Chargebacks are a growing threat to eCommerce. They cost businesses billions and erode margins. Accurate chargeback statistics are critical for merchants to track dispute trends, identify vulnerabilities, and deploy robust fraud prevention systems.

This compendium of chargeback statistics, unlike others, combines real-time insights from the Chargeflow team, proprietary merchant data, and industry reports from Visa, Mastercard, and Juniper Research to deliver the most comprehensive and actionable resource for businesses and financial institutions (FIs). Whether you're a small retailer or a global enterprise, these chargeback stats will help you safeguard revenue, enhance customer experience, and ensure regulatory compliance.

Why Chargeback Statistics Matter in eCommerce

Imagine a small business owner losing $20,000 to chargeback fraud from a single client. That might sound like a fairytale, but it's a real scenario shared by Jacob Baker on X. Chargebacks aren't just a financial hit. They're a growing threat driven by fraud, merchant errors, and complex regulations. Businesses lose up to 1.8% of revenue to fraud-related chargebacks, according to Juniper (2024).

Beyond the financial losses, chargebacks disrupt cash flow, especially for small enterprises. A $5,000 dispute could delay inventory restocking for up to 30 days (Chargeflow estimate). Understanding these trends empowers merchants to fight disputes, recover losses, and thrive in a digital economy fraught with payment risks.

General Chargeback Statistics: Volume, Value, Risk, & Trends

As Mastercard stated, rising chargeback volumes impose direct costs (such as fees and lost revenue) and indirect burdens (hiring staff, compliance). This section breaks down the most critical chargeback statistics, including global volume projections, financial impact, fraud trends and dispute outcomes.

• Global chargeback volume is predicted to reach 324 million transactions in 2028, a double-digit increase over the 2025 forecast of 261 million.
• The value of global chargebacks is set to rise from $33.79 billion in 2025 to $41.69 billion in 2028, a 23% increase in just 3 years.
• U.S. merchants are bearing the brunt. They're shouldering an excessive 10% of the total global chargeback volume. By 2026, U.S. chargeback volume is estimated to reach 146 million at a value of $15.3 billion.
• Global card-not-present (CNP) fraud losses are estimated to reach $28.1 billion by 2026, a 40% increase from 2023.
• Consumers disputed up to 105 million charges with U.S. card issuers in 2024, worth an estimated $11 billion, from $7.2 billion in 2019.
• Forecasts show a 40% rise in friendly fraud cases by 2026, with global chargeback volume is estimated to reach 337 million transactions, a 42% increase from 2023 levels.
• ​​First-party fraud is now the leading fraud type globally, representing a third (36%) of all reported fraud in 2024, up from 15% in 2023, representing a $132 billion risk to eCommerce.
• Merchants say all types of chargebacks have increased over the past 12 months, with 80% of chargebacks stemming from fraud.
• 56% of Financial Institutions (FIs) and 59% of merchants report chargeback volume increased over 10% in 2024.
• Most disputes, 73.6%, become chargebacks; only a smaller portion, 26.4%, are resolved, preventing a chargeback.
• FIs win 45.8% of chargebacks they represent and merchants contest a little more than half (54.2%) of cases they get, with 4.8% of representments advanced to arbitration/pre-arbitration.
• Merchants' chargeback net win rate via representment is estimated to be 8.1% in 2024; 52% of large enterprises win more than 50% chargebacks, 47% of enterprises win more than 50%, while 36% of midmarket enterprises win more than 50% of cases.
• U.S. merchants lose $4.61 for every dollar of fraud in 2025, a 37% uptick from 2020 levels.
• In 2024, global chargeback rates rose by around 8% during the first three quarters, and dispute rates spiked 78% year-over-year in Q3.
• These surges are largely driven by a rise in friendly fraud and account takeover attacks, which saw a 24% rise in frequency and led to $13 billion in losses in 2023.
• 84% of customers find filing chargebacks simpler than following a merchant’s formal payment dispute resolution process for requesting refunds, with 72% perceiving chargebacks as equivalent to refunds.
• 52% of cardholders go over a merchant’s head and file a chargeback directly with their bank when facing a payment dispute.
• For every $1 lost to chargebacks, businesses typically incur at least $3.75–$4.61 in total costs, a 37% increase since 2021.

Operational Burden on Financial Institutions

Managing chargebacks is not only resource-intensive for merchants. Financial institutions also face significant operational and financial burdens.

• US-based financial institutions (FIs) recruit over 200 back-office staff per institution, costing $5–$10 million annually per FI, depending on size.
• U.S. FIs require one full-time employee (FTE) per $13,000–$14,000 in annual chargeback dispute volume to handle processing and resolution.
• Each chargeback dispute costs FIs $9.08–$10.32 to process, with 60% from labor, 30% from technology, and 10% from compliance costs.
• Self-serve dispute intake methods, such as online portals and mobile apps, increase dispute volumes by 30–40% in the U.S., as simplified filing encourages more chargeback requests, including first-party fraud.
• U.S. dispute processing costs ($9.08–$10.32) are 20% higher than the global average of $7.50–$8.50, reflecting stricter compliance and higher labor costs.

Industry-Specific Chargeback Trends

Some industries consistently face higher chargeback rates because of the inherent risks in their transaction types or the increased scrutiny they receive from consumers and financial institutions. In 2025, industry-specific chargeback trends highlight significant variations:

Travel and hospitality has the highest average chargeback value ($120). The U.S. leads globally among countries with the highest chargeback value, with an average of $110 in 2024, followed by Brazil ($94), Australia ($91), and the UK ($82).

eCommerce Chargeback Sources: Why Payment Disputes are Spiking

Global card payment volume is expected to surpass $79 trillion by 2030, but fraud is escalating just as fast. An estimated $49.32 billion will be lost to payment fraud by 2030. Third-party eCommerce fraud alone is projected to jump 141%, from $44.3 billion in 2024 to $107 billion by 2029. Key vectors include:

Spike in Card-Not-Present Transactions:

• Online transactions account for 63% of merchant volume, with chargeback rates for CNP transactions ranging from 0.6% to 1%, higher than 0.5% for card-present transactions.
• U.S. CNP fraud losses surged from $5.04 billion in 2019 to $10.16 billion in 2024, representing 74% of all card payment fraud.
• eCommerce merchants allocate 10% of revenue to combating payment fraud.
• Tokenization (replacing card details with unique tokens) reduces unauthorized CNP chargebacks by 15%, while biometric authentication cuts fraud by 20%.

Merchant Error:

• Billing mistakes and subscription cancellation challenges trigger chargebacks. 50% of consumers investigated a transaction in the last 12 months, with 24% due to unrecognized purchases.
• Nearly 50% of consumers who couldn’t recognize a purchase reached out to their bank for clarification, and over 35% went a step further by requesting a refund directly from their bank or card issuer.
• 35% of cardholders find canceling subscriptions “somewhat difficult” or “very difficult.”
• 80% of consumers with unrecognized transactions say clearer merchant information would reduce disputes.

Friendly Fraud (First-Party Fraud):

• 72% of eCommerce merchants reported increased friendly fraud in 2024, accounting for 40–80% of fraud losses.
• First-party fraud drivers include buyer’s remorse (65.3%), intentional abuse (60.9%), and misunderstandings (38.6%). 27% of perps are influenced by social media, with 42% of Gen Z admitting involvement.
• 40–50% of friendly fraudsters repeat within 60 days.
• Gen Z files 60% of chargebacks due to “impulse purchase regret,” while Millennials are 30% more likely to dispute subscriptions (2024 consumer survey).

Share of Chargeback Volume by Type:

• First-Party Fraud: FIs (13%), Merchants (21%)
• Third-Party Fraud: FIs (59%), Merchants (24%)
• Non-Fraud: FIs (28%), Merchants (38%)

Regional Chargeback Insights

Global chargeback values are expected to increase significantly from 2025 to 2028, with regional variations reflecting differences in eCommerce adoption, fraud prevalence, and regulatory environments. The forecasted growth in chargeback values and percentage increases by region are as follows:  

• 25% of merchants globally report annual chargeback volumes exceeding 1 million transactions, with 13% facing rates of 2% or more (20% for Australian merchants).
• Global chargeback value forecasts (2025–2028):
  
  • North America: $20.47 billion, 16% growth (high CNP volume attracts fraud).
  • Europe: $3.17 billion, 27% growth (prevalent friendly fraud, stricter PSD2 compliance).
  • Asia Pacific: $5.98 billion, 35% growth (eCommerce expansion attracts fraud).
  • Middle East and Africa: $3.59 billion, 59% growth (digital transformation, cross-border fraud).
  • Latin America: $8.49 billion, 22% growth (online retail growth, limited fraud prevention).
  • India’s chargeback volume grew 45% in 2024 due to rapid eCommerce adoption. Cross-border transactions (20% of global eCommerce) face 2x higher chargeback rates due to currency disputes and delivery delays.

Average Chargeback Value (2024):

Merchants in the four countries report an average chargeback value of $94, though this figure varies significantly by country.

• U.S.: $110
• Brazil: $94
• Australia: $91
• UK: $82

How Merchants Are Dealing With Chargebacks

Handling chargebacks is a growing challenge for small businesses. Limited resources and tight margins amplify dispute impacts on the balance sheet. As chargeback volumes surge, small businesses face disproportionate risk compared to larger enterprises.

Merchants are reporting a chargeback volume increase of over 10% in 2024:

• First-Party Fraud: 28%
• Third-Party Fraud: 31%
• Non-Fraud: 30%
• Low-Dollar Write-Off: 22%

Merchants’ Dispute Strategies across sectors:

Merchants are evenly divided between managing chargebacks in-house and outsourcing the process. We’ve also seen that a merchant’s chargeback strategy plays a key role in their ability to recover lost revenue, reduce fraud exposure, and maintain healthy relationships with regulators and customers.

• 11% of large enterprises (>$2B revenue) contest >50% of chargebacks.
• 15% of enterprises ($500M–$1.9B) dispute 25–29% of cases.
• 14% of mid-market enterprises ($100M–$499M) represent 25–29% of chargebacks.
• 50% of eCommerce merchants manage chargebacks in-house, but outsourcing yields higher win rates.
• 34% use a hybrid approach (outsourcing chargebacks, in-house fraud mitigation).
• 16% outsource both chargebacks and fraud.

Merchants’ & FI’s Fraud and Chargeback-related Technology Investments:

Studies have shown that a greater proportion of merchants adopt third-party chargeback management solutions to mitigate chargebacks.

• Merchants’ annual spending on chargeback tech: $100,000–$500,000.
• 12% of large enterprises report tech cost increases of >25% in 2024.
• 76% of merchants using automated solutions (e.g., Chargeflow) rate dispute management as “very effective.”
• Small businesses using fraud filters (e.g., Stripe) reduce chargebacks by 10–15%.

• 13% of financial institutions find AI-based chargeback solutions effective at providing transaction clarity.
• Another 13% report that real-time alerts for fraud and disputes are effective.
• U.S. issuers have a higher adoption rate of chargeback prevention solutions, numbers range from 30% to 40%, compared to other countries, with many reporting them as effective.

Chargeback Regulatory and Compliance Insights

Chargeback regulations shape merchant strategies when managing disputes. They're not perfect. Nevertheless, these regulations are designed to protect merchants and consumers in today's fraud-laden eCommerce landscape.

• Visa's Compelling Evidence 3.0 allows merchants to win 20% more disputes with better evidence, like proof of delivery.
• Mastercard's Dispute Resolution Initiative streamlines dispute processing, resolving 50% pre-chargeback through tools like Ethoca Alerts.
• PSD2's Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) in Europe reduces fraud but increases cart abandonment by 7-10%, indirectly raising chargeback risks.
• U.S. Regulatory Gaps: Unlike Europe, which enforces Strong Customer Authentication under PSD2, the U.S. lacks equivalent mandates, resulting in CNP chargeback rates approximately 20–50% higher. Meanwhile, U.S. merchants typically spend between $50,000 and $200,000 annually on PCI DSS compliance alone.
• Open banking could enable account-to-account payments, reducing card-based disputes by 10% by 2030.

Actionable Chargeback Prevention Playbook

10-Point Checklist:

1

Use 3D Secure for high-risk transactions: 3DS adds an extra authentication layer, verifying cardholder ID before transactions are processed to reduce fraud and chargebacks.

2

Implement AVS/CVV checks: Card network policy, particularly Visa Compelling Evidence 3.0 (CE 3.0) require AVS and CVV as key components in chargeback dispute evidence, principally for fraud-related cases.

3

Monitor the transaction velocity: Merchants using Chargeflow Alerts for real-time customer behavior tracking prevent up to ~90% of incoming chargebacks, saving time and boosting revenue.

4

Provide clear billing descriptors: Offering clear transaction information, such as understandable merchant name, logo, or itemized digital receipt, minimizes confusion that lead to un-intentional friendly fraud.

5

Offer real-time order tracking: Merchandise tracking supports CE 3.0's requirement of verifiable proof of customer recognition and interaction, which is vital in fighting first-party fraud.

6

Simplify subscription cancellations: Offer a clear cancel button, frictionless opt-out, instant cancellation confirmation, and pre-billing reminders. Provide self-service options like pausing, downgrading, or rescheduling instead of canceling.

7

Automate your chargebacks: Merchants and financial institutions are steering away from manual human review toward analysis supported by automation or AI-based models like Chargeflow.

8

Provide excellent customer service: Fraudsters persist despite strong customer service. Yet, genuine buyers expect fast, 24/7 support, personalized engagement, proactive help, and easy self-service options.

9

Educate your staff on payment best practices: A chargeback may occur if the transaction presentment is not submitted within seven days of payment and the buyer's account is closed.

10

Adopt tokenization for CNP transactions: Replacing sensitive card details with unique token reduces the risk of stolen card data being used fraudulently.

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→ Representment Tip: Detailed, AI-assisted evidence collection boosts chargeback win rates by at least 25% (Ethoca).

How Chargeflow Helps Merchants Prevent and Recover Chargebacks on Autopilot

Chargeflow's AI-driven platform automates dispute management, delivering 80% higher win rates and saving merchants $315 per dispute in costs. Real-time fraud alerts and seamless integration with payment gateways, like Stripe and Adyen make Chargeflow the go-to solution for small businesses and enterprises alike.

Exceptional features yield exponential results:

• Fully automated chargeback management. The system can analyze large amounts of data quickly and efficiently, providing insights that human analysts may not readily identify.
• ROI-Guarantee. With Chargeflow, there are no fixed fees or long-term contracts! You only pay for disputes won, a win-win process for maximum outcome.
• Chargeflow Alerts for chargeback prevention. Harness the power of real-time dispute alerts to proactively achieve a 90% reduction in chargebacks, and avoid card monitoring programs.
• Higher win rates (2x industry average). Merchants using Chargeflow's chargeback automation system have reported getting up to a 75% dispute win rate instead of the 12% industry average. And they save about $4000 on monthly labor costs.
• White-glove evidence curation and submission. You no longer have to worry about beating the clock regarding chargeback disputes —that’s all done for you. Chargeflow gives you access to seamless evidence gathering from over 50 3rd party data sources, fully automated dispute filing, and analytics to grow your business.
• Connection to all processors for all-in-one analytics and dashboards. Chargeflow integrates seamlessly into your existing payments stack. This integration ensures that critical information and necessary order insight can flow smoothly between our systems and yours, guaranteeing that your data is always up-to-date and precise.

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Emerging Technologies Shaping Chargeback Prevention

1. AI and Machine Learning: Predictive analytics flag high-risk transactions, reducing disputes significantly. Chargeflow's AI cuts chargeback losses by 80% for merchants.
2. Tokenization and Biometrics: Tokenization is shown to reduce fraud by up to 60%, and biometric methods (e.g., facial recognition) are widely credited with further reducing fraud in digital transactions.
3. Blockchain Payments: By 2030, blockchain could cut fraud by 50% with immutable transaction records.
4. BNPL and Crypto Disputes: BNPL disputes rose 17% in 2024, while crypto payments introduced new dispute mechanisms outside traditional chargebacks.

5-Year Roadmap:

• 2025: Adopt an AI fraud prevention tool (Chargeflow recommended).
• 2027: Implement tokenization and biometrics.
• 2030: Transition to blockchain payments.
• 2035: Build zero-fraud ecosystems.

Mizu Lab just reviewed Chargeflow on Shopify. Here’s their review:

★★★★★

"Chargeflow has totally changed the way we deal with chargebacks. As our Shopify store grew, we were spending way too much time dealing with disputes. Since we started using Chargeflow, it's been pretty much hands-off. Their customer service is also super responsive and helpful. Definitely recommend if you want to save time and stress."

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SOURCES:

• Chargeflow
• Jacob Baker (X)
• Mastercard
• Mastercard
• Mastercard
• Juniper
• Visa
• Visa
• Pymnts
• LexisNexis
• LexisNexis
• LexisNexis
• NilsonReport
• PayKings
• Klarna
• CyberSource
• Gartner
• Datos
• WSJ
• Sift
• Sift
• FTC
• Forbes

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