Hungry Londoners are the UK’s biggest fans of ordering takeaway food online – with almost half the capital’s population now buying pizza, curry and Chinese for home delivery online, while spending an astonishing monthly average of £170.
The rise of online home delivery companies like Just Eat and Deliveroo has helped boost the popularity in clicking for takeaway food over the past 12 months.
And according to new research by digital wallet and money transfer provider Neteller, 48% of Londoners regularly buy takeaway food for delivery online, compared to an average of 37% across the rest of the country — with an average annual total spend in the capital on online takeaway deliveries of £2,040.
While the average UK spend on monthly fast food and drink online in 2018 was £72, more than 1 in 10 Londoners regularly spent more than £200 each month. Yet millennial 25 to 34-year-olds in London were huge spenders, with 4% of them regularly paying out in excess of £500 a month over the course of the year.
Meanwhile more than a quarter of Londoners (28%) describe takeaway food as an ‘essential’ regular purchase, and a similar number (24%) say online takeaway food home delivery improves their quality of life.
Lorenzo Pellegrino, CEO of Neteller, said: “The rise of online home delivery takeaway food services means a delicious meal is only ever a few clicks away, and Londoners certainly took advantage in 2018, spending a lot of money in the process.
“The trend is only likely to continue, as shopping via apps on our phones becomes increasingly the everyday norm, and Londoners are likely to carry on clicking for takeaway food in 2019.
“Shopping online with the Neteller wallet means you can make fast, frictionless purchases and earn reward points when you spend, making that large cheese pizza taste even better.”
But delicious home deliveries at night can lead to regret the next day — and two in five (42%) Londoners say they often regret their online takeaway delivery, making it the joint third online purchase regret of 2018, according to the Neteller survey:
- Fashion items purchased online were later regretted by 48% of Londoners
- Home purchases – 46%
- Beauty – 42%
- Takeaways – 42%
- Vehicle – 41%
Purchase regret is also significantly higher in London than elsewhere in the UK, with all categories ranking higher for regret compared to other parts of the country.
Only 30% of Londoners NEVER regretted their 2018 online purchase, while 17% regretted a purchase because they couldn’t afford it, and 9% regretted it because they ordered by mistake.
In terms of Londoners’ overall online spending in 2018, vehicles, holidays and health topped the Neteller list:
- Vehicles: Londoners spent a monthly average of £752 or £9,024 over the 12-month period
- Holidays: £236/month or £2,832/year
- Health: £198/month or £2,376/year
- Beauty: £186/month or £2,232/year
- Takeaways: £170/month or £2,040/year
- Food: £166/month or £1,992/year
- Fashion: £151/month or £1,812/year
- Home: £148/month or £1,776/year
Additional London findings
Biggest spends
Results include rank, £/month, £/year and % of total spend for the region
| London | ||||
| #1 | Vehicle | £751.7/month | £9020.4/year | 25% |
| #2 | Holidays | £235.9/month | £2830.8/year | 8% |
| #3 | Health | £197.8/month | £2373.6/year | 7% |
| #4 | Beauty | £185.7/month | £2228.4/year | 6% |
| #5 | Alcohol | £185.1/month | £2221.2/year | 6% |
| #6 | Takeaways | £170/month | £2040/year | 6% |
| #7 | Food | £166/month | £1992/year | 5% |
| #8 | Fashion | £151/month | £1812/year | 5% |
| #9 | Home | £148.4/month | £1780.8/year | 5% |
Where Londoners shop online
| London | ||
| #1 | In bed | 52% |
| #2 | Watching TV | 47% |
| #3 | Riding the bus | 31% |
| #4 | At work | 30% |
| #5 | On a lounger | 15% |
| #6 | In a taxi | 13% |
| #7 | At the hairdressers | 9% |
| #8 | In the bath | 6% |
Spend on life’s pleasures
| London | |||
| #1 | Holidays | £235.9/month | £2830.8/year |
| #2 | Alcohol | £185.1/month | £2221.2/year |
| #3 | Takeaways | £170/month | £2040/year |
Takeaway spend
| Takeaways | ||||
| Rank | Region | Monthly | Yearly | ∆% UK Avg. |
| #1 | London | £170 | £2,040 | 236% |
| #2 | Northern Ireland | £132 | £1,588 | 184% |
| #3 | North East | £79 | £943 | 109% |
| #4 | South West | £64 | £772 | 89% |
| #5 | South East | £62 | £738 | 85% |
| #6 | North West | £54 | £643 | 74% |
| #7 | Scotland | £52 | £629 | 73% |
| #8 | West Midlands | £49 | £589 | 68% |
| #9 | East Midlands | £45 | £540 | 63% |
| #10 | Yorkshire & The Humber | £41 | £493 | 57% |
| #11 | East of England | £33 | £396 | 46% |
| #12 | Wales | £29 | £342 | 40% |
Alcohol spend
| Alcohol | ||||
| Rank | Region | Monthly | Yearly | ∆% UK Avg. |
| #1 | Northern Ireland | £200 | £2,398 | 215% |
| #2 | London | £185 | £2,221 | 199% |
| #3 | Yorkshire & The Humber | £116 | £1,396 | 125% |
| #4 | South East | £108 | £1,291 | 116% |
| #5 | West Midlands | £86 | £1,034 | 93% |
| #6 | North East | £77 | £923 | 83% |
| #7 | Scotland | £75 | £900 | 81% |
| #8 | South West | £62 | £742 | 67% |
| #9 | East Midlands | £48 | £571 | 51% |
| #10 | Wales | £38 | £455 | 41% |
| #11 | North West | £36 | £434 | 39% |
| #12 | East of England | £34 | £407 | 36% |
In addition:
- 16% of Londoners have used Cryptocurrency to buy goods online (#1 in UK)
- They also ranked #1 when it came to what they bought and how much they spent online. Fashion, Takeaway, Home, Beauty, Health and Vehicle all ranked #1 for avg. spent per month
- Fashion, Alcohol and Takeaways were all ranked #1 as being essential. Strangely only 77% viewed Insurance as an essential purchase
- While Londoners were not always the most likely to use credit for purchases, they were the least likely to say ‘never’
- Even though 51% shopped online while in bed (#1), London was still the most adventurous when it came to places to shop online. 31% did so while on the bus, 13% in a taxi, and a whopping 30% while at work (#1)
- Only 29% never regretted making an online purchase (#11)
- Despite Londoners spending the most in the UK on Fashion and Home per month (£151 and £148 respectively), nearly 50% regret these purchases (48% and 46% respectively)
- 17% regretted their purchases as they couldn’t afford it (#3), while 8% ordered by mistake (#1)
- London & Northern Ireland had the largest % of online purchasers, East Midlands & Wales the least
- 21% of Londoners bought takeaways because they were drunk
- London has a higher % of people spending> £100 per month (30%) on Health e.g. medicines, supplements, appointments/procedures
Time strapped Londoners forced to spend salaries on takeaways
Takeaway. Essential for Londoners
- 48% of Londoners buy takeaway online (37% population average)
- 49% spend more than £50 per month
- This is only just ranking 2nd behind Northern Ireland, where the figure is 52%
- 3rd is North East with 36%
- 2% of Londoners even admit to spending £1000 – £5000 per month, on takeaways alone.
- For Londoners, takeaway is less of a treat and more of an essential, with 28% listing their reason for buying as being
- just that, essential
- Compared to a 15% UK average
- 23% admit to buying it to improve their quality of life
- Compared to a 12% UK average
- However, don’t feel too sorry, 21% bought takeaway because they were drunk
- Compared to a 9% UK average
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