FTC Proposes Rules on Personalized Pricing to Boost Transparency
The FTC released a proposed enforcement policy on personalized pricing, open for public comment.
Why it matters: The policy could reshape how companies set dynamic prices using consumer data, affecting compliance and privacy in sectors like e-commerce and digital services.
- The FTC announced the policy on August 19, 2026, with a 30-day public comment period ending September 18.
- Personalized pricing uses personal data to set prices based on consumer willingness to pay or shopping habits.
- Businesses must disclose when prices are personalized, why, and what data drives the pricing.
- The FTC cannot ban personalized pricing but will enforce against deceptive or unfair practices under Section 5 of the FTC Act.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a proposed enforcement policy statement on personalized pricing on August 19, 2026. The policy is now open for a 30-day public comment period through September 18, 2026, inviting input from businesses, consumers, and other stakeholders.
Personalized pricing involves adjusting prices using personal data about consumers, such as their likelihood to compare prices or their perceived willingness to pay. The FTC defines it as setting prices based on conclusions drawn from individual personal data, rather than uniform pricing visible to all consumers.
According to the proposed statement, businesses employing personalized pricing must clearly disclose that prices are personalized, explain how they derive these prices, and specify the types of personal data used. This aims to prevent consumer confusion and enhance transparency.
FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson emphasized the consumer expectation of fair pricing: "When consumers see a listed price, they expect it to be same price that everyone else sees, not the retailer’s estimate of how much they are willing to pay based on their personal data."
The FTC acknowledges it currently lacks authority to ban personalized pricing outright. However, it will enforce Section 5 of the FTC Act, which prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices, to target misleading or abusive uses of personalized pricing.
This policy is part of broader FTC efforts to ensure fairness in digital markets, where dynamic pricing is increasingly common. Legal and compliance teams in e-commerce and digital service sectors should review these developments closely, as the FTC’s enforcement approach could influence how they deploy price customization techniques.
By the numbers:
- 30 days — public comment period from August 19 to September 18, 2026
- Section 5 — prohibits unfair or deceptive acts under the FTC Act
What's next: The public comment period closes on September 18, 2026, after which the FTC may finalize its enforcement policy.