Malls "have essentially fully recovered" to post-pandemic levels, according to a new analysis of the top performing indoor and outdoor shopping centers across the US.

Outdoor shopping centers posted a 2.1% increase in monthly visits in July as compared to the same period in 2019, while indoor malls narrowed that gap to -0.1%. And month over month visits are also either increasing or remaining steady: foot traffic in outdoor malls grew 20.8% in July from June, while visits to indoor malls went up 10.6%.

"It turns out that malls are much more resilient than many expected, and shoppers' forced separation from these emblems of American retail seems to have rekindled an old flame," Placer.ai's Shira Petrack says in a report breaking down the data. "Visit recovery patterns also emphasize that the 'one-size-fits-all' narrative surrounding malls is fundamentally flawed. Top performing centers are regional retail landmarks, and even if there are cases of 'over-malled' landscapes, the leaders are still well positioned for long-term success."