Parle Products retains India’s most chosen FMCG brand title for 14th year

NEW DELHI: Some things in the Indian pantry are harder to replace than a family recipe. Parle Products has retained its crown as India’s most chosen in-home fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) brand for the 14th consecutive year, according to the Brand Footprint India 2026 report by Worldpanel by Numerator.

The latest edition of the annual report, which tracks consumer choices made in 2025, found that FMCG brands collectively recorded 129 billion Consumer Reach Points (CRPs), up 5.1 per cent from 123 billion in 2024.

CRP measures how often households choose a brand by combining household population, penetration and purchase frequency. In other words, it looks beyond simply whether a brand is bought to how often shoppers keep coming back to it.

Parle Products topped the in-home rankings with 8,515 million CRPs, although its score slipped 1 per cent from the previous year. Britannia Industries followed closely with 8,296 million CRPs, up 1 per cent.

Amul retained third place with 6,922 million CRPs, rising 6 per cent. Clinic Plus ranked fourth with 3,971 million CRPs, while Surf Excel completed the top five with 3,861 million CRPs, up 12 per cent.

The rest of the top 10 saw more movement. Tata Consumer Products ranked sixth with 3,418 million CRPs, up 10 per cent, while Nandini climbed to seventh with 3,240 million CRPs, a 17 per cent increase.

Sunfeast was eighth at 2,921 million CRPs, while Balaji Wafers broke into the top 10 at ninth, recording 2,876 million CRPs, up 19 per cent. Haldiram’s rounded out the list with 2,780 million CRPs, up 11 per cent.

The report points to a growing advantage for brands that already have a broad household reach.

Brands with penetration of at least 30 per cent increased their CRPs by 8.1 per cent in 2025, with 83 per cent expanding their reach. Mid-sized brands with penetration between 10 per cent and 30 per cent grew 7.5 per cent, while 78 per cent increased their CRPs.

Smaller brands with penetration below 10 per cent, meanwhile, grew 4.7 per cent, with only 56 per cent managing to increase their CRPs.

The numbers also highlight the strength of regional dairy brands. Nandini, Aavin, Milma and Vijaya have relatively low household penetration, but make up for it through frequent purchases. Their average purchase frequencies stood at 182, 164, 219 and 213 times a year, respectively.

At a sector level, beverages emerged as the fastest-growing category, with CRPs rising 8.6 per cent in 2025 compared with 6.6 per cent in 2024. The segment accounted for 8 per cent of total FMCG CRPs.

Foods, which made up the largest 38 per cent share, grew 4.8 per cent, down from 6.9 per cent a year earlier. Dairy accounted for 18 per cent and grew 5.5 per cent, while homecare grew 4.6 per cent and health and beauty increased 4.2 per cent.

Several brands also recorded notable gains during the year.

Rin returned to the top 25 at rank 24 after its CRPs rose 11 per cent, supported by brand modernisation and a move towards liquid formats. Dettol climbed seven places to rank 36 with 972 million CRPs, helped by a broader positioning around family protection.

Sunrise moved up eight places to rank 48 after expanding into eastern markets, while Exo jumped 11 spots to rank 52 after increasing penetration through antibacterial positioning, price-point packs and liquid products.

Campa was among the biggest penetration gainers, rising from 0.3 per cent in 2023 to 4.1 per cent in 2025.

The snacking story changes once consumers leave their kitchens.

Britannia topped the out-of-home rankings with 619 million CRPs, despite a 6 per cent decline. Balaji followed with 499 million CRPs, while Haldiram’s took third place at 476 million.

Cadbury ranked fourth at 450 million CRPs, while Amul entered the out-of-home top five for the first time with 281 million CRPs.

Lay’s, Parle Products, Kurkure, Bingo! and Sunfeast completed the top 10.

In beverages consumed outside the home, Amul led with 62 million CRPs, followed by Thums Up, Frooti, Sprite and Maaza.

K. Ramakrishnan, managing director, South Asia, Worldpanel by Numerator, said CRP captures the “moment of truth” when brand strategy meets consumer intent.

For India’s FMCG players, the lesson is fairly simple: getting noticed may win a shopper once, but winning a permanent place in the basket takes something more. Parle’s 14-year run shows just how powerful that habit can become.