Online grocery sales surge 32% in December
Online grocery sales finished 2025 on a high note.
Monthly U.S. online grocery sales rose dramatically in December, with total sales increasing 32% year over year to finish the month with a record high $12.7 billion, according to the latest Brick Meets Click Grocery Shopper Survey. Brick Meets Click said the 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% 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, rising 17% versus last year and completing an average of 3.2 orders during the month.
The share of MAUs that chose to receive online grocery 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. Brick Meets Click noted that while the overall online grocery MAU base expanded by about 10% during December, each receiving method experienced larger annual gains in their specific MAU base.
[READ MORE: Several factors drive surge to $12.3B in November online grocery sales]
The average order value (AOV) for online grocery orders across all three fulfillment methods climbed nearly 11% in December 2025 compared to December 2024. Ship-to-home posted the strongest gain at 14%, aided by the continued rollout of Amazon’s same-day fresh grocery service. Pickup and delivery trailed slightly with each gaining 9%. For delivery and pickup (combined), the mass and supermarket formats each posted 8% spending gains compared to last year.
Brick Meets Click says the online share of weekly grocery spending in December 2025 was the highest since May 2020, and ended the month at 19.0%, an increase of 430 bps versus December 2024. The share expansion was fueled by higher year-over-year spending rates across all age groups and market sizes, with medium metro areas posting a significant jump due to growth in delivery.
Online share of grocery spending rose for all income levels, according to the monthly report, except the $50,000-99,900 households, which reported a slight pullback versus last year. The $200,000-plus group (approximately 16% of U.S. households) has nearly doubled its online spending since December 2023.
Methodology
Brick Meets Click conducted its most recent survey on Dec. 30-31, 2025, with 1,488 adults, 18 years and older, who participated in the household’s grocery shopping, and a similar survey in December 2024. Results are adjusted based on internet usage among U.S. adults to account for the non-response bias associated with online surveys. Responses are geographically representative of the U.S. and weighted by age and income to reflect the national population of adults, 18 years and older, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
