• Alcohol killing 3.3 million people a year

Aussies are filling their online shopping trollies with more grog than groceries, according to new research.

Roy Morgan e-commerce data shows that 2.2 per cent of Australians bought alcohol online last year in an average month, compared to 1.9 per cent who bought groceries in the same period.

This means that 426,000 Australians buy more alcohol than groceries on the internet.

Despite online groceries seeing a boost last year, alcohol is still the bigger category, Warren Reid, group account director for consumer products, told The New Daily.

“Alcohol has definitely got a head start ahead of supermarket because there are a lot of enthusiasts,” Mr Reid said.

Alcohol is certainly not the most popular online purchase overall. That honour goes to travel, accommodation, memberships and tickets for both men and women, according to ABS data.

But booze is beating groceries online despite the supermarket industry being five times larger than the alcohol industry.

That doesn’t necessarily mean we are a nation of web-savvy beer lovers. The Roy Morgan Research data more likely shows that online shopping has been slow to catch on, Mr Reid said.

Alcohol consumption in Australia has been on a steady decline ever since the 1960s, based on ABS statistics. But we are still in the second-highest category of boozers, slotting in behind notorious vodka-fiends Russia, according to the World Health Organisation.

Perhaps surprisingly, it is older buyers who make up the bulk of online alcohol buyers.

A huge 84 per cent of online alcohol buyers are over the age of 35. Those aged 35-49 are the most likely to buy alcohol online, with half of all online alcohol buyers are aged over 50.

While younger people (those aged 25-34) are the most prolific online shoppers, this age bracket only accounts for 14 per cent of those buying alcohol online.

This might be explained by older web users being more selective about what they drink, and browsing for boutique alcohol, Mr Reid said.

“I think the younger alcohol buyers are more likely to want to choose their alcohol when they’re there. It’s also more likely that they’re convenience buyers of alcohol – picking something up on the way to a party or needing something that’s chilled,” said Mr Reid.

“Younger people are higher consumers [of alcohol] in terms of volume, and the older are lower consumers of volume. So maybe they’re more selective when they get older,” he said.

While alcohol is trumping groceries for now, the online trend seems to be heading in the opposite direction.

“There’s been improvements made to the service that Coles and Woolworths offer from a supermarket online grocery perspective,” Mr Reid said. “They’re making it easier. They’ve reduced things like the delivery fees on certain days and even made it free on certain days. They are making it easier for the consumer.”