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Report
en_GB
The UK online grocery market has moved beyond its pandemic surge into a stable phase of everyday use. Valued at £27.1bn in 2025 (12% of total grocery sales), it is…
UK
Food and Drink Retail
eCommerce
simple
UK Online Grocery Retailing Market Report 2026
"UK online grocery is firmly established, with growth driven by evolving convenience, technology and mission-led fulfilment."
Michael Oliver, Senior Retail Analyst
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
What you need to know
Outlook for online grocery retailing – UK
Opportunities
Use meal planning features to boost basket sizes
Trust gives retailers the upper hand in rapid delivery
AI chat turns convenience into a competitive lever
THE MARKET
Snapshot – market size and forecast
Consumers and the economic outlook
Social trends continue to underpin online grocery demand
Political and regulatory pressure is reshaping how online grocery operates
Technology is the main enabler of scale, efficiency and differentiation
Social media is pulling grocery discovery into the scroll
From pandemic boom to stable growth
Online grocery market settles into a more stable growth phase
Graph 1: online grocery retailing share of all grocery sales, 2019-25
Market size and forecast of online grocery retailing
Supermarkets take majority of online grocery sales by store-based retailers
Graph 2: online grocery market segmentation, by retailer type*, 2019-25
Home delivery still anchors online grocery, but its dominance is softening
Graph 3: online grocery retailing market by channel, 2023-25
Convenience is shifting from speed alone to basket usefulness
Helping shoppers do more in one place
Create comprehensive, mission-driven solutions for households
Shoppers will trade speed for a better overall basket
Win-win for grocers and platforms
Online grocery shopping with AI
Momentum building in conversational commerce
AI interest signals appetite for support, not automation
Graph 9: interest in using AI tools to shop directly via a rapid delivery service, by generation and income, 2025
From AI features to supported shopping routines
Turn the weekly shop into a supported routine
Opportunities in meal kits
Core shoppers of meal kits mirror online grocery demographics
Graph 10: key demographics of food/recipe/subscription box shoppers, 2025
Integrate meal kits into the weekly shop
Use meal solutions and personalisation to drive inspiration
INNOVATION AND MARKETING
Store-based online grocers respond to rapid delivery growth
Integrating loyalty and broadening access
Third-party platforms reposition as logistics partners
Platforms expand into adjacent retail categories…
…supplying health, beauty and gifting items
Deliveroo expanding rapid delivery into planned food occasions
Advertising and marketing
Ocado links groceries to life moments
HelloFresh’s “Bring Back Dinnertime” campaign reframes convenience away from speed and towards emotional and cognitive relief
APPENDIX
Market definition
The market
Forecast methodology
Forecast methodology – fan chart
Online grocery retailing’s share of grocery sales continues to grow
Market size of online grocery retailing, by segment
Market size and forecast for online grocery retailing
Market size and forecast for online grocery retailing – store-based players
Market size and forecast for online grocery retailing – online-only operators
Market forecast and prediction intervals
The consumer
Consumer research questions
Consumer research methodology
UK generation groups
Leading retailers – revenue
Leading online grocery retailers, by revenue
Smaller online players, by revenue
Other data source methodologies
Nielsen Ad Intel coverage
Abbreviations and terms
UK Online Grocery Retail Market – Trends and Insights
The UK online grocery retailing market has moved beyond its pandemic surge into a stable phase of everyday use. Valued at £27.1bn in 2025 (12% of total grocery sales), it is now a mainstream channel shaped by routine time pressure rather than emergency adoption. Steady 4-5% growth reflects how firmly online grocery is embedded in busy household lives.
One of the clearest consumer signals is how expectations of convenience are changing. Around 65% of online grocery shoppers say they would accept slower rapid delivery if it meant access to a wider, more useful range. This challenges the idea that speed alone drives value and highlights a growing focus on basket completeness and relevance.
This shift marks a clear change in industry dynamics. Online grocery is increasingly mission-led, with shoppers switching between full shops, mid-week top-ups and rapid orders depending on need. Growth now depends on how well retailers support everyday household tasks such as meal planning, restocking and last-minute fixes, rather than simply expanding online access.
The biggest opportunity lies in helping households do more in one place. Clearer navigation, stronger cross-category relevance and curated mission-based bundles can lift frequency and engagement. The main risk is failing to meet rising expectations around reliability and ease, which could limit online grocery’s role as a core household utility.
This Report Looks at the Following Areas:
Online grocery has moved beyond its pandemic surge and is settling into steady growth driven by time pressure rather than emergency adoption
Profitability is under strain as retailers juggle rising fulfilment costs with heightened consumer price sensitivity
Rapid delivery is shifting from a distress solution to a routine part of everyday grocery missions
Regulatory pressure around HFSS, pricing transparency and sustainability is tightening operational constraints
Technology investment, from automation to AI and micro-fulfilment, is becoming a key source of competitive advantage
Usage is led by busy families and higher-income households, not simply younger or more digitally confident shoppers
Supermarkets are reinforcing their leadership while platforms pivot towards logistics and Amazon renews its push into ultra-fast delivery
Market Definitions
This report includes both online retailing market and consumer data around the retailing of grocery products online.
Our market size for online grocery includes:
Major grocers’ online sales of food and drink and other grocery products.
Online-only grocers’ sales (eg Ocado)
Specialist food and drink retailers’ online sales.
Online-based food box and recipe box delivery schemes.
It excludes:
Foodservice delivery (eg restaurant or fast-food takeaways ordered online). However, grocery delivery via predominantly foodservice platforms (eg Deliveroo) is included.
Instant delivery when paying by credit card, invoice orders may take longer
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