The U.S. online grocery market finished June with $7.1 billion in total sales, down 1.2 percent compared to $7.2 billion in June, 2022, according to the Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey fielded June 29-30.
Despite a one percent increase in monthly active users buying groceries online, coupled with a three percent average order value increase versus last year, the gains did not offset the five percent drop in June’s average completed orders.
“Our 5-year forecast anticipated that 2023 would be a challenging year for egrocery so these results generally align with our expectations,” said David Bishop, partner at Brick Meets Click, in a statement. “So, while ship-to-home declines and delivery has mixed results, pickup’s stronger performance isn’t surprising as it is becoming more widely available and helps customers who want to shop online save money, which is certainly helpful in the current market.”
Pickup, delivery, and ship-to-home grocery delivery segments experienced mixed sales data.
Pickup sales grew 3.2 percent versus last year and accounted for nearly 49 percent of online grocery sales. A four percent expansion of pickup active users in June facilitated this growth, although average order values faltered slightly in this modality, according to the survey.
Continuing their downward trend, delivery sales fell for the second consecutive month. The segment’s sales declined 2.5 percent compared to June last year. This is likely due to a five percent contraction in monthly active users.
The findings reveal that ship-to-home continues to lag as households shift how they receive online grocery purchases. The segment experienced a 9.7 percent drop in sales compared to last June. Lower spending per order was also a factor as its average order values fell one percent on a year-over-year basis.
Overall, digital grocery sales’ share of total grocery spending also declined in June, dropping 2.3 percentage points to 11.9 percent compared to last year.
Related: June Inflation Hits Two-Year Low; Certain Food Categories Face Higher Prices