Walmart Marketplace continues to evolve its Seller Performance Standards to better align with industry benchmarks and create a stronger, more trusted shopping experience for customers. As part of this effort, Walmart has announced important changes to how seller performance is measured—changes that every Marketplace seller should start preparing for now.
In this update, Walmart is retiring the Refund Rate metric and introducing two new performance standards: Return Rate and Item Not Received (INR) Rate. These updates are designed to provide clearer insights into seller-related issues and help identify problems earlier.
Why Walmart Is Making These Changes
Walmart’s goal is to simplify performance metrics while more accurately reflecting the true drivers behind customer issues. Previously, the Refund Rate was calculated based on GMV (Gross Merchandise Value), which often made it difficult for sellers to pinpoint whether problems were related to products or fulfillment.
By separating item-related issues from fulfillment-related issues, Walmart aims to:
- Surface performance issues sooner
- Enable faster corrective action
- Improve customer trust across the Marketplace
- Provide sellers with clearer, more actionable data
What’s Changing in Seller Performance Standards
1. Refund Rate Is Being Retired
Walmart is officially moving away from the Refund Rate metric. Since it was GMV-based, it didn’t always provide a clear picture of why refunds were happening. This metric will no longer be used as an official performance standard.
2. New Metric: Return Rate
What it measures:
Return Rate tracks the percentage of delivered items returned due to a seller-related issue over the past 60 days.
Performance standard:
Sellers must maintain a Return Rate of 6% or below.
Why it matters:
This metric focuses on product-related concerns such as:
- Incorrect or misleading product descriptions
- Product quality issues
- Damaged or defective items
A high Return Rate may indicate listing accuracy or quality control issues that need immediate attention.
3. New Metric: Item Not Received (INR) Rate
What it measures:
INR Rate tracks the percentage of items customers report as not received due to a seller-related issue over the past 60 days.
Performance standard:
Sellers must maintain an INR Rate of 2% or below.
Why it matters:
This metric highlights fulfillment and shipping issues such as:
- Late shipments
- Missing or invalid tracking
- Delivery failures caused by seller processes
Important Note on Metric Differences
These new rates are calculated differently than the retired Refund Rate. As a result, sellers may notice variations when comparing performance across metrics. This is expected and does not necessarily indicate a decline in seller performance.
When Do These Changes Take Effect?
- Return Rate and INR Rate will become official standards in Spring 2026
- Walmart will share timelines and resources before enforcement begins
To help sellers prepare, these metrics will soon appear:
- In the Performance Dashboard under a new Upcoming Standards section
- In the Performance API
- In the Walmart Seller mobile app
This early visibility gives sellers time to review performance and make improvements before enforcement begins.
Reminder: Negative Feedback Rate Still Matters
Walmart recently rolled out a new Negative Feedback Rate standard.
Performance standard:
Sellers must maintain a Negative Feedback Rate of 2% or below.
Monitoring customer feedback, responding quickly, and resolving issues proactively remains critical for maintaining account health.
How Sellers Can Prepare Now
- Audit product listings for accuracy and completeness
- Improve product quality checks and packaging
- Ensure timely shipping and valid tracking uploads
- Monitor customer feedback and address complaints promptly
- Review the Performance Dashboard regularly
Final Thoughts
Walmart’s updated Seller Performance Standards represent a positive step toward greater transparency and fairness for Marketplace sellers. By separating returns and fulfillment issues into distinct metrics, sellers gain clearer insights into what’s impacting their performance—and how to fix it.
Preparing early will help ensure compliance when these standards go live in Spring 2026 and protect your long-term success on Walmart Marketplace.
If you need help optimizing your Walmart account or improving performance metrics, RetailTantra is here to help.