Firing up the Fourth: Instacart’s Independence Day favorites

Firing up the Fourth: Instacart’s Independence Day favorites

As backyard grills fire up and coolers get packed for long afternoons in the sun, the Fourth of July remains one of America’s most festive and flavorful holidays. Instacart dug into purchase data from 2024 to highlight what people may add to their carts to create the ultimate Independence Day spread. From must-have snacks to grill-side essentials, here’s what’s heating up for the holiday!

America’s most popular Fourth of July foods

When it comes to prepping for the big day, Americans go all-out on cookout classics. Topping the list of items that surged in share of orders is the essential barbecue side dish: canned baked beans, which saw 4.2 times more orders than the yearly average. Following closely behind are hot dog buns, watermelons, hamburger buns, and hot dogs, all showing massive spikes in popularity.

Digging deeper, here are the food and beverage categories that saw the biggest spikes in orders relative to their yearly average:

• Athena melons (6.3x more) and Rainier cherries (9 times more), the sweet, summer fruits soared compared to their average order rate, peaking around the Fourth.
• Angel food cake (5.6 times more) showed a strong seasonal surge, given it’s the perfect base for an American flag-themed dessert.
• Daiquiri (5.4 times more), piña colada (5.6 times more), and frozen nonalcoholic cocktail mixers (6.1 times more) spiked significantly as Americans beat the heat with tropical-inspired drinks, frozen slushies, and poolside mocktails.
• To keep coolers perfectly chilled, ice blocks see a surge (5.8 times more), as well as fun treats to beat the heat like alcoholic ice cream and popsicles (4.9 times more).

The seasonal items that surge in popularity around the Fourth show that as the weather heats up, consumers crave light and refreshing food and drinks.

Methodology: Instacart calculated the daily order share to the yearly average order share for each category in 2024.

Peak patriotic purchases

Beyond making meals, Instacart customers are getting everything else they need for a memorable holiday. For example, Fourth of July decor and flags saw order increases of over 65 times and 30 times, respectively. Other festive additions include:

• Grills (21 times more than average): How else will all of the burger-flipping get done?
• Kiddie Pools (20 times more than average): Summer isn’t complete without a splash for kids, and kids at heart!
• Cornhole (14 times more than average): A backyard classic that brings the right level of competitive spirit and can accommodate a drink in one hand.
• Charcoal (8.4 times more than average): What’s a barbecue without the unmistakable scent of summer cookout in full swing?

Methodology: Instacart calculated the share of orders that every category appeared in for every day during 2024, and found the categories that had their highest order share at some point between June 28 and July 4, 2024.

State-by-state chip contenders

Chips are more than just a side — they’re a Fourth of July staple. Whether paired with burgers, dips, or enjoyed straight from the bag, chips play an important role in holiday spreads. And while everyone loves a good potato chip, distinct chip preferences emerge across different regions of the U.S.:

• Utz ruled the mid-Atlantic and parts of the South, taking top honors in the Carolinas, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Delaware.
• No surprise here: Hawaiian Kettle Style Potato Chips were the go-to in—you guessed it—Hawai’i, where they were over 2,500% more likely to be purchased than the national average.
• Similarly, up in New England, Cape Cod Chips came out on top in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine.
• And true to their Rocky Mountain roots, Coloradans scooped up Boulder Canyon chips, which were picked up 525% more often than the national average, to pair with their favorite dips.

A campfire classic

It wouldn’t be a summer celebration without s’mores. Orders containing both graham crackers and marshmallows surged nearly 200% above the yearly average during the week ending on July 4. It’s safe to say that the combo of campfires and s’mores is a quintessential summer favorite.

Spritz into summer

As temperatures rise, so does the demand for one of summer’s most stylish sips: the Aperol Spritz. Aperol and prosecco were purchased together 158% more often than average during the week of the Fourth of July in 2024, marking the peak of spritz season.

Trend alert: According to Instacart data, summer spritzes are gaining a lot of momentum, with the share of orders containing prosecco and Aperol rising 13% from 2023 to 2024.

Whether you're firing up the grill, reaching for your favorite regional chips, or toasting with a spritz, these data-driven trends offer a flavorful snapshot of how Americans come together to celebrate summer’s biggest holiday.

This story was produced by Instacart and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.