Unicommerce Diwali 2026 Report: 85% of Festive Orders Below ₹1,000
Prepaid payments accounted for 61% of festive orders, while quick commerce recorded 75% growth in order volumes.
India’s Diwali 2026 shopping season highlights a shift in consumer behaviour, with shoppers increasingly choosing direct-to-consumer (D2C) websites for specific purchases and quick commerce platforms for convenience-led, last-minute shopping.
According to Unicommerce’s latest festive report, overall e-commerce order volumes grew 21% year-on-year (YoY). The analysis covered more than 138 million order items processed through Uniware, Unicommerce’s flagship e-commerce management platform, across the 2025 and 2026 festive cycles.
The study compares the peak festive shopping period from 6 October to 4 November 2026 with the corresponding period from 17 September to 16 October 2025. It highlights changing purchase preferences, channel performance, regional demand and digital payment adoption.
Affordable Purchases Drive Festive Order Volumes
Unicommerce’s analysis of transaction price categories found that orders valued below ₹1,000 accounted for 85% of total festive orders. This reflects the strong contribution of affordable, everyday and low-ticket purchases to India’s online shopping volumes.
Categories such as fashion accessories, organic foods, personal care and everyday lifestyle products emerged as key contributors to this segment. Therefore, affordable products continue to play an important role in shaping India’s festive e-commerce market.
Quick Commerce and D2C Channels Record Strong Growth
Specialised commerce channels played a significant role during the 2026 festive season. In particular, quick commerce and D2C platforms recorded stronger growth rates than traditional online marketplaces.
Quick Commerce: Quick commerce emerged as the fastest-growing channel, with order volumes rising 75% YoY and gross merchandise value (GMV) increasing 38%. This growth highlights its expanding role beyond convenience-led purchases, as consumers increasingly use these platforms for mainstream shopping.
D2C Brands: D2C brand websites also recorded strong momentum. Order volumes increased 30%, while GMV grew 26%. This trend reflects the growing preference for direct engagement with brands and their online shopping platforms.
Online Marketplaces: Despite the growth of specialised channels, online marketplaces continued to command the largest share of overall order volumes. They recorded 8% YoY growth in order volumes and a 6% increase in value terms, supported by their extensive networks.
Tier-3 Cities Lead Regional E-commerce Growth
The report also highlights the growing contribution of smaller cities to India’s festive online shopping activity. As e-commerce penetration expands beyond metropolitan markets, Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities are becoming important consumption hubs.
Tier-3 cities accounted for the largest share of festive order volumes at 41%, registering 26% YoY growth. Meanwhile, Tier-2 cities contributed 24% of overall volumes and recorded 23% growth.
In comparison, Tier-1 cities and major metropolitan markets accounted for 34% of total order volumes, with growth of 13%.
These figures underline the increasing importance of smaller cities in driving India’s online retail expansion.
Prepaid Payments Reflect Growing Digital Confidence
Digital payment adoption also remained a key trend during the festive season. According to Unicommerce, prepaid transactions accounted for 61% of all festive orders, indicating growing consumer confidence in digital commerce.
The shift was particularly visible in Tier-3 cities, where prepaid transaction volumes increased by more than 40% YoY. Furthermore, emerging digital commerce hubs such as Kolar, Kamrup, Gandhinagar and Rohtak are seeing more consumers choose digital checkouts to access upfront platform rewards.
Overall, Unicommerce’s Diwali 2026 analysis points to a changing e-commerce landscape. Affordable purchases continue to drive order volumes, while quick commerce and D2C platforms are gaining momentum. At the same time, Tier-3 markets and prepaid payments are strengthening their role in India’s digital retail growth.
