Is Online Grocery Shopping Worth It? Here’s What Canadians Think

• Even as the trend of grocery shopping is being transformed by modernity, roughly 60% of consumers in Canada still prefer to buy groceries in stores. Barely 2.5% are people who only shop online.

• High costs, delivery problems, and low confidence in online systems deter the surge in online grocery shopping. A good mix of digital convenience and in-store benefits might be an answer for the future when hybrid modes will hold sway.

Grocery shopping continues to be an old-fashioned experience in buildings across Canada despite how other industries are going digital. According to a recent Dalhousie University and Caddle survey of 2,501 Canadians, 57.8% shop exclusively in stores and never use grocery apps. In contrast, only 2.5% do all of their shopping online. Meanwhile, 3.0% shop for groceries primarily online while still making occasional visits to a physical store.

On the facts, there is a clear line drawn between the technological side of things and consumer preference, which perhaps reflects deeper economic and behavioural patterns in food retail.

Consumer Preference for In-Store Shopping

Almost 60% of Canadians still prefer to see and feel fresh food before they have to purchase it, confirming the difficulty in getting used to totally digital grocery shopping. Trust in product selection, especially fresh produce, meat, and dairy, continues to be a reason many consumers prefer a more hands-on approach.

Especially with awareness of food price increases, consumers are sensitive to prices and want to ensure they are getting the best deal. Many consumers remain sceptical in trusting another person to select perishable goods for them because of fears of receiving inferior quality, wrong substitutes, or negligent handling.

Online Grocery Shopping Is Favoured for Non-Perishables

Any survey indicates that consumers tend to be more comfortable buying online for non-perishable items. Food such as pantry shelves, rice, pasta, and canned goods generally constitute the highest percentage of online orders at 32.6%.

• Snacks and beverages account for 13.0% of online grocery orders.
• Ready-to-eat meals represent 12.2%.
• Fresh produce, despite consumer hesitancy, still makes up 11.9%.
• Dairy and meat, where freshness is critical, account for 4.4% and 3.3%, respectively.

 Fresh and perishable goods continue to be among the least ordered categories, exacerbating consumers’ hesitation to put their trust in online grocery platforms for quality assurance.

Economic Barriers to Online Grocery Shopping

Whereas the convenience of digital shopping is attractive, the added expenses—delivery fees, price markups, and service charges—are enough to deter many consumers with limited budgets.

Food inflation continues to be an extreme concern in Canada, with shoppers intent on maximising their savings using in-store discounts, flyer promotions, and price comparisons. Many are unwilling to pay for a service that they do not wholly trust, especially since other shopping methods give them greater control over spending.

Common Challenges with Online Grocery Shopping

General challenges faced in the online grocery shopping experience are not just limited to concern for costs. Survey data suggest that the highest grievance from consumers relates to high delivery fees (35.9%). Other significant pains include:

• Substituted or unavailable items (27.5%)
• Missing items (26.0%)
• Poor packaging or damaged goods (18.2%)
• Late or missed deliveries (14.1%)

The greatest part of the remaining respondents, who accounted for 24.6%, were able to report no significant issues; however, at least one problem continued to be suffered by the rest: not having gone without the persistent inefficiencies in logistics and dissatisfaction among consumers in digital grocery services.

Online Grocery Sales in Canada vs. Other Markets

These days, online grocery sales account for merely 4.5% of total grocery revenues in Canada, which amounts to nearly $9 billion in sales. The current state of Canada concerning online grocery retail sales compared to other countries is alarming.

The Evolution of Grocery Shopping in CanadaIn this direction, grocery shopping in Canada will slowly change over time, instead of moving too quickly into digital spaces. There will need to be certain prerequisites for online grocery services to cross over into mass adoption:

• Reduce delivery fees
• Offer competitive pricing
• Improve customer experience with AI-driven recommendations
• Strengthen loyalty programs and retailer partnerships

Leading Canadian grocers such as Loblaw, Sobeys, and Metro have already invested in automated fulfilment centres and frictionless checkout technology; they are signalling that perhaps the hybrid model will become the future of food retailing.If the technology is applied, it will primarily serve for convenience and savings. Because at present, it is food that remains the most significant cause of discontent regarding affordable standards within Canadian households.Rather than moving back and forth between in-store and online shopping, grocery retailing shortly would have to become an intermediate stage. It would eventually comprise both ends in itself, as consumers will continuously enjoy the benefits of each, according to their demands, even financial realities.