In the United States, Out-of-Home delivery is growing primarily through shops and pickup points. This is one of the most significant findings of Last Mile Experts’ “OOH Delivery in the USA 2026” report. By mid-2026, the US market had around 188,000 Out-of-Home locations, with pickup points increasing by approximately 36% over the previous year, while locker growth remained at around 4%.
A comparison with the same organisation’s “Out-of-Home Delivery in Europe 2026” report raises a question directly relevant to eCommerce businesses: what makes Out-of-Home delivery a regular choice for customers?
While the European experience demonstrates the potential of a well-developed network, the US experience prompts us to consider the conditions needed for customers to use it.
What eCommerce businesses can learn from the US–Europe comparison
Let’s start with the most important insight emerging from the analysis and comparison of the two reports: Out-of-Home delivery gains traction when its logistical benefits translate into clear advantages for shoppers.
Delivering multiple parcels in a single stop improves delivery operations, but customers choose where to receive an order primarily based on time, price, accessibility and ease of use. For merchants, integrating lockers and pickup points therefore means building a service that meets these needs throughout the customer journey, from checkout to returns.
Out-of-Home delivery in the US and Europe: two different development paths
The US network mapped by Last Mile Experts includes approximately 138,000 PUDO points and just over 50,000 lockers, but the gap with Europe is particularly clear in terms of density. The US report identifies 5.4 parcel collection points per 10,000 inhabitants, compared with a European average of 12.6. However, the Czech Republic and Poland, Europe’s Out-of-Home leaders, demonstrate how widely service development can vary even within the continent, reaching 30.8 and 27.3 respectively.
Access to Out-of-Home networks therefore differs considerably between the two continents. A network spread across numerous places that people regularly visit can make parcel collection an easy habit to maintain. Less dense coverage, however, may require consumers to take a detour or make an additional trip, making the service less appealing.
Why pickup points are driving growth in the United States
The expansion of PUDO points in the US highlights the role of places that are already part of consumers’ daily lives. Shops, service locations and retail outlets provide a foundation for parcel collection, alongside publicly accessible lockers and solutions installed in residential complexes or on campuses.
Last Mile Experts interprets this combination as a development path aligned with US geography, retail structures and travel habits, which differ considerably from those of European consumers. Growth in pickup points alone therefore does not demonstrate a customer preference for them over lockers. It does, however, show that Out-of-Home delivery can expand through different formats and make use of existing infrastructure.
For eCommerce businesses operating across multiple markets, the practical implication is clear: delivery options must adapt to local conditions. An effective service can combine lockers, pickup points and home delivery, allowing customers to choose according to the nature of their purchase and their daily routines.
Proximity matters when it makes the day easier
A pickup point close to home offers an obvious advantage, especially if it is within walking distance. But for someone who spends much of the day away from home, a locker on the way to work may be more convenient than a geographically closer location that is only open while they are out.
The US report emphasises the concept of “useful density”: density that delivers practical value. A network becomes valuable when its locations fit into customers’ everyday journeys. Assessing how convenient a location is therefore requires considering its position, accessibility, opening hours and how the service works together.
This principle also has an environmental implication. Consolidating parcels can reduce courier stops and mileage, but the overall outcome also depends on the recipient’s journey. Collecting an order on foot or during a trip already planned supports the environmental benefit, whereas a dedicated car journey can reduce it. The suitability of a location thus connects customer convenience with service efficiency.
Time, price and ease of use: what encourages customers to choose Out-of-Home delivery
To explore consumer motivations, the US report includes a study conducted in 2023 among 758 adults through an online panel. Around two-thirds of respondents had never received a parcel through a locker. Some 29% indicated a degree of likelihood of using lockers in the future, while 80% said they would not be willing to pay extra for the service.
The value of these findings lies primarily in the relationships identified by the research: time savings, perceived speed and ease of use are associated with an intention to adopt lockers, while willingness to pay more remains limited. Customers may appreciate the freedom to collect an order where and when they prefer, but they will struggle to see its value if the process is complicated or involves an additional cost they consider unjustified.
The lesson for merchants therefore concerns how they present the service to customers: explain precisely where they can collect their order, when it will be available and how much it will cost. Sustainability can strengthen this proposition, but convenience and affordability are what truly win customers over. These benefits must therefore be easy to understand from the moment of purchase.
The role of eCommerce businesses: making Out-of-Home delivery an easy choice
Checkout is where the available network meets the customer’s order. Extensive coverage may offer little value to a store if shoppers cannot see the Out-of-Home option at checkout, struggle to find their preferred location or lack the information needed to choose it.
For merchants, the task is therefore to make Out-of-Home delivery part of their customers’ shopping journey. Selecting a location should be straightforward, with its position, opening hours and service terms clearly presented. Price also influences the decision: an incentive makes sense when it accompanies a genuinely convenient collection experience, without asking customers to spend their own time making up for delivery difficulties.
From this perspective, the share of Out-of-Home deliveries is an outcome that should be assessed alongside the shopping experience and service quality. Tracking which locations customers choose, which enquiries reach customer support and which problems arise helps merchants understand whether the options offered truly meet their customers’ needs.
Access to more networks means more opportunities to find the right location
Choice also depends on the networks a store can make available. Consider a practical example: the most convenient location for a customer might belong to a different operator from the one the merchant usually uses, making it unavailable for that order. Connecting multiple networks therefore increases the chances of finding a solution that suits both the order and the recipient’s journey.
For an eCommerce business, however, managing each integration separately can create technical and operational complexity. A platform that standardises access to different networks makes it possible to offer more options through a single connection, simplifying the setup of deliveries and returns.
When a service involves multiple operators, their activities also need to be coordinated. GEL Proximity’s logistics orchestrator integrates the operators involved in the last mile, manages parcel handovers and monitors delivery flows, synchronising order data across different systems. The ability to choose a pickup point is thus supported by the operational coordination needed to get the parcel there.
Integrating Out-of-Home delivery with GEL Proximity
The comparison between the reports reveals a clear priority for eCommerce businesses: turn the availability of lockers and pickup points into a service that is easy to choose and use. The physical network creates opportunities, while integration into the store enables customers to access them during the purchasing process.
GEL Proximity, a leading technology provider for Out-of-Home services, offers access to more than 1,000,000 lockers and pickup points for eCommerce deliveries and returns. Through APIs, libraries and modules for eCommerce platforms, it enables merchants to integrate different networks and offer location selection within their checkout journey.
For an online store, this means being able to build a more flexible delivery offering, with options that fit customers’ schedules. It is this alignment between the service and everyday life that can make Out-of-Home delivery an established habit, supporting eCommerce growth with simpler ways to receive and return purchases.
Want to give your customers more freedom in managing their online purchases? Contact us to discover how to integrate lockers and pickup points into your eCommerce store today.
