Online Grocery Penetration: US (2020–2026)
The online grocery market in the United States is expected to reach more than $160 billion in 2023, a 14.8% annual increase. This is set to continue rising in the coming years, with its value forecast to surpass $235 billion by 2026. The rapidly rising sales signal an increase in the popularity of shopping for groceries online and growing food prices.
But what is the online grocery market penetration? Or, simply put—what percentage of the sales from grocery shopping are generated online?
US online grocery sales statistics
According to recent data, the online grocery market penetration in the US is set to hit 11.1% in 2023. In other words, over $1 out of every $10 spent this year on groceries will be done over the internet. This marks a 1.2 percentage point increase from the previous year. It is also the highest-ever penetration rate recorded so far.
Statistics show that online grocery market penetration rates have been rising quickly in recent years. In 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, just 6.3% of the overall grocery sales came from online sales. This is close to half of the current online grocery market penetration rate, which shows how quickly US consumers have adopted online grocery shopping in the past few years.
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In fact, since 2019, online grocery market penetration rates in the US have increased every quarter. The biggest percentage point increase came in 2020, when penetration rates increased by 2.5 percentage points.
Analysts credit the rising online grocery market penetration to the pandemic, which forced consumers to stay home and accelerated their use of digital services to acquire products. Online grocery sales statistics also show that the number of shoppers buying groceries digitally doubled during the pandemic, and even though restrictions have been relaxed, consumers continue to use online grocery services.
Online grocery penetration: US stores
If you’re thinking about starting an online grocery store, you’ll also need to understand the current market—particularly where consumers are buying their groceries from online.
Currently, the most popular online grocery stores are Walmart and Amazon, with their online grocery sales in 2022 hitting $37.6 billion and $35.1 billion, respectively. This is followed by Kroger, with $18.4 billion, and Target and Albertsons, with around $7.5 billion each.