For many years, Walmart was known for its low prices. Now, however, some aren’t too sure that the chain is offering the deals it once did.
For example, one shopper compared a 2022 grocery bill from Walmart to a bill from this year. While a month of groceries would have cost the shopper around $126 in 2022, they said that buying the same amount of groceries from the store this year would cost them over $400.
Then, another shopper noted how much ground beef had increased in price since her time working at the store, claiming that the price had doubled in just a few years.
Now, another TikTok user has complicated this idea by alleging that Walmart is going to implement surge pricing in its stores.
Is Walmart really going to implement surge pricing?
In a video with over 332,000 views, TikTok user Josh Rhoads (@josh.rhoads.alt) says, “If you’re a frequent shopper at Walmart and you haven’t heard this yet, they plan to introduce surge pricing tags by [2026].” While Rhoads says 2025 in the video, he corrects himself to 2026 in the caption.
“Get ready to never have anything be a consistent price ever,” he concludes. “It’s gonna be real fun.”
So, is it true that Walmart is going to implement surge pricing? According to the company, the answer is no—but things get a little complicated.
For context, “surge pricing” refers to the idea of a company raising prices when a product or service is in high demand. This is visible for most consumers on rideshare apps, where prices can fluctuate based on how many vehicles are available in their area.
The idea that Walmart plans to implement surge pricing comes from the company’s planned removal of sticker labels on shelves in favor of “Digital Shelf Labels” or DSLs by 2026, per Fortune. According to the company, this would allow the chain to quickly adjust prices rather than having to go through aisles and retag items individually.
Seeing this, many accused the store of rolling out something akin to surge pricing. As noted by Fortune, Walmart has denied such claims, and Walmart spokesperson Cristina Rodrigues told Retail Brew that the “DSL program is not designed for dynamic pricing.”
In short, the DSL program would theoretically make it easier for Walmart to engage in “surge pricing” practices, but the company states that it has no plans to do so.
@josh.rhoads.alt 2026* my b
♬ original sound – josh.rhoads.alt
Commenters share their thoughts on Walmart surge pricing
In the comments section, users responded to Rhoads’ claims about adding dynamic pricing to Walmart.
“Not shopping anywhere with surge pricing,” said a user.
“100% if the do it, ill do my own Surge pricing and decide if I’m going to pay for it or just walk out with it,” added another.
“This encouraged me to look up farmers markets near me so thank you,” stated a third.
The Daily Dot reached out to Walmart via media relations contact form, and Rhoads via Instagram DM and TikTok comment.
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