Will Walmart stores return to 24-hour operations?

FILE – A Walmart sign is displayed over the entrance to a store, June 25, 2019, in Pittsburgh. Walmart said Tuesday, April 30, 2024, that it is launching its biggest store-label food brand in 20 years in terms of its breadth of items, as it seeks to appeal to younger customers who are not brand loyal and want chef-inspired foods that are more affordably priced. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

by: Iman Palm

Posted: Jun 3, 2024 / 12:50 PM PDT

Updated: Jun 4, 2024 / 02:38 PM PDT

Recently, multiple social media posts have been circulating claiming that mega-retailer Walmart would return to 24 hours of operation.

However, the company said those claims are false.

“There are no current plans to return our stores to 24 hours of operations,” Joe Pennington, director of Walmart’s press office, said in a statement to KTLA.

In 2020, Walmart went from operating 24 hours a day to closing at 11 p.m. in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Walmart stores and Neighborhood Markets will be open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. until further notice. This will help ensure associates are able to stock the products our customers are looking for and to perform cleaning and sanitizing,” Walmart’s then-Chief Operating Officer Dacona Smith said in a statement.

The release referred to the changes as temporary, but so far, the company hasn’t announced when stores would return to 24-hour operation.