Low & no alcohol drinks performed strongly in UK supermarkets in May, as temperatures rose, with the category up 23%. 

Elsewhere in non-alcoholic drinks, flavoured water also proved popular, with sales of syrup up 31% year-on-year. Worldpanel by Numerator said this indicates that viral trends such as #WaterTok are influencing shopping behaviour. 

According to the latest data from the insight provider, the beer and cider category also grew by 6% in May. 

Ahead of the World Cup, Worldpanel by Numerator said that beer and cider, snacks and crisps and chilled pizza have all become promotional hotspots. 

More broadly, promotional spending in supermarkets continues to grow. Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Worldpanel by Numerator, said: “Nearly a third of all grocery spending is now on promotion, and that upward streak shows no sign of breaking.” 

Looking at overall supermarket performance, Ocado remains the UK’s fastest-growing grocer, with sales up 13.5% over the 12 weeks to 14 June 2026 compared with the same period last year. It now holds 2.2% of the market. 

Lidl, meanwhile, increased its share by 0.5 percentage points to 8.7%. Convenience retailer Co-op also returned to growth following its cyber-attack and now accounts for 5.3% of the market. 

Sainsbury’s grew ahead of the wider market and now makes up 15.3% of UK grocery sales. Tesco, the UK’s largest grocer, holds a 28% market share, with sales increasing by 1.2%. 

Morrisons’ market share remained flat at 8.4%, despite sales growth of 1.4%. Meanwhile, Asda holds 11.5% of the market, while Aldi accounts for 10.7%. 

Sales at Waitrose grew by 1.7%, while Iceland recorded growth of 2.2%, maintaining market shares of 3.5% and 2.2% respectively.