Trendspotting: Online grocery sales up 32 percent
Trendspotting: Online grocery sales up 32 percent
Monthly online grocery sales accelerated dramatically in December, with total sales surging 32 percent year-over-year to finish the month with a record high $12.7 billion, according to the latest Brick Meets Click Grocery Shopper Survey. This robust performance reflects higher order frequency, spending rates and a larger user base than December 2024.
“December set a record high for monthly eGrocery sales, closing out the year with a bang although gains were unevenly distributed across formats and banners,” said David Bishop, partner at Brick Meets Click. “Structural shifts in shopping behavior drove much of eGrocery’s growth in 2025, and this will create stiffer headwinds in 2026 — especially for regional grocers.”
Order frequency, which measures the average number of orders completed by monthly active users (MAUs), climbed year-over-year for the 16th consecutive month in December, increasing 8 percent versus last year. MAUs completed an average of 2.9 orders during the month, and more than half of MAUs completed three or more orders, breaking the record set last month. The core 30-44-year-old group posted the biggest increase, jumping 17 percent versus last year and completing an average of 3.2 orders during the month.
The share of MAUs that chose to receive eGrocery orders via multiple receiving methods (Delivery, Pickup, and/or Ship-to-Home) rose rapidly in December 2025, while the share that used only one method continued to contract. So, while the overall eGrocery MAU base expanded by about 10 percent during December, each receiving method experienced larger YOY gains in their specific MAU base.
The average order value for eGrocery orders across all three fulfillment methods climbed nearly 11 percent in December 2025 compared to last year. Ship-to-home posted the strongest gain at 14 percent, boosted by the continued rollout of Amazon’s same-day fresh grocery service. Pickup and delivery trailed slightly with each gaining 9 percent. For delivery and pickup (combined), the mass and supermarket formats each posted 8 percent spending gains compared to last year.
Online share of weekly grocery spending in December 2025 was the highest since May 2020 and ended the month at 19 percent. The share expansion was fueled by higher YOY spending rates across all age groups and market sizes with medium metros posting a significant jump due to growth in delivery. Online share of grocery spending rose for all income levels except the $50-99,900 households, which reported a slight pullback versus last year. The $200,000-plus group has nearly doubled its online spending since December 2023.
