US private-label brands continued to outperform national brands in unit sales in the first half of 2026, but national brands grew faster in dollar sales, according to a midyear report from the Private Label Manufacturers Association (PLMA).
Private label is experiencing its strongest growth in food categories over the six months ending June 14, PLMA reported.
While year-over-year unit sales for national brands dipped 0.5% in the first half of the year, private label unit sales were up 0.2%.
Private label market share growing
Store brands grew their share of the grocery market in the US to a new high of 23.8% unit market share, PLMA noted, citing numbers from data analytics company Circana.
That puts the US closer to numbers in Europe, where store brands make up nearly half of sales in some countries like the UK and Switzerland, and around a quarter in Spain and the Czech Republic, PLMA said at its annual conference in November.
“For the 52-week period ending June 14, in 166 food categories where store brands are sold, 52% experienced private label unit growth; in 164 nonfood categories where the products are available, 39% recorded private label unit growth,” PLMA reported.
Big store brand winners
The biggest winners in terms of unit growth were pet food at 4.8%, beverages up 1.8% and refrigerated products up 1.5%, according to PLMA.
Grocery spending has cooled over the last few months, the association noted, and while store brands are not immune, they “managed to finish ahead of their national brand competitors in unit sales in five of Circana’s six monthly reporting periods so far this year,” PLMA said.
Although private label brands beat their national competitors in unit sales, dollar sales were flat for store brands, while national brands experienced an increase of 2.2% year over year for the first six months of 2026.
“The disconnect between unit sales and dollar sales reflects, in part, fluctuating national brand pricing. While some brands are lowering prices to regain consumers who have shifted to private label, others are increasing prices to offset higher fuel, raw material, ingredient and supply chain costs,” said Peggy Davies, PLMA president. “Unit sales remain the best measure of consumer choice, and Circana’s midyear results - including a record 23.8% unit market share for store brands - underscore the continued strength and growing appeal of private label.”
National-brands-only shoppers cut in half
PLMA noted that loyalty to national brands is splintering, dropping from 21% to 10% in less than a year, according to a survey by consumer insights platform Zappi. Nine out of 10 shoppers said they’ve changed how they shop because of rising costs, Zappi reported.
“The era of growth driven by price increases is coming to an end,” according to Zappi CMO Natali Kelly. “For CPG leaders to transform their businesses, they will need to compete on value instead of price, innovating and simplifying their product portfolios in the process. Nearly 70% of consumers would accept fewer options in exchange for lower prices.”
“This isn’t a post-pandemic correction. It’s a structural reset, and brands still betting on loyalty to absorb their next price increase may be the last to realize it.” Kelly added.
