Unpacking June’s eGrocery Performance, Fulfillment Nuances, and Macro Retail Shifts

The U.S. eGrocery market continues to experience significant year-over-year (YOY) growth for the first half of 2026, driven by faster order cycle times, lower user friction, and shifting shopper patterns. However, below the top-line growth lies a widening split between how supermarkets and mass retailers are competing for more market share and a larger share of their customers’ wallets.

1. The Latest eGrocery Results: Frequency & Delivery Surge

In June 2026, topline eGrocery sales remained in hypergrowth mode as fast-fulfillment availability expanded and user costs declined driving strong adoption, according to the most recent Brick Meets Click Grocery Shopping Survey fielded June 29 – 30, 2026.

• ‍Ordering: Order frequency by monthly active users (MAUs) increased to more than the 3-orders-per-month for the first time, extending the metric’s YOY growth streak to 22 consecutive months.‍
• Spending: Gains in order values gathered steam, propelled by Amazon’s expansion of its Ship-to-Home sub-same-day grocery service that includes perishables.‍
• Users: While the total base of all eGrocery MAUs showed modest YOY gains due to tough 2025 comps, Delivery MAUs grew by double digits YOY – largely fueled by Walmart’s continued push to capture a greater share of customer’s wallet via a broader range of service options.

2. Fulfillment Clarity: You Can't Manage What You Don't Measure

Tracking Delivery separately from Ship-to-Home and understanding the nuances of the two services are essential if Supermarkets are going to be able to plan effective strategies for responding because the two distribution methods satisfy very different buying behaviors and exhibit different cost-to-serve profiles and operational models.

If you don’t distinguish between the various Ship-to-Home and Delivery fulfillment services, you’ll have a distorted view which will negatively impact planning and strategy activities. For example:

• Amazon's Nuance: Amazon’s same-day grocery service (which includes perishables) generally falls under Ship-to-Home, but its ultra-fast "Now" service is considered Delivery.
• Walmart's Drone Delivery: Walmart’s expanding drone service option is classified as Ship-to-Home despite fulfillment times often under 30 minutes, while receiving an order within three hours is Delivery.

To clearly understand the changing competitive landscape, Supermarkets need to track and monitor these two methods separately.

3. The Need for Speed: Sub-Same-Day Drives Delivery Growth

The U.S. market is overwhelmingly same-day Delivery, with more than 80% of Delivery orders fulfilled the same day. Within the same-day segment, sub-same-day (under 3 hours) dominates:

• In just one quarter – between 1Q26 and 2Q26 – sub-same-day eGrocery orders expanded from over half of total Delivery volume to nearly two-thirds.
• During that period, all market gains originated from orders being received in 1 hour or less.
• Some regional banners, like H-E-B, Jewel, and most recently Hy-Vee have introduced sub-same-day options, although they have picked different paths to execute.

What’s clear, however, is that those who can accelerate Delivery order cycle times will be in a stronger competitive position – and well positioned to then extend that to Pickup, which is where Walmart is expected to raise the bar eventually.

4. Big Picture: What Census Data Suggests for Supermarkets

The Census Bureau’s monthly retail sales figures show that Food & Beverage store sales (NAICS 445) are decelerating while General Merchandise sales are accelerating – reflecting a broader "Flight-to-Value." At the same time, Food & Bev and Gen Merch store sales (combined) grew less than 2% YOY, while total online grocery sales jumped more than 20% over the same period according to Brick Meets Click’s ongoing tracking of eGrocery sales for 1H26 versus 1H25.

Taken together, it’s evident that sales leaking from physical Supermarket aisles are moving online and mainly toward Walmart via Delivery and Amazon through Ship-to-Home.

Takeaways: Regional Grocers

Grocers face a high-stakes balancing act between online convenience and in-store execution.

• Slowing Online Leakage: Smart investments in your e-commerce platform need to align with modern speed expectations. Success will also require deeper customer analysis and targeted, personalized offers rather than relying on promotional elements.
• Protecting the Core: At the same time, grocers cannot neglect the physical store. In-store sales still account for approximately 90% of a Supermarket’s overall grocery sales, making this the first line of defense against Walmart and Amazon.

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