Shrinkflation Hall of Shame 2025-2026

Have you noticed you’re running out of toilet paper faster? Or that your “Family Size” bag of chips barely feeds you, let alone a family?

You aren’t crazy. You’re being gaslit by packaging.

This is Shrinkflation: the corporate art of charging you the same price (or more!) for less product, while hoping you are too busy to notice the net weight printed in tiny font on the bottom corner.

The Worst Offenders of 2025-2026

We are inducting the following brands into our Hall of Shame:

1. The “Air” Chip Bag

• The Suspect: Major Potato Chip Brands (Doritos, Lay’s)
• The Crime: The bags are the same size. The air pocket inside is massive.
• The Stats: A “Party Size” bag that used to be 15.5 oz is now down to 13 oz. That is a 16% price hike disguised as a diet plan.

2. The “Loose” Roll

• The Suspect: Toilet Paper & Paper Towels (Charmin, Bounty)
• The Crime: They use fluffy adjectives like “Mega Roll” or “Super Mega.”
• The Stats: Counting sheets per roll reveals the truth. Brands have shaved off 20-30 sheets per roll compared to 2020. You are literally flushing money down the toilet.

3. The “Sleek” Bottle

• The Suspect: Gatorade, Orange Juice, Salad Dressings
• The Crime: Introducing a “New, Modern Bottle Design!”
• The Reality: The new bottle has a massive indentation in the bottom (the “punt”) or a tapered neck. A 32-oz bottle becomes 28 oz. But hey, it looks “ergonomic,” right?

The “New Recipe” Excuse

Sometimes they don’t just shrink it; they cheapen it. Keep an eye out for “New Great Taste!” stickers. In corporate speak, this usually means: “We replaced expensive ingredients (like cocoa butter) with cheap ones (like palm oil).”

What Can You Do?

Stop looking at the price tag. Look at the Unit Price. Every shelf tag has a small number in the corner (Price per Ounce/Pound). That is the only number that tells the truth.

If the price per ounce jumps, switch brands. Loyalty is for dogs, not for corporations that are robbing you one ounce at a time.

Want to know another way retailers cheat the math? Check out our report on how scale fraud works.

Written by: Companies Behaving Badly

The team behind it all.