Online retail is poised to have a big year in the Food & Beverage category — and it has delivery and omnichannel offerings to thank.
In 2025’s new State of American Ecommerce report from Digital Commerce 360, the 94 Food & Beverage retailers tracked in the Top 2000 Database accounted for $36.8 billion in online sales in 2024. That was up 14.6% year over year, led by Kroger and Albertsons. As recently as Feb. 18, Kroger expanded its work with Instacart to include a new same-day tier of service called Express Delivery, which the grocer is making free for its Boost by Kroger Plus loyalty program.
How food delivery fits into grocers’ planning
“Increasing ecommerce penetration is important to our model, as households who shop with us digitally and are in our stores are our most loyal customers and increase retail media monetization opportunities as well,” said Rodney McMullen, the CEO at Kroger, during a December 2024 earnings call. “As our digital business grows, particularly in our delivery network, it continues to have a larger impact on our financial results.
During Kroger’s fiscal third quarter, which was discussed on the call, Kroger’s digital sales grew 11% year over year. Delivery sales alone increased 18% over the same period. McMullen cited customer fulfillment centers as playing a vital role. All of this happened as overall sales fell slightly for the quarter, spotlighting how important digital sales are for grocers right now.
Kroger ranks No. 6 in Digital Commerce 360’s Top 2000 Database of North America’s largest online retailers by annual ecommerce sales. Albertsons is No. 19. Both fall under the Food & Beverage category in the Top 2000. Digital Commerce 360 projects Kroger’s online sales in 2025 will reach $19.98 billion.
Kroger web sales by year
Kroger leverages its physical operations to serve online customers to press its built-in advantage, which Mass Merchants such as Walmart, Target and Costco share. But Kroger isn’t alone in grasping the digital future for groceries. 50.0% of the Retail Chains in the Food & Beverage category within the Top 2000 offer buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS) to their customers.
Meanwhile, Albertsons added Grubhub to its delivery partners in 2024. Like Kroger, it also works with Instacart and DoorDash.
Why consumers want online delivery options for food and grocery
New survey results from consulting services firm The Feedback Group support the growing demand for online options. In its study of 1,230 online grocery shoppers, results showed that 79% of shoppers planned to maintain or increase their online shopping in the year ahead. Moreover, those shoppers gave supermarkets a higher approval rating (4.45 on a 5.0 scale) than they did Amazon (4.32).
“Supermarkets continue to lead the way in online grocery satisfaction, demonstrating strong execution in convenience, fulfillment, and service,” said Brian Numainville, principal at The Feedback Group, assessing the report’s findings. “As a channel, supermarket investments in ecommerce capabilities have clearly paid off, but there’s still room for improvement.”
Likewise, monthly online grocery spending so far in 2025 also indicates strong demand. January results tracked by the Brick Meets Click and Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey showed online grocery sales in the United States reaching $10 billion for just the second time (the first time was in October 2024). The latest total was also higher than that of January in the prior two years. The survey follows pickup, delivery and ship-to-home (via carrier) grocery orders. Of those three categories, pickup — which included in-store, curbside, lockers and drive-up orders — remains the largest area of monthly spending in the U.S., totaling $4.2 billion in January 2025.
Online grocery sales in January 2025
Much of this activity is driven by Mass Merchants — specifically Walmart — noted David Bishop, partner at Brick Meets Click. By satisfying shoppers with convenience and quality of experience, these retailers have also found paths to entrench their positions, building loyalty and capturing associated increases in spending.
“The ongoing waves of promotional tactics are having the intended positive impact on frequency and spend, and they are also increasing retention and share of wallet, which will make growth for their rivals more challenging going forward,” Bishop stated.
That opportunity has not gone unnoticed at the No. 1-ranked Mass Merchant Amazon, which began offering Prime members a $9.99 monthly or $99.99 annual grocery delivery subscription in August 2024 as an optional addition to their existing memberships.
To see the grocery category’s importance for the Whole Foods owner, look no further than Amazon’s February earnings call. While sharing results with investors, Brian T. Olsavsky, Amazon’s chief financial officer, named grocery alongside other areas where Amazon plans to invest for the long term. That puts it among priorities including Alexa, health care and Amazon’s satellite broadband subsidiary, Project Kuiper.
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