E-commerce major Flipkart is targeting over 1,500 quick commerce dark stores by 2026, while rival Amazon has rolled out around 450–500 dark stores to date, with approximately 330–370 currently operational and an additional 100–140 in the pipeline.
As per a UBS report, Flipkart currently operates 750–850 dark stores and has expanded across Tier-2 and 3 cities, including Rohtak, Muzaffarpur, Hajipur, Arrah, Chhapra, Zirakpur, Mohali, Bihar Sharif, Asansol, Durgapur, Sonipat, and Panchkula, with Arrah emerging as a high-growth market.
The company began its rollout in January 2026 and plans to add another 800 stores by the end of the year.
Both companies are collaborating with third-party enablers to manage store setup and daily operations, reducing the need to build everything in-house. While franchise models still exist, the shift is toward specialized operators.
According to UBS, setting up a dark store costs Rs. 45-60 lakh (US $48,000-US $64,000). Mature stores handle 1,200–1,500 daily orders, with break-even at around 1,400-1,500 orders and an average order value of Rs 500–600 (US $5.38-US $6.45).
As far as traditional Q-commerce players are concerned, Blinkit currently operates approximately 2,100 dark stores and has announced plans to expand its network by adding another 900 locations by March 2027. In comparison, Swiggy’s Instamart and Zepto each run around 1,100–1,200 dark stores.
