Overview

LocalCircles released a large‑scale consumer study on the quick‑commerce (instant‑delivery) market ahead of Diwali, gathering over 204,000 responses from users across 130 districts and 11,275 platform ratings. The research shows a decisive shift in shopper priorities: 71% of respondents will choose a platform based on the best prices or overall value, 65% on product quality, and 43% on low or no additional charges, while only 22% cite fast delivery as a key factor.

Festive Spending Landscape

The study projects urban Indian households will spend roughly ₹1.97 lakh crore on festive purchases this season, which is about ₹12,000 crore higher than the 2024 figure despite a moderation from the previous GST‑boosted surge. Approximately 57% of urban households plan to shop, with an average spend of nearly ₹20,000 per household. Top categories are clothing, footwear and accessories (72% of spend), home appliances and furniture (45%), travel (45%) and gourmet foods and gifting (39%). 83% of households intend to dip into savings for these purchases.

Timing Shift and Quick‑Commerce Opportunity

Economic uncertainty has prompted many households to postpone purchases until closer to Diwali, creating a last‑minute demand surge for quick‑commerce platforms that can deliver sweets, gifts, puja items, décor and other festive essentials directly to the doorstep.

Platform Growth Metrics (July–September 2026)

  • Blinkit: Net order value rose 79% YoY to ₹20,940 crore.
  • Swiggy Instamart: Gross order value increased 31% to ₹9,230 crore from 13 crore orders.
  • Zepto: Revenue more than doubled to ₹22,624 crore for the year ended March 2026, on over 64 crore orders.
  • Amazon Now: Crossed US$1 billion in annualised gross sales and doubled its city reach to over 120 cities within two weeks.
  • Flipkart Minutes: Expanded fourfold in a year to about 1,200 micro‑fulfilment centres across 150+ cities.
  • BigBasket: Operates 497 dark stores in the top ten cities.
  • JioMart Quick: Delivers groceries in under 30 minutes across 5,500 PIN codes.
  • Eternal added 308 Blinkit dark stores in the quarter, taking its network to 2,751 and targeting 3,500 by March 2027.
  • TeamLease Services expects festive temporary hiring to rise 15–20% year‑on‑year.

Order‑Value Habit

Despite the festive rush, quick‑commerce remains a low‑ticket habit: 69% of users typically place orders worth ₹200–₹999 (20% at ₹200‑₹399, 27% at ₹400‑₹599, 22% at ₹600‑₹999). Only 16% spend ₹1,000 or more per order. Platform‑specific average order values reported are ₹518 for Blinkit (Apr–Jun 2026), ₹575 for Amazon Now, and ₹708 for Swiggy Instamart (Jul–Sep 2026).

Fee Irritation

When asked how often extra charges (delivery, handling, small‑cart, surge, etc.) raise the final bill, 42% said very often and 18% said often, totaling 60%. Only 26% reported that extra fees rarely or never affect the bill. Minimum order thresholds for free delivery have risen to around ₹199 on major platforms.

Platform Preference for Festive Orders

  • Amazon Now: Preferred by 22% of users.
  • Blinkit: 19%.
  • Zepto: 14%.
  • BigBasket: 12%.
  • Swiggy Instamart: 9%.
  • Flipkart Minutes: 8%.
  • JioMart Quick: 4%.
  • 12% could not decide.

For everyday purchases, Blinkit leads with 31%, followed by Amazon Now (25%), BigBasket (12%), and Flipkart Minutes/Zepto (11% each).

Platform Ratings (out of 5)

  • Selection: Blinkit & BigBasket – 4.5; Amazon Now & Zepto – 4.
  • Quality: Amazon Now, Flipkart Minutes & BigBasket – 4.
  • Value: Amazon Now, Zepto & JioMart Quick – 4.
  • Customer Service: Amazon Now, Zepto & BigBasket – 3.5 (lowest across platforms).
  • Transparency of Charges: Amazon Now & Zepto – 4.5; JioMart Quick – 4.
  • Product Exclusivity: BigBasket – 4.5; Amazon Now – 4.
  • Speed: Blinkit – 5; Zepto – 4.5; Flipkart Minutes – 4.

Overall scores (out of 35): Zepto 27.5, Amazon Now 27.5, BigBasket 26, Blinkit 23.5, Flipkart Minutes 23.5, Swiggy Instamart 22, JioMart Quick 19.5.

Recommendations

For platforms: display the full price (including all fees) on the product page, keep fees low during the festive period, expand product range and availability, display best‑before dates, and strengthen quality checks with swift refunds/replacements.

For government: intensify monitoring of dark‑pattern practices during the festive season.

For consumers: verify the final amount before payment, remove unwanted items or memberships, compare total bills across apps, and report dark‑pattern violations.

Methodology

The survey covered 204,000+ respondents (63% male, 37% female) from 130 districts (45% tier‑1, 31% tier‑2, 24% tier‑3/4). Ratings were collected from 11,275 users across 100 districts, with at least 1,000 ratings per platform. Sampling ensured a minimum of 30% gender representation and 15% representation from each tier group. Margin of error is under 5% at a confidence level above 95% for the survey and under 10% at a confidence level above 90% for the ratings.

About LocalCircles

LocalCircles is India’s leading community social‑media platform that enables citizens and small businesses to raise policy and enforcement issues. It is also the country’s #1 pollster on governance, public and consumer interest.