Tesco’s grip on the Northern Ireland grocery market continued to grow over the past year, new analysis suggests.
Data from Worldpanel by Numerator estimates the retailer took a 37.3% share of take home grocery spending in the north over the year to August 10 2025.
That represents a 7.2% increase on Tesco’s share 12 months earlier, the biggest increase among the listed multiples in that period.
Tesco’s share was bigger than the combined share of rivals Sainsbury’s (16.8%) and Asda (15.6%).
The analysis suggests Asda’s hold slightly slipped over the past year, with Lidl closing the gap on a 9.2% share.
Overall, Worldpanel by Numerator estimate £4.4 billion was spent in the north’s grocery sector in the year to August 10 2025, a 1.9% increase on the previous year.
“This growth was partly driven by warm summer weather and the tail end of the school holidays,” said Emer Healy, business development director at the data firm.
“Although shoppers made 2.5% fewer trips, they bought more per visit, which added £70.6 million to overall growth. Grocery inflation now stands at 3.09%, up from 2.97% last month.
“The final weeks of the holidays and the good weather encouraged shoppers to indulge in seasonal favourites, leading to an additional £7.8m spent on soft drinks, water and ice cream,” she added,
“Convenience also remained important, with £2.5m more spent on chilled ready meals and antipasti. A busy social calendar contributed to spending of more than £6m on sports and energy drinks.”