Parle Products has retained its position as India’s most chosen in-home FMCG brand for the 14th consecutive year, while Britannia has once again topped the country’s out-of-home (OOH) FMCG rankings, according to the Brand Footprint India 2026 report by Worldpanel by Numerator.

The report, released on 13 August, ranks 427 FMCG brands across food, home care, health and beauty, beverages, snacking and dairy, based on Consumer Reach Points (CRPs). The metric combines the number of consumers buying a brand with the frequency at which they purchase it, offering a measure of how often brands are actually chosen by shoppers.

Key highlights

•    Parle Products retained the top position in the in-home rankings with 8,515 million CRPs, ahead of Britannia at 8,296 million.
•    Britannia continued to lead the out-of-home rankings with 619 million CRPs.
•    Amul broke into the OOH top five for the first time, rising from sixth to fifth.
•    Balaji entered the in-home top 10 for the first time, moving from rank 11 to rank 9.
•    Lay’s and Bingo also moved up in the OOH top 10.
•    FMCG brand choices in India grew 5.1% in 2025, although Food and Dairy grew more slowly than in the previous year.

In-home rankings

Parle Products remained firmly at the top of the in-home rankings, recording 8,515 million CRPs, followed by Britannia at 8,296 million and Amul at 6,922 million. 

The rest of the top five remained unchanged from last year, with Clinic Plus at fourth place with 3,971 million CRPs and Surf Excel at number five with 3,861 million.

Tata Consumer Products ranked sixth with 3,418 million CRPs, while Nandini entered the seventh position. Sunfeast slipped one place to eighth with 2,921 million CRPs. Balaji's rise from 11th to ninth, with 2,876 million CRPs, marked its first entry into the in-home top 10. Haldiram's completed the top 10 at 2,780 million CRPs.

The findings point to a broader growth in FMCG brand choices, which increased 5.1% in 2025. However, growth was not evenly distributed. According to Worldpanel by Numerator, all sectors recorded growth, although Food and Dairy expanded at a slower pace than the previous year.

Dairy brands, in particular, continue to have relatively low penetration. However, increased purchase frequency is helping these brands generate higher CRPs, suggesting that a smaller consumer base can still translate into stronger brand choice when shoppers buy more frequently.

The report also highlights a widening challenge for smaller FMCG brands. While highly penetrated brands mostly managed to grow their CRPs, only 56% of small brands recorded CRP growth.

This suggests that simply achieving visibility or initial consumer reach is becoming less sufficient. Brands increasingly need to convert that reach into repeat purchase and sustained consumer choice.

Among the notable in-home performers, Rin returned to the top 25 after a two-year absence, with CRPs rising 11% to 1,268 million. The growth was attributed to product modernisation and a greater focus on liquid formats.

Campa recorded one of the steepest increases in penetration, gaining 2.7 percentage points as it continued its expansion.

Dettol climbed seven places to rank 36, reaching 972 million CRPs. Its penetration rose 2.2 percentage points to 55%, with the brand's growth linked to its repositioning from a focus on germ protection towards broader family protection, along with more localised communication.

Sunrise moved up eight places to rank 48, with CRPs growing 18% to 588 million. Expansion into new eastern markets helped lift its penetration to 8%.

Exo recorded an even sharper movement, jumping 11 places to rank 52. It added 3.4 percentage points in penetration to reach 30%, generating 573 million CRPs. Its performance was supported by its anti-bacterial positioning, expansion into liquid products beyond its traditional bars and improved distribution.

OOH rankings

In the out-of-home rankings, Britannia retained the No. 1 position with 619 million CRPs, followed by Balaji at 499 million, Haldiram's at 476 million and Cadbury at 450 million.

Amul moved into the Top 5 for the first time, rising from sixth to fifth with 281 million CRPs.

Lay's climbed to sixth with 277 million CRPs, while Parle Products moved down from fourth to seventh with 265 million.

Kurkure retained eighth place at 213 million CRPs. Bingo moved up from 10th to ninth with 165 million, while Sunfeast completed the Top 10 at 156 million.

The composition of the OOH rankings remains notable for its concentration of snacking brands in the Top 5. According to the report, this reinforces the continuing strength of India's out-of-home snacking culture, where brands compete not only for household penetration but for frequent, occasion-led consumption.

Several brands outside the Top 10 also recorded significant momentum. A-One posted the strongest CRP growth among the highlighted performers, increasing 50% and reaching rank 11. KitKat grew 26% to rank 13, while Crax recorded 19% growth to reach rank 14.

Amul also topped the separate OOH beverage rankings with 62 million CRPs, ahead of Thums Up at 58 million and Frooti at 55 million. Sprite and Maaza followed at 49 million and 39 million respectively.

K. Ramakrishnan, managing director, South Asia, Worldpanel by Numerator, said, "Consumer choice remains the most reliable test of a brand's strength and Brand Footprint has captured that reality for over a decade. But rankings alone don't tell the full story, Consumer Reach Points (CRPs) do. CRP measures two things together: how many households buy a brand, and how often they come back to it. This year, those two forces moved differently across categories. Dairy brands, for instance, aren't especially high on penetration, but rising purchase frequency alone pushed their CRPs up. Large and mid-sized brands saw strong CRP growth, but only about half of smaller brands managed to grow theirs at all- a sign that turning visibility into repeat, reliable choice is getting harder."

The broader takeaway from the 2026 Brand Footprint rankings is therefore less about the brands occupying the top slots and more about the changing dynamics of FMCG growth. Reach remains critical, but repeat choice is becoming an increasingly important differentiator as brands compete for consumers in a crowded market.