H-E-B is the best online grocery store, study finds. Which giants did it topple?

The Texas-based grocery store H-E-B outranked its larger competitors to become the best online grocery store, according to an inaugural study.

The study from dunnhumby, a customer data analysis company, included metrics for financial performance, customer sentiment, ease and reliability, products, price and online presence. Dunnhumby reported surveying 3,000 online shoppers to rank 54 online grocery stores.

The company’s findings? “The dominance of grocery giants like Amazon, Walmart and its subsidiaries is not absolute,” the study reported.

H-E-B beat Amazon “by a nose,” the study found, because the Texas chain had a stronger “customer value proposition.” H-E-B “continuously scores highly on emotional connection, quality, operations, private brand, and assortment relevance.”

The chain began its online grocery store in 2015 and experienced a surge in demand at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, H-E-B beat out Trader Joe’s to be ranked the top grocery store chain in the country. The same year, the chain was found to have the best grocery delivery service in the U.S. thanks to its 99% accuracy.

Here are the top online grocery stores in the study:

1. H-E-B

2. Amazon

3. Amazon Fresh

4. Walmart

5. Sam’s Club

6. Kroger

7. BJ’s Wholesale

8. Sprouts

“H-E-B’s impressive performance proves that it’s possible to compete and win against Amazon when it comes to grocery e-commerce,” said Grant Steadman, president of Chicago-based dunnhumby North America, in a statement, according to My San Antonio.

Founded in 1905, H-E-B has been called a “cult grocer” by Eater and has more than 420 stores in Texas and Mexico.

Aspen Pflughoeft

McClatchy DC

Aspen Pflughoeft covers real-time news for McClatchy. She is a graduate of Minerva University where she studied communications, history, and international politics. Previously, she reported for Deseret News.