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Swiggy’s quick commerce arm Instamart achieved contribution margin breakeven in the first quarter of FY27, with contribution margin turning positive at 0.2% of its gross order value (GOV) of ₹7,907 Cr.  

According to Swiggy’s shareholders’ letter, Instamart reached the milestone in May 2026, driven by higher per-order monetisation. Its adjusted revenue per order (RPO) increased to ₹108 during the quarter from ₹97 in Q4 FY26. 

Swiggy defines contribution margin (as a percentage of GOV) as the difference between adjusted revenue and the sum of order-level costs, including delivery, fulfilment and dark store expenses. 

The company said Instamart’s contribution margin loss had peaked at 5.6% of GOV in Q4 FY25. Since then, the foodtech major has shifted its focus towards improving unit economics by reducing spending on unprofitable users and orders that weighed on profitability.

Instead, Instamart invested in improving product availability, delivery speed, and curated value propositions to enhance customer experience. It also expanded partnerships with more than 400 brands to encourage larger basket sizes.

Swiggy said these initiatives weighed on Instamart’s sequential growth, as the company prioritised contribution margin breakeven over growth by shedding more than 4 Mn unprofitable users.

The business also narrowed its adjusted EBITDA loss to ₹778 Cr in Q1 FY27 from ₹896 Cr a year earlier and ₹858 Cr in the preceding quarter, reflecting improving operating leverage despite continued investments in expansion. 

Instamart also expanded its network to 1,171 darkstores across 131 cities, with 28 new additions in the June quarter. More than 45% of Instamart’s dark store network reported positive contribution margins during the quarter. Meanwhile, 25% of stores generated contribution margins in the 3%-5% range, while five of its seven largest cities also turned contribution margin positive.  

During the quarter, total orders on Instamart rose to 11.5 Cr from 9.2 Cr in the year-ago period. Average monthly transacting users also increased to 1.4 Cr from 1.1 Cr a year earlier. 

During the post-earnings call, Swiggy founder and Group CEO Sriharsha Majety said the company has deliberately moved away from aggressive discount-led customer acquisition in favour of sustainable unit economics. 

“In the last four quarters, we have taken a very, very contra choice in terms of conscientious overgrowth, and we believe that’s had much stronger staying power,” Majety said. 

He added that the strategy softened Instamart’s growth in the near term, as customers acquired primarily through discounts tend to reduce spending once incentives are withdrawn.

“Our growth has also been soft because the resets are quite big. Any player that has to make these choices is going to give up volumes. If you go after value as a proposition, you are going to acquire heavily value-sensitive consumers,” he said.

Overall, Instamart recorded a revenue of ₹1,232 Cr in the June quarter, up 52.9% from a revenue of ₹806 Cr in the corresponding quarter last year. 

The development comes at a time when Instamart is making its second attempt to transition to an inventory-led model from the current marketplace model, after an earlier such proposal was rejected by its shareholders. The foodtech giant now expects shareholders’ approval next month, post which the transition will complete over a period of 2-4 quarters.

Earlier this week, Instamart onboarded former Myntra CEO Nandita Sinhaas its new chief executive to lead its next phase of growth.  

Overall, Swiggy managed to trim its net loss for the quarter by 34% YoY and 1.1% QoQ  to ₹791 Cr. Meanwhile, its top line surged 37% YoY and 7% QoQ to ₹6,812 Cr during Q1 FY27.  

Shares of Swiggy ended today’s trading session 2.98% higher at ₹295.91 on the BSE. 

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