U.S. Supermarkets - Statistics & Facts
Supermarkets are one of the most important channels in the food retail industry, both for consumers who tend to prefer them over other options, and for the value they generate, with some of the major chains also being among the top retailers not only in the United States but across North America. Supermarkets and other grocery stores sales in the United States exceeded 854 billion U.S. dollars in 2024, more than double the amount generated in 1992. This constituted the majority of sales in the food and beverage industry and a large portion of total retail and food services sales in the country.
Supermarkets have a set path ahead, as consumers continue to rely on and flock to them. However, they shouldn't become complacent; instead, they continue focusing on expanding their online presence.
Size of the sector
With approximately 66,000 stores, supermarkets and other grocery stores are the main format in the U.S. food and beverage retail sector. They also represented the majority of sales of the sectoremployment size in grocery stores, most fall on the far ends of the spectrum, some having just under five employees and others over 500 employees.Leading companies
The Kroger company, leads as the largest supermarket in the country both in terms of sales, and in size, currently operating around 2,700 stores. Somewhat behind, with sales reaching just over half of Kroger's, comes Albertsons Companies, followed then by Royal Ahold Delhaize, which generated about 61 percent of its worldwide sales in the United States alone. Publix Super Markets came in fourth place among the leading supermarkets in the country, with about 57 billion U.S. dollars in sales.Consumer behavior and online shopping
U.S. consumers enjoy a wide variety of choices when it comes to where to purchase their groceries. In 2024, Statista's Global Consumer Survey found that 69 percent of consumers in the United States regularly shopped for food and everyday products from supermarkets. Over half of consumers tended to shop in-person, a behavior which increased amongthe older age groups. Huge potential in the supermarket sector exists in online grocery shopping, as evidenced by the share of food and beverage sales in total U.S. e-retail sales which showed constant growth between 2017 and 2024, and is expected to grow further by 2029.Supermarkets have a set path ahead, as consumers continue to rely on and flock to them. However, they shouldn't become complacent; instead, they continue focusing on expanding their online presence.
