Soda Brands Pop Off on Retail Media

Poppi and Olipop Shook Up Soda’s Hierarchy

Prior to 2025, retail media in the soda category was largely dominated by three key players: PepsiCo, The Coca-Cola Company, and Keurig Dr Pepper. That dynamic shifted in 2025, when better-for-you challengers Poppi and Olipop burst onto the scene, reaching impression levels rivaling legacy parent companies.

Olipop’s spike in May 2025, driven by an Amazon Display campaign, was dramatic but short-lived, while Poppi maintained a more sustained presence throughout the year.

Meanwhile, The Coca-Cola Company pulled back in the second half of 2025, as PepsiCo steadily built the category’s most consistent growth.

Amazon and Walmart Delivered the Most Soda Impressions

Across the eight largest RMNs, the 2025 soda SOV landscape was concentrated among five top advertisers. Amazon delivered the most impressions (744M), narrowly edging out Walmart (721M).

Among advertisers, PepsiCo built a sizable presence across the most RMNs, including dominant shares at Kroger, Instacart, and Dollar General, where they represented over half of category impressions. In contrast, Poppi and Olipop took a more selective approach, focusing their retail media efforts on a smaller set of partners.

Coke and Pepsi Led Through Different Channel Strategies

Zooming in from parent companies to individual brands reveals a tight race between flagship brands Coke & Pepsi. Coke finished 2025 as the category leader with 511M retail media impressions, narrowly outpacing Pepsi’s 446M, though the two relied on notably different channel strategies.

Coke emerged as the leading OffSite Display advertiser, driven largely by Walmart, while Pepsi leaned more heavily into Facebook and Instagram across Walmart and Kroger.  

Further down the rankings, Poppi stood out as the leading advertiser on OnSite Display, with impressions split nearly equally across Walmart and Amazon.

PepsiCo Finished 2025 on a Two-Year High

PepsiCo closed out 2025 with its highest monthly retail media impression total in two years (131M) by casting a wide net across 14 different RMNs. Kroger led the way with 47M impressions, followed by Amazon (41M) and Walmart (35M). 

The surge was anchored by holiday-themed creative, including a portfolio-wide campaign that brought Pepsi and Mountain Dew together with snack brands like Tostitos and Lay’s.

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