Editor’s Note
This analysis of Spain’s consumer market reveals a shift toward more frequent, smaller shopping trips as households manage budgets amid stable growth. The data underscores evolving purchasing habits that retailers must navigate.
The mass consumption market in Spain has recorded growth of 3.5% cumulatively through August 2025, a figure that reflects stability but also the consolidation of new purchasing dynamics. This is according to the second installment of the “Distribution Balance” published by Worldpanel by Numerator, which confirms that households continue to exert strong control over spending through smaller baskets, a greater number of visits to points of sale, and increased alternation between retailers.
Consumption within the home grew by 4.4%, while consumption outside the home evolved more moderately. This difference reflects a clear pattern: consumers continue to prioritize domestic consumption, although without completely abandoning leisure or dining out. In fact, the growth in out-of-home consumption has been key to keeping the total mass consumption market – food, household goods, perfumery – in positive territory.
In terms of behavior, the report points to a relevant change in purchasing habits: visits to the aisles are multiplying, but the baskets are becoming increasingly lighter. Purchase frequency has increased by 5.4% in organized distribution and 3.1% in traditional distribution. In parallel, 13.6% of purchases are made in more than one chain on the same day, revealing greater fragmentation in the purchasing process and a growing willingness among consumers to split their spending between different operators.
This behavior responds, according to the study, to an attempt by households to optimize every euro invested in food and everyday consumer goods.
One of the major levers of this new equilibrium is the growth of retailer brands, which have added 1.7 percentage points so far in 2025 and already reach a 45.9% value share. This advance is largely driven by short-assortment chains, which are already approaching a 40% share (+1.5 p.p. compared to 2024). Regional chains also show positive behavior and reach 18.4% of the market (+0.5 p.p.).
In contrast, traditional formats continue to lose relevance, albeit at a slower pace than in previous years. The hypermarket, specifically, closes the first eight months of the year with a share slightly above 10%, representing a drop of 1.2 points. The traditional channel maintains a share close to 15% (-0.3 p.p.), confirming its slow but persistent decline.
Among the major chains, Mercadona continues to be the benchmark. It has increased its share by 0.7 percentage points so far this year and has reached a new record in the Levante region, with a 34.1% share, almost 2 points more than a year ago. The company is especially capitalizing on large baskets: 4 out of 10 large purchases are made in its supermarkets.
Lidl, for its part, has increased its share by 0.5 p.p. thanks to better conversion per category and an increase in shoppers.
Aldi is also growing solidly: it gains 1.8 p.p. in shoppers and increases its share by 0.2 p.p., supported by new openings and a more loyal customer base.
Dia, on the other hand, stands out for growth in shoppers (+1.2 p.p.) and a moderate recovery of its share (+0.2 p.p.), thanks to its proximity strategy and commitment to its own brand. In contrast, Carrefour suffers the impact of the hypermarket’s decline and does not fully compensate for it with its network of proximity stores.
According to the analysis by Worldpanel by Numerator, the competitive context for organized distribution is becoming increasingly complex. To the stability of the market is added the progressive loss of the traditional channel, while alternative options such as e-commerce grow.