Quick commerce lights up Diwali as e-commerce orders jump 24%: Unicommerce

India’s e-commerce industry saw one of its most buoyant festive seasons yet, with order volumes jumping 24% year-on-year (YoY) and gross merchandise value (GMV) rising 23% during the 2025 Diwali season, according to new data from Unicommerce.

The report shows how festive consumption has broadened beyond metros. Tier II and III cities together accounted for 55% of all orders, an indication of how smaller towns are powering the next phase of digital retail growth.

Quick commerce platforms emerged as the biggest growth story this season, posting a 120% YoY surge in order volumes as consumers increasingly turned to 10–30 minute deliveries for festive essentials, gifts, and grocery purchases. Brand-owned websites also saw strong traction, with a 33% rise in orders, suggesting that direct-to-consumer brands are finding their festive rhythm. Marketplaces, while still the dominant channel with 38% of total orders, recorded a steadier 8% YoY growth.

Regionally, tier II cities led with 28% growth in order volumes, followed by tier I and metro cities at 24%, and tier III towns at 23%. The spread underscores how festive spending is no longer concentrated in large urban centers.

Among categories, FMCG stood out - buoyed by rising demand for fusion sweets, millet-based namkeens, and dry fruit combos. Home decor and furniture also performed strongly as consumers upgraded homes for Diwali, while beauty, wellness, and health supplements saw robust traction.

Digital payments continued to dominate, with prepaid orders rising 26%. Interestingly, Cash-on-Delivery (COD) also gained ground, up 22% in volume and 35% in GMV, pointing to bigger ticket purchases even among COD buyers.

Faster deliveries capped off the season’s momentum. Data from Unicommerce’s logistics arm, Shipway, showed a 15% improvement in average delivery times compared to last year, signaling stronger supply chain preparedness and more efficient last-mile execution.

The insights were drawn from over 150 million transactions processed on Unicommerce’s flagship Uniware platform.

Overall, the 2025 festive season reinforced India’s growing appetite for online shopping, and how e-commerce players, from quick commerce platforms to brand-owned websites, are scaling up to meet it.