Top 11 Last Mile Delivery Trends and Technologies of 2025

Top 11 Last Mile Delivery Trends and Technologies of 2025

Lightning speed delivery, optimised route planning, drone delivery, and much more are expected from the last mile delivery trends in 2025. Dive into the future!

What’s coming next in the last mile? A constant question

Rising customer expectations and the demand for same-day deliveries are stressing businesses. At the same time, they must focus on optimizing costs and staying competitive.

This is giving birth to last mile delivery trends and technologies. Knowing the latest trends is important to optimise the dispatch management and route planning progress.

Like us, if you, too, are excited to know what trends we can expect to witness in 2025, continue reading.

11 Top Trends in Last Mile Delivery to Expect in 2025

Trends are trending, and technology is zapping- the future of last-mile looks happening. Here is a list of emerging last-mile trends of 2025.

Trend #1

More Micro Warehouses

Reasons why micro warehousing is on rise

Reasons why micro warehousing is on rise

There has been a surge in the need to speed up the order fulfillment process. This is pushing businesses to look for methods to supercharge the logistics. It is making them invest in opening hubs and warehouses closer to urban cities. Resulting in easier and faster access to products.

Benefits of having Urban warehouses:

  • Easier access to businesses
  • Easy rider management
  • Reduces transit time

Hot Gossip Alert!

Amazon is in talks with mall cornerstones like J.C. Penny and Sears to convert mall space into fulfilment centres.

Trend #2

Urban Fulfilment Centres

Urban fulfilment centres are one of the innovative and hottest last-mile trends. This trend supports fast and efficient hyperlocal or on-demand deliveries.

These centers are located at short distances from each other. This helps ensure groceries, frozen products, or time-sensitive goods are delivered on time. Companies making it big and establishing dark houses are Bigbaskst, Blinkit, and Swiggymart.

Trend #3

Omnichannel Retailing is Omnipresent

Last mile delivery excellence seems like the ultimate goal for businesses. Omnichannel retailing is rapidly becoming the golden ticket to achieving success.

What’s omnichannel retailing, you may ask?

Omnichannel retailing involves seamless offline and online communication between retailers and buyers. These touchpoints could be – websites, ordering apps, or brick-and-mortar retailing shops.

It allows brands to integrate all channels, including e-commerce and social media. This will enable them to offer customers a smooth-as-butter shopping experience.

In 2025, brands will pump in more resources to acquire omnichannel capabilities. This is because, with the help of this strategy, businesses can –

  • Improve delivery control
  • Increase the speed of order fulfilment
  • Improve operational flexibility and cost

Trend #4

Sustainability in Last Mile Delivery

Going green will probably be a last-mile delivery trend every year, and 2024 is no different. Customers are becoming more environmentally conscious. This is causing them to question the delivery channel as well. Is it green enough? 

The top last-mile delivery companies must strive harder to curb carbon emissions and adhere to green rules. The best possible way is route optimisation solution. It reduces time on the road and reduces fuel consumption and fume emissions.

Companies need to invest in the right technology. This includes tools for optimized route planning and real-time tracking.

Another possible way is to adopt EVs into the delivery Fleet.

Zypp is the best example of this. This Indian company is offering EV-as-a-Service. Zypp Electric was founded in 2017 with a mission of zero emissions. It offers electric vehicles and EV-based technology. The goal is to make last-mile process sustainable and emission-free. The company is currently providing vehicles for delivering –

  • Groceries
  • Food
  • Medicines
  • E-commerce packages

Zypp is using last mile delivery technology to automate and optimize its processes. The aim is to make deliveries as green as possible.

Deliver Smarter, Faster, and Greener

Trend #5

Drones, Self-Driving Delivery Vehicles and Bots

It’s raining food, hallelujah!

Robotisation is going to solve a lot of last-mile challenges. Autonomous vehicles and drones are already being used for order pick and drop. Quite a sci-fi scene, right?

Amazon has invested millions of dollars in Aurora, an autonomous technology developer. Amazon Pharmacy deliveries are possible within 60 minutes through a drone. That too at no extra cost!

Autonomous vehicles are being launched to deliver orders. While the technology has a long way to go, it is still a trend to watch.

Trend #6

Predictive Analytics and AI-Powered Route Optimisation

Route optimisation software has become a big help for top last-mile delivery startup companies. This technology is helping logistics businesses streamline their delivery flow lucratively.  Combined with AI and predictive analytics, it helps last-mile providers reduce delivery costs. These technologies improve efficiency and save resources.

Predictive analytics accurately forecast weather and traffic conditions. This helps companies plan orders to avoid delays and keep customers satisfied.

Tesco uses an AI-powered vehicle routing and scheduling system. This allows them to save 11.2 million miles and reduce fuel use by 8% per order.

Something To Interest You!

By 2024, 50% of supply chain organizations will invest in software with advanced analytics and AI capabilities.

Trend #7

Gig Economy and Crowdsourcing

Last mile delivery providers are now using the gig economy and crowdsourcing. This approach is called the Uberification of the fulfilment process.

It connects businesses with consumers needing deliveries. The packages are matched with people already traveling in the same direction.

This method is cost-effective and eco-friendly. It reduces transportation emissions and optimizes routes.

Alert!!

However liberating it may sound, crowdsourcing last-mile delivery isn’t without challenges. As it doesn’t involve the use of any advanced technology, visibility becomes questionable. Plus, tracking both the rider and orders en route can become difficult. If something is to go wrong, the last-mile delivery company is responsible.

Trend #8

PUDO

Customers can pick up their packages at convenient locations, like retail stores, gas stations, or automated lockers, with PUDO or smart lockers and pickup points. This method lowers the possibility of missed deliveries and minimises the need for multiple delivery attempts.

Trend #9

Rise in Outsourcing Delivery Services

Brands, manufacturers, and restaurants have started outsourcing their deliveries to field experts, aka last mile delivery companies. Instead of opting for in-house delivery, small companies have found that depending on logistics companies to deliver the orders gets the job done more economically.

Maintaining an in-house delivery fleet can be taxing, especially when you lack knowledge, resources, and contacts in logistics. One of the reasons behind the growing demand for outsourcing delivery services is that it can deliver orders in a day or two.

Another reason this last-mile delivery trend is also on the rise is because it allows businesses to focus on consumer needs. They may also not be able to meet expectations for quick delivery, such as a two-hour service.

Statistics Supporting the Trend

  • 65% of consumers who use grocery delivery services, such as Google Express, Instacart, or Ocado, say they provide a better delivery service than traditional retailers.
  •  67% of consumers who use grocery delivery services say they get greater flexibility in scheduling deliveries compared to retailers.

Trend#10

Customer-to-customer (C2C)

Customer-to-customer (C2C) is another last mile delivery trend of 2025 that is gaining momentum. In this business model, customers trade directly with customers, generally through an online medium. Online marketing is propelling the popularity of C2C on platforms such as Etsy, eBay, and Craiglist.

These platforms connect people selling products, services, or situations with their potential customers. For example, Craiglist requires the seller to deliver items directly to the buyer in person. Meanwhile, Etsy has a “sell on Etsy” app that helps sellers easily manage their orders, listings, and customer queries.

The reason C2C is growing is because it is a cost-effective model because of the rising popularity of social media and the decline of third parties.

Trend #11

Robust Investment in Last-Mile Delivery Software

A trend that is here to stay!

As businesses continue to rethink and redefine their last-mile tech capabilities to improve their competitiveness, we expect to continue to witness a flurry of investments in last-mile logistics solutions.

Logistics companies are keen to invest in software that automates their fulfilment process with the latest technology-integrated solutions such as Artificial Intelligence, Predictive Analytics, Machine Learning, and advanced analytics.

Mind Boggling Numbers!!

Verified Market Research said the last-mile delivery software market was valued at $7 billion in 2021. With a CAGR of 9.3% from 2023-2030, it’s expected to reach $16 billion by 2030.

Conclusion

New Year, New Last mile delivery trends.

Besides the fact that adopting last-mile delivery trends can help businesses gain and retain customers, let’s not forget that embracing them can also be problem-solving.

Right from sustainability goals to delivery targets, 2025 has a lot of last-mile trends emerging that will help businesses navigate the evolving logistics landscape with greater efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

We at TrackoMile are excited and ready to embrace the last mile delivery trends 2025 is bringing. Our last-mile delivery software is already automated and readily offers optimised solutions such as dynamic dispatch management and route planning.

The key to making your last-mile operations future-ready.

Related Blogs:

Frequently Asked Questions

  • What are the biggest challenges in last-mile?

    - High operational costs
    - Traffic congestion
    - Failed deliveries due to customer unavailability
    - Limited delivery windows
    - Environmental concerns

  • What is the biggest trend to watch in last mile delivery?

    Trends to watch out for -
    - Sustainable delivery methods
    - Autonomous delivery systems

Top 11 Last Mile Delivery Trends and Technologies of 2025
Tithi Agarwal

Tithi Agarwal is an established content marketing specialist with years of experience in Telematics and the SaaS domain. With a strong background in literature and industrial expertise in technical wr... Read More

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