Retail sales in Azerbaijan reached AZN 50.77 billion in January-September 2026, up 3.8% in real terms. Demand was uneven: non-food sales expanded 6.7%, while food, beverages and tobacco grew 1.4%, according to the State Statistics Committee’s retail breakdown.
The faster-growing categories
Pharmaceuticals and medical supplies increased 21.5% to AZN 1.39 billion. Electrical goods and furniture rose 8.7% to AZN 2.58 billion. The strongest growth in the published breakdown was in the combined category of computers, telecommunications equipment and printed products: 33.1%, to AZN 799.2 million. This is a grouped indicator, not a smartphone or computer sales figure on its own.
| Category | AZN bn | Real growth |
|---|---|---|
| Total retail | 50.77 | +3.8% |
| Food | 25.35 | +1.4% |
| Electrical goods and furniture | 2.58 | +8.7% |
| Pharmaceuticals and medical supplies | 1.39 | +21.5% |
| Computers, telecom and print | 0.80 | +33.1% |
Food still accounts for most spending
Food sales amounted to AZN 25.35 billion, or 49.9% of retail turnover. Including beverages and tobacco takes the share to 54.1%. Even moderate growth in this category matters for the total because its starting base is much larger than that of faster-growing product groups.
What the average customer figure tells us
Monthly retail purchases averaged AZN 549.2 per resident, including AZN 297.2 for food, beverages and tobacco and AZN 252 for other goods. This statistical average is not the budget of a specific household and does not cover its full spending on services.
Implications for retailers
For stores and distributors, a market growth rate of 3.8% is too broad to guide stock decisions. Appliances, medical products and groceries are growing at different speeds. Real sales growth also does not establish its own cause: higher medicine purchases cannot automatically be attributed to illness, or appliance purchases to rising incomes. Those conclusions require evidence about customers and the composition of demand.