Contents
- Online recipe use statistics: how frequently people use recipes online
- Online recipe use statistics: recipe discovery sources and platforms
- Online recipe use statistics: age and generational differences
- Online recipe use statistics: meal planning and grocery shopping
- Online recipe use statistics: inspiration and purchase behavior
- online recipe use: How online recipes are used in cooking: devices, preferences, and recipe changes
- Sources
Online recipe use statistics: how frequently people use recipes online
Online recipes are part of a recurring routine for many respondents in a 2024 survey of 569 American consumers ages 18–95. The survey, conducted July 16, 2024, counted recipes on food blogs, recipe sites, and social or video platforms as online recipes. Its frequency results distinguish daily, weekly, monthly, infrequent, and never use, making them useful for describing different levels of engagement rather than treating recipe use as a single behavior.
The largest reported frequency category was weekly: 38% said they used or looked at online recipes weekly. Another 26% reported doing so daily. The report describes 64% as engaging with recipes at least weekly, which is the sum of those two printed categories. This describes the survey’s frequency measure; it does not say that respondents cooked every recipe they viewed.
| Online recipe frequency | Respondents |
|---|---|
| Daily | 26% |
| Weekly | 38% |
| Monthly | 16% |
| Infrequently | 17% |
| Never | 2% |
The monthly category was 16%, while 17% selected infrequently and 2% selected never. These categories show that online recipe use ranged from daily consultation to no reported use. The printed values are reproduced as reported; the article does not combine or adjust categories beyond the report’s stated at-least-weekly figure. Source: The State of Online Recipes (2024), pp. 5
A separate industry summary, published by the Beef Checkoff in May 2023, cites a nationally representative NCBA study of consumers ages 18–64. It reports that 14% used a recipe in meal preparation daily, 52% used recipes weekly, and 10% never used recipes. These findings concern recipes generally, not specifically online recipes. The summary does not give the underlying study date or sample size, so they are best read as context about recipe use rather than as a direct comparison with Chicory’s online-only frequency categories. Source: The Not-So-Lost Art of Using Recipes
Online recipe use statistics: recipe discovery sources and platforms
In Chicory’s 2024 survey, respondents could select multiple methods for discovering online recipes. Organic search led the listed methods at 66%. Social media was selected by 56%, and direct search by 44%. Because respondents could give more than one answer, these percentages represent overlapping methods, not shares that should add to 100% or a ranked split of exclusive audiences.
| Discovery method | Selected by respondents |
|---|---|
| Organic search | 66% |
| Social media | 56% |
| Direct search | 44% |
| Word-of-mouth | 33% |
| Newsletter or publication | 20% |
| ChatGPT or other AI | 10% |
The survey also recorded 4% selecting “N/A. I don’t use online recipes” and 3% selecting “Other.” The AI response was specifically labeled ChatGPT or other AI in the discovery question. It is a result from this survey conducted July 16, 2024, not a general measure of how often people use AI for cooking or how they use it today. Source: The State of Online Recipes (2024), p. 6
Other sources measure recipe discovery with different questions. The Beef Checkoff’s May 2023 summary says more than 55% of respondents in the cited NCBA survey regarded Google as an important source for recipes. It reports 53% for cooking websites and apps, and 53% for printed or written recipes from friends and family. The Google and website/app results describe online sources; the friends-and-family figure includes printed or written recipes and therefore should not be treated as an online channel. The source does not report the underlying field date or sample size. Source: The Not-So-Lost Art of Using Recipes
Online recipe use statistics: age and generational differences
Chicory’s 2024 demographic graphic reports that 96% of Millennials ages 27–42 answered yes when asked whether they use online recipes. The corresponding yes responses were 92% among Gen X respondents ages 43–58, 87% among Gen Z ages 18–26, and 83% among Boomers ages 59–77. These are age-group results from a survey of 569 American consumers ages 18–95, not estimates for every person in each generation.
| Group in Chicory survey | Age range | Said they use online recipes |
|---|---|---|
| Millennials | 27–42 | 96% |
| Gen X | 43–58 | 92% |
| Gen Z | 18–26 | 87% |
| Boomers | 59–77 | 83% |
The report also gives frequency details for two groups: more than 44% of Gen Z respondents reported using or looking at online recipes weekly, while the daily-use rates were 36% for Gen X and 25% for Millennials. These are distinct measures: a weekly-use statement for Gen Z and daily-use results for Gen X and Millennials. They should not be read as a complete age-by-frequency table. Source: The State of Online Recipes (2024), pp. 4–5
A different perspective comes from Collage Group’s weighted U.S. survey, fielded in June 2023 among people ages 18–77. Its multiselect question asked where people usually look for new recipes when interested in cooking or baking something new. General online search was selected by 43% of Gen Z, 47% of Millennials, 46% of Gen X, and 48% of Boomers. This measures a source selected for new-recipe discovery, not whether a respondent uses online recipes at all or how frequently. Source: Collage Generations: Category Essentials Summer 2023 — Food, p. 57
Online recipe use statistics: meal planning and grocery shopping
Online recipes can be consulted before shopping as well as during meal preparation. In Chicory’s July 2024 survey, respondents were asked how often they used online recipes to prepare for grocery shopping. Sometimes was the largest category at 43.9%; 25.3% said often, 21.4% always, and 9.3% never. The categories are reproduced as printed, with the question’s grocery-preparation context intact.
| Online recipes used to prepare for grocery shopping | Respondents |
|---|---|
| Sometimes | 43.9% |
| Often | 25.3% |
| Always | 21.4% |
| Never | 9.3% |
A separate question asked whether respondents had ever looked at an online recipe on their own mobile device while in a grocery store. Yes was reported by 75% and No by 25%. This result is about ever doing so, not how often it happens or whether the recipe changed a purchase. It complements the frequency question by identifying a specific setting and device. Source: The State of Online Recipes (2024), p. 7
Recipe content also appears alongside broader planning intentions. When asked about mindsets while viewing online recipe content, 49% selected planning meals for the week. The question allowed multiple mindsets, so this is not an exclusive reason for browsing. Other selections included finding meal inspiration at 63%, seeking healthy or dietary-specific recipes at 43%, and seeking budget-friendly meals at 31%. These describe reported mindsets during viewing, not completed meal plans or shopping outcomes.
The same question found 27% selected minimizing food waste or maximizing groceries, and 31% selected entertaining or hosting guests. Together, the responses show a range of stated contexts for recipe viewing: planning ordinary meals, looking for inspiration, considering dietary or budget needs, using groceries efficiently, and preparing to host. Since respondents could select multiple options, the figures can overlap. Source: The State of Online Recipes (2024), p. 9
Online recipe use statistics: inspiration and purchase behavior
Recipe inspiration was common in Chicory’s survey. Asked whether an online recipe had inspired them to cook a new meal or dish they had not prepared before, 86.6% answered yes, 9% no, and 5% were not sure. This is a reported experience, not a measure of how many new dishes people cooked or how often they tried one.
The purchase-related questions covered three different experiences. A new ingredient or product not purchased before was the focus of one question: 80.4% said an online recipe had inspired such a purchase, 13% said no, and 6% were not sure. Another asked about buying a new or different brand of a product usually purchased. Yes was reported by 68.8%, no by 22%, and not sure by 9%.
The survey’s printed response values are retained as given, including where they do not total exactly 100% because of rounding. The questions concern whether a recipe had inspired respondents to cook or purchase something; they do not establish that recipe viewing alone caused a decision or quantify spending, purchase frequency, or sales. Source: The State of Online Recipes (2024), p. 8
online recipe use: How online recipes are used in cooking: devices, preferences, and recipe changes
A 2024 survey of 284 Turkish-speaking participants asked about online platforms used for recipes or healthy-eating tips. In the results narrative, 84% said they used online platforms or social media for recipes or healthy-eating tips. This combines recipes with healthy-eating tips, so it is not a recipe-only usage rate. The same narrative says 96% believed online platforms and social media enhanced their meal-preparation skills. That is a belief reported by participants, rather than an independently measured change in cooking ability. Source: The Impact of Social Media on Healthy Eating and Cooking Habits, p. 6
The study’s platform question permitted more than one selection and printed counts rather than percentages. Instagram was selected by 232 respondents and YouTube by 200. The remaining listed counts were WhatsApp, 112; Facebook, 70; influencer accounts, 45; Pinterest, 42; chefs’ blogs, 40; and Other, 35. Since participants could select multiple platforms, these counts overlap and should not be added as though each person chose only one source. The study describes Turkish-speaking participants and should not be generalized to all online recipe users.
| Platform selected | Respondents |
|---|---|
| 232 | |
| YouTube | 200 |
| 112 | |
| 70 | |
| Influencer accounts | 45 |
| 42 | |
| Chefs’ blogs | 40 |
| Other | 35 |
Participants were also asked whether they made special changes when trying online recipes, with multiple selections allowed. Changing ingredient quantities was selected by 145 respondents. This is a count from the study’s 284 Turkish-speaking participants. It identifies one reported adjustment, but the supplied result does not specify which ingredients were changed, the direction or size of changes, or how often participants made them. Source: The Impact of Social Media on Healthy Eating and Cooking Habits, pp. 6–7
Sources
- The State of Online Recipes (2024)
- Collage Generations: Category Essentials Summer 2023 — Food
- The Not-So-Lost Art of Using Recipes
- When you reference recipes for meals, where do you tend to get the recipes from?
- Modern Home Cooking Practices, the Role of New Media, and Implications for Culinary Medicine: A Qualitative Study Among Mothers With Low Income
- The Impact of Social Media on Healthy Eating and Cooking Habits