Online shopping and labelling

2025 Key insights

More than half of respondents (58%) had shopped for food/drink online via various online platforms in the past 30 days. A higher proportion of Australians (62.9%) than New Zealanders (50.4%) reported using any online platform.
Supermarket grocery shopping (36.8%) and ordering meals or drinks from a restaurant or take‑away (32.4%) were the most reported online services used. Smaller proportions of respondents reported using online platforms to order alcohol (14.0%), groceries from a delivery service (12.8%), groceries from a speciality retailer (12.8%), and meal delivery kits (8.1%).
Ordering groceries ‘once a week’ or ‘two or three times’ in the past 30 days was the most common frequency of use (28 to 34% depending on online platform). Alcohol was ordered less frequently, with 37% of respondents having done so ‘only once’ in the same period. Everyday purchasing was rare across all categories.
Convenience was the most reported motivation for ordering groceries from a supermarket online (53.7%), followed by efficiency and time saving (50.2%) and ease of budgeting (32.2%).
When shopping online, price was the information respondents sought most (70.9%), followed by the ingredients list (34.9%) and the Nutrition Information Panel (32.1%).
Just over a quarter of respondents (26.1%) reported finding it difficult to find nutrition information when shopping for food/drink online. Similar proportions of respondents reported that it was either easy (35.4%) or neither hard nor easy (33.2%). And 5.3% do not look for this type of information.

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Use of online food shopping

Fifty-eight percent of respondents reported using at least one of the listed online platforms to order food or drinks in the past 30 days. Among those who reported doing so, the most reported online food service was ordering groceries from a supermarket, with just over a third of respondents having used this platform in the past 30 days (36.7%).

Bar chart showing online food services used in the past 30 days: “None of the above” (42%) and supermarket groceries (37%) are highest, followed by restaurant/take-away meals (32%), with all other options at 14% or less. — Online food services used by respondents in the past 30 days (n = 2,020). *Q: Have you ordered any of the following online (including using a mobile app) for pick up or delivery in the past 30 days? (Select all that apply)*

Ordering groceries ‘once a week’ or ‘two or three times’ in the past 30 days was the most common frequency of use. However, alcohol was ordered less frequently with the most selected response being ‘only once’ in the same period.

Grouped bar chart showing frequency of online food shopping: most respondents use services once a week or two to three times (around 27–34%), supermarket and specialty grocery use is more regular, while alcohol is most often purchased only once (37%); daily use is very low (0–2%) across all categories. — Frequency of use of online food shopping in the past 30 days. Q: How often did you order [groceries from a supermarket; groceries from a speciality retail store; groceries from a delivery service; alcohol] online or using a mobile app in the past 30 days?

Online food shopping motivations

Groceries online from a supermarket

Convenience was the most reported motivation for ordering groceries from a supermarket online or using a mobile app (53.7%; n = 743). This was followed by efficiency and time saving (50.2%) and ease of budgeting (32.2%).

Groceries online from a specialty retail store

For respondents who had ordered groceries online from a specialty retail store, better price and availability of discounts was the most commonly cited motivation (40.2%; n = 259), closely followed by better product availability and variety (38.6%) and efficiency and time saving (37.5%).

Bar chart showing motivations for ordering groceries online from a specialty retailer: better prices or discounts (40%) and product variety (39%) are the top drivers, followed closely by saving time (38%) and convenience (37%), with all other reasons at 33% or less. — Respondent motivation for ordering groceries online from a specialty retail store (n = 259). Q: What are the main reasons you ordered groceries from a specialty retailer online or using a mobile app, rather than going to a physical store? (Select all that apply) *Proportions may not add up to 100% as respondents could select multiple responses

Groceries from an online delivery service

Among respondents who had ordered groceries online using a delivery service (e.g. Amazon, Milkrun), efficiency and time saving was the most commonly cited motivation (44.2%; n = 258), followed closely by convenience (43.0%). Better price and availability of discounts and better product availability and variety were the third most selected motivations (both 32.2%).

Bar chart showing motivations for ordering groceries online via a delivery service: saving time (44%) and convenience (43%) are the top reasons, followed by product variety and discounts (both 32%), with all other factors at 30% or less. — Respondent motivation for ordering groceries from an online delivery service (n = 258). Q: What are the main reasons you ordered groceries from a delivery service (e.g. Amazon, Milkrun etc) online or using a mobile app, rather than going to a physical store? (Select all that apply) *Proportions may not add up to 100% as respondents could select multiple responses.

Alcohol ordered online

For online or mobile app alcohol purchases, convenience was most commonly cited motivation (42.4%; n = 283), followed by better price and availability of discounts (39.2%) and efficiency and time savings (36.4%).

Bar chart showing motivations for ordering alcohol online: convenience (42%) and better prices or discounts (39%) are the top drivers, followed by saving time (36%), with all other reasons at 25% or less. — Respondent motivation for ordering alcohol online (n = 283). Q: What are the main reasons you ordered alcohol (e.g. wine, beer) online or using a mobile app, rather than going to a physical store? (Select all that apply) *Proportions may not add up to 100% as respondents could select multiple responses.

Use and availability of online food product information

Price was the most commonly sought piece of information when shopping for food and drink online (70.9%), followed by the ingredients list (34.9%), and the Nutrition Information Panel (32.1%).

Bar chart showing information people look for when shopping online: price is by far the most important (71%), followed by ingredients (35%) and nutrition information (32%), with all other factors at 29% or less. — Information respondents typically look for when shopping for food/drink online (n = 894). *Q: What kind of information do you typically look for when shopping online? (Select all that apply) *Proportions may not add up to 100% as respondents could select multiple responses*

Thirty-five percent of respondents found it least somewhat easy to find nutrition information, while 26.1% found it ‘somewhat difficult’ or ‘very difficult’. Thirty-three percent selected a neutral response and 5.3% do not look for this type of information.

Bar chart showing self-reported ease of finding nutrition information online: responses are mixed, with most reporting neutral (33%) or somewhat easy (26%), while some find it somewhat difficult (22%); very easy (9%) and very difficult (4%) are less common. — Respondents self-reported ease in finding nutrition information when shopping for food/drink online (n = 847). *Q: How easy or hard is it to find nutrition information (e.g. Nutrition Information Panel, Allergen information, Ingredients list, Health Star Rating etc) when shopping for groceries online?*

Among respondents who found it somewhat or very difficult to find nutrition information when shopping for groceries online, the most commonly cited reason for this was inconsistent availability of information (52.1%), closely followed by poor legibility (48.7%).

Bar chart showing reasons for difficulty finding nutrition information online: inconsistent availability (52%) and poor legibility (49%) are the main issues, followed by mismatched product information (24%), with all other reasons at 13% or less. — (n = Reasons why respondents find it difficult to find nutrition information when shopping for groceries online 234). Q: Why do you find it difficult to find nutrition information (e.g. Nutrition Information Panel, Allergen information, Ingredients list, Health Star Rating etc.) when shopping for groceries online? (Please select all that apply) *Proportions may not add up to 100% as respondents could select multiple responses

Page last updated: 28 May 2026