies, such as artificial-intelligence tools.
Losses and Operational Issues Prompt Reductions
A June report from ECR Retail Loss, a retailer-backed research group, attributed an average 22 percent rise in merchandise losses to the year after self-checkout installation. Stores with self-checkout reported losses that were 33 percent higher than comparable locations without the technology. In response, major chains have begun limiting the number of items per lane: Target set a nationwide 10-item cap, Walmart is testing a 15-item limit at select sites, and Schnucks imposed the same 10-item restriction. Dollar General removed self-checkout from roughly 12,000 stores in 2024, and Five Below reduced its use that year as well. Long Beach, California, enacted a 2025 ordinance requiring a maximum of 15 items per self-checkout lane and at least one staffed lane.
Continued Investment in Alternative Tech
Despite scaling back self-checkout, retailers are channeling resources into other automation. The Toast survey indicated that 31 percent of operators listed simplifying operations among their top three business goals, a 12-percentage-point increase from the prior year, while a quarter cited new technology as a driver. Digital shelf-label systems and order-ready boards are highlighted as tools that can adjust prices quickly and streamline order fulfillment without relying on customer-operated kiosks.
Employee and Shopper Perspectives
Employees have voiced a preference for retaining traditional cashier roles, arguing that human staff can be productive in tasks beyond “zombie scanning” consumers. Shoppers, meanwhile, report mixed feelings: some appreciate avoiding lines for a few items, while others feel monitored by staff or cameras and resent having to perform the cashier’s job under supervision.
Outlook and Potential Adjustments
Industry analysts note that the trend toward item-limits and lane reductions is likely to continue as retailers balance loss mitigation with customer experience. Ongoing investment in AI-driven inventory and pricing tools suggests that future efficiencies may rely less on self-service kiosks and more on behind-the-scenes automation.