The Ramadan Market Boom

As a month of fasting, ironically spending on food increases during Ramadan. Based on NIQ, Ramadan contributes in 1/5 of the annual sales of FMCG in the African & Middle East (AME) region with the food goods representing 81% of it.

Ramadan Market Boom

19%: Is Ramadan contribution in the annual sales for Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) in the AME.¹

81%: Is the percent of food items of the total FMCG sales value in the month in the MENA.²

35-45%: Driven primarily by food purchases, average household spending increase by³.

$6.2Bn: Total spending on food across the MENA during the season was projected to hit⁴.

Shift in Consumer Behaviour

Intentional Shopping

A report by ArabyAds & Ipsos found that "Consumers shift from impulsive to intentional shopping, prioritizing family needs, traditional items, and value-driven decisions over standard advertising".⁵

Healthy and Balanced

Health consciousness is on the rise, with a majority of consumers (52% in UAE; 53% in KSA)⁶ adopting more healthy and balanced meals.

Suhoor Delivery

While Iftar remains a home occasion, Suhoor is increasingly moving to foodservice sector, with 30% of Saudi residents and 28% of UAE residents favoring to order Suhoor through apps.⁶

Ramadan Effect on Profitability and Operations

• In Ramadan, services like restaurants and delivery, and goods like food experience exceptional growth.

• Despite the increase in sales, businesses experience margin squeeze due to the expenses in offers and ads.

• Companies reallocate 25-40% of their quarterly marketing budgets to Ramadan campaign.³

Despite the increase in demand during Ramadan, EBITDA margins are often compressed by aggressive promotional activity, discounts, and rising COGS.

A survey in 2023 by TGM, discounts are the primary purchase drivers for more than 90% of consumers. While 72% of Muslims specifically wait for Ramadan to find the "best deals," forcing firms to sacrifice margins for volume.⁷

Ramadan Effect on Commerce

45%: Sales via FMCG e-commerce in Turkey, KSA, UAE, Oman, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Kuwait, and Morocco grew by 45% during Ramadan, making it the fastest-growing channel.⁸

500 to 4K: New SKUs are launched between Ramadans in AME countries.⁹

2.9x: In the final 10 days of Ramadan in KSA, UAE, and Kuwait demand on clothing and luxury items can reach 2.9x the normal average.¹⁰

In Ramadan, 81% Muslims said that they spend more time using mobile devices during the month.⁷

This drives e-commerce service and businesses to leverage this increase in media consumption to market themselves in social media platforms.

References

1. Nielseniq. Unlock Ramadan Commerce Insights, One Day at a Time! (Day 2 Insight). 2026.

2. Communicate. Ramadan fuels double-digit FMCG growth, boosts tech sales across MENA. 2026.

3. Accio. Saudi Arabia's Ramadan Launch Creates $3.8T Market Opportunity. 2026.

4. Astrolabs. Ramadan, Saudi Seasons, and the Saudi SME Ecosystem. 2023.

5. ArabyAds & Ipsos. Ramadan Consumption Advertising, influence, and behavior shifts across UAE & KSA. Report. 2026.

6. YouGov. Ramadan 2025: Consumer insights. Report. 2025.

7. TGM Research. Ramadan Global Survey 2023. Report. 2023.

8. Nielseniq. Unlock Ramadan Commerce Insights, One Day at a Time! (Day 6 Insight). 2026.

9. Nielseniq. Unlock Ramadan Commerce Insights, One Day at a Time! (Day 19 Insight). 2026.

10. Visa Business & Economic Insights. The bustling Ramadan night-time economy. Report. 2025.