Survey: Online grocery sales see double-digit growth
Online grocery shopping is surging thanks to a combination of several factors.
Online grocery sales have grown over 15% so far in 2019 on a year-over-year basis, according to a new analysis of the U.S. e-grocery market from digital advisory firm Brick Meets Click. Online now accounts for 6.3% of total grocery-related spending by households in the U.S. In addition, household penetration, based on past-month online grocery shopping activity, has risen more than five percentage points over the last year to nearly 25% of all U.S. households.
Results of a survey of 2,485 consumers who participate in household grocery shopping indicate this gain is largely the result of aggressive expansion of home delivery and pickup services available at brick-and-mortar stores. Collectively, these omnichannel services are now accessible to 90% of all the households in the U.S., up from 81% in 2018.
Average order values, encompassing ship-to-home, home delivery, and pickup orders, have climbed over 6% to $70 in 2019. When only analyzing home delivery and pickup orders across various retail trade channels, the average order value grew 13% to just over $100.
Despite this growth, the study reveals online purchase frequency for groceries remains relatively unchanged compared to 2018, averaging two orders during the past month for active online grocery customers. Ship-to-home orders account for 50% of all online grocery orders, while pickup captures 28% and home delivery 22% of the orders, respectively.
Findings also demonstrate that consumers are still trialing various online grocery shopping alternatives. Approximately one-third of the active households’ most recent online orders were the first time they used the service.
Other results include:
• Likelihood to use a specific service again jumped from 69% in 2018 to 81% in 2019.
• The percentage of respondents who found everything they wanted to buy rose to 90% in 2019, a twelve percentage-point gain year-over-year.
Online grocery sales have grown over 15% so far in 2019 on a year-over-year basis, according to a new analysis of the U.S. e-grocery market from digital advisory firm Brick Meets Click. Online now accounts for 6.3% of total grocery-related spending by households in the U.S. In addition, household penetration, based on past-month online grocery shopping activity, has risen more than five percentage points over the last year to nearly 25% of all U.S. households.
Results of a survey of 2,485 consumers who participate in household grocery shopping indicate this gain is largely the result of aggressive expansion of home delivery and pickup services available at brick-and-mortar stores. Collectively, these omnichannel services are now accessible to 90% of all the households in the U.S., up from 81% in 2018.
Average order values, encompassing ship-to-home, home delivery, and pickup orders, have climbed over 6% to $70 in 2019. When only analyzing home delivery and pickup orders across various retail trade channels, the average order value grew 13% to just over $100.
Despite this growth, the study reveals online purchase frequency for groceries remains relatively unchanged compared to 2018, averaging two orders during the past month for active online grocery customers. Ship-to-home orders account for 50% of all online grocery orders, while pickup captures 28% and home delivery 22% of the orders, respectively.
Findings also demonstrate that consumers are still trialing various online grocery shopping alternatives. Approximately one-third of the active households’ most recent online orders were the first time they used the service.
Other results include:
• Likelihood to use a specific service again jumped from 69% in 2018 to 81% in 2019.
• The percentage of respondents who found everything they wanted to buy rose to 90% in 2019, a twelve percentage-point gain year-over-year.