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The news: Instacart鈥檚 efforts to win over more cost-conscious consumers and its growing suite of enterprise and advertising solutions helped the company handily beat Q2 expectations. Coming on the heels of record quarters for DoorDash and Uber, Instacart鈥檚 strong results point to resilient demand for delivery services in an otherwise challenging consumer environment. Instacart鈥檚 strong Q2 shows that the company is well-equipped to manage any slowdown in US digital grocery sales鈥攁s well as fend off growing competition from Uber and DoorDash. The surge in orders will be particularly reassuring to advertisers, particularly the many CPGs looking to increase marketing spend.

Amazon is expanding same-day delivery for fresh groceries to over 1,000 US cities, with plans to reach 2,300 by late 2025. The rollout integrates perishables into its core app for single-cart checkout alongside other goods, offering Prime members free delivery on orders over $25. Early pilots saw strong adoption, especially from first-time grocery buyers who shopped more frequently after trying fresh food. The move pressures rivals like Walmart, Instacart, and Kroger in a slowing but sizable $271 billion online grocery market. If Amazon can convert trial users into loyal customers, it could reshape expectations for grocery delivery speed and convenience.

Growth rates will decline, but digital grocery will remain a key focus for retailers looking to drive incremental sales dollars in ecommerce.

How can retailers in grocery, the second-largest ecommerce category, optimize their online business to succeed?

Grocery is the second-largest ecommerce category we track, garnering $220.48 billion in 2025, according to our 鈥淯S Digital Grocery Forecast 2025鈥� report. Walmart is the top digital grocery retailer, capturing 31.6% of US grocery ecommerce sales in 2025, followed by Amazon (22.6%) and Kroger (8.6%).

Demand for food delivery strengthened in Q2, DoorDash and Uber said, as more customers become used to ordering restaurant meals and groceries online. Order frequency on Uber鈥檚 delivery platform reached all-time highs during the quarter, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in prepared remarks, while volumes and profitability for the unit also hit record levels. Delivery bookings jumped 20% YoY, while revenues surged 25%. DoorDash also broke records, with total orders (up 20% YoY), marketplace GOV (up 23%), and revenues (up 25%) all surpassing previous quarterly highs. Food delivery is one area that is so far immune to uncertainty鈥攁 sign that consumers are increasingly wedded to services that offer convenience, and are willing to pay a premium (or at least a membership fee) to get food and other goods delivered quickly to their doors.

Canada鈥檚 ecommerce market is catching up with global peers. A key factor: the growing digital presence of the 鈥渂ig three鈥� grocery players鈥攚hose ecommerce sales we鈥檙e forecasting for the first time.

The National Retail Federation鈥檚 (NRF) Big Show closed earlier this week, bringing together retailers, tech companies, and industry experts to discuss the future of retail. Key takeaways included Gen Z鈥檚 influence on shopping, which will last even if TikTok goes away, the accelerating trend cycle, hesitation to adopt new payment technologies, and the transformation of digital grocery. Here are four takeaways from the event.

The trend: Consumers are less satisfied with chain drugstores than with mail-order pharmacies, mass market merchandisers, and supermarket pharmacies, according to JD Power鈥檚 US Pharmacy Study. Our take: We expect consumers to increasingly explore different channels for getting their prescriptions, both in-person and online鈥攅specially folks in areas affected by drugstore closures. CVS and Walgreens have a built-in advantage of established pharmacy customers, but will lose more of them if they don鈥檛 address long lines at the counter and improve their online and in-app capabilities.

Digital grocery sales are growing again across Western Europe as inflation forces higher spending, click and collect gains momentum, and mobile loyalty schemes come to the fore. 鈥�

As the digital grocery landscape grows more crowded, retailers must meet consumers' expectations around product selection, mobile app features, and fulfillment. 鈥凄颈驳颈迟补濒 grocery is no longer an emerging category,鈥� said our analyst Blake Droesch. 鈥淚t鈥檚 grown really fast over the last couple of years, and the market is pretty mature at this point.鈥� Here are three ways retailers can stay competitive, according to our Digital Grocery Opportunity report.

Grocery is set to become the largest US ecommerce category by 2026.

Grocery sales shifting online is a lasting legacy of the pandemic: We expect 13.7% of grocery sales to occur online this year, more than double the 6.2% share in prepandemic 2019.

More Amazon Prime shoppers purchase groceries from Walmart than from the ecommerce retailer, according to Coresight Research data reported by Grocery Dive. While grocery is a hugely important category for Amazon to conquer, its efforts so far have been hampered by a complex ecosystem. The retailer鈥檚 attempts to unify that system could result in a more seamless experience for shoppers, while its fast delivery capabilities could make it a more appealing place to shop for perishables.

Grocery delivery intermediaries like DoorDash and Uber are gaining ground, offering new ways to reach high-intent shoppers. Meanwhile, retailers like Walmart and Amazon continue to lead with strong delivery infrastructure and valuable customer data.

Over half (56%) of US adults commonly purchase private label grocery/food and beverage products, the most popular category of private label purchased, according to April 2025 data from First Insight.

Walmart has the largest audience of any digital grocery platform. But our survey found that Amazon Fresh customers were more active and willing to try new products.

Shopping habits foretell the next phase of digital growth for grocery products.