Swiggy food delivery sees 17.6% growth in sales, reaches $860.2m

Swiggy, an India-based on-demand convenience platform, reported a 17.6% year-on-year increase in gross order value (GOV) for its food delivery segment, reaching 7,347 crore rupee (US$860.2 million).

Adjusted EBITDA margins improved to 2.9% of GOV, up from 0.5% last year.

The food delivery segment added 2.2 million monthly transacting users (MTUs) over the year.

In its quick-commerce division, Instamart saw a 101% year-on-year GOV growth, reaching 4,670 crore rupee (US$546.77 million) in the fourth quarter.

The platform added 316 new darkstores, bringing the total to over 1,000 stores across 124 cities.

Despite this growth, Instamart reported an adjusted EBITDA loss of 840 crore rupee (US$98.35 million) for the quarter.

🔗 Source: Swiggy

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ The food delivery journey from hyper-growth to profitable maturity

Swiggy’s food delivery margin expansion to 2.9% (from 0.5% a year ago) demonstrates the sector’s maturation into sustainable business models after years of cash-burning competition.

This transformation reflects a remarkable evolution from Swiggy’s early days when it reported just ₹11.6 lakhs in revenue against ₹2.1 crores in losses during FY14-15 1.

The improved profitability comes despite Swiggy holding a smaller market share (42%) compared to Zomato’s 58%, showing that scale alone isn’t the sole determinant of profitability in this sector 2.

Both major food delivery players have followed similar trajectories: starting with steep losses to capture market share, followed by IPOs (Zomato in 2021, Swiggy in 2024), and now focusing on operational efficiency 2.

This pattern aligns with the evolution of food delivery markets globally, where initial hyper-competition typically transitions into duopolies or oligopolies, enabling players to achieve sustainable economics.

2️⃣ Quick commerce emerges as the new battleground for growth

Swiggy’s aggressive expansion of 316 darkstores in a single quarter (more than the previous 8 quarters combined) highlights the strategic importance of quick commerce in India’s evolving e-commerce landscape.