India’s rapid grocery delivery scene is turning into a battleground, with companies locking horns over every single order. The space is currently dominated by three key players: Blinkit, Zepto, and Swiggy Instamart—together accounting for nearly 88% of all deliveries in the segment.
Zepto, which only launched in 2021, has managed a dramatic rise. In just a short span, it has raced past Swiggy’s Instamart—despite being a year younger—and is now hot on the heels of Blinkit, the pioneer of this space that began operations back in 2013.
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A recent Moneycontrol report reveals that the quick commerce sector handled between 4.15 and 4.45 million orders every day in March. Blinkit led the pack with 1.65–1.75 million daily deliveries. Zepto wasn’t far behind, clocking in at 1.45–1.55 million. Swiggy Instamart followed with 1.05–1.15 million orders.
Zepto’s rise has been nothing short of explosive. In just one year, it tripled its order volume—scaling from about half a million orders per day in March 2023 to over 1.5 million in March 2024. Meanwhile, Blinkit and Instamart saw 90% and 60% growth, respectively, over the same period.
Even with the fierce competition, the market as a whole is thriving. A Bain & Company study noted that India’s quick commerce sector has grown fivefold since 2022, and it’s expected to keep climbing at a steady 40% annual rate for the next half-decade.
Customer behavior has also shifted. People are ordering more frequently each month—up from an average of 4.4 orders in 2021 to 6 orders by the end of 2024. That’s a strong indicator of how deeply integrated fast delivery has become in everyday life.
This rise hasn’t been easy on the old guard. BigBasket, Flipkart, and even Amazon have struggled to keep pace with this new model. According to Bain, nearly two-thirds of India’s online grocery orders in 2024 were placed through Q-commerce apps.
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At first, traditional e-commerce platforms tried to woo customers with better pricing, betting that affordability could outshine speed. But that playbook didn’t quite work. Eventually, even they jumped on the Q-commerce bandwagon—Flipkart, for example, introduced ‘Flipkart Minutes’—but by then, Blinkit, Zepto, and Instamart had already built a solid lead and loyal user base.
