7 last-mile delivery trends in 2025

1. Last mile focus

More and more company leaders are realizing the importance of the last mile.

"This is an area that has businesses' attention," said Carl M. Briggs, clinical professor of operations and decision technologies at Indiana University's Kelley School of Business. "Where businesses place their attention is what drives innovation, too, so we're going to see a ton of it here."

2. Faster delivery

More and more companies are making their deliveries as fast as possible to meet demand.

In recent years, the time from click-to-buy to arrival has become shorter and will likely continue to decrease as retailers and logistics companies seek to satisfy rising expectations from both commercial and consumer customers, said Kyle D. Cattani, chairperson of the operations and decision technologies department at Indiana University's Kelley School of Business.

"Delivery is down to one day, and it's now same-day or within an hour, in some cases," Cattani said.

3. Automated delivery

Some companies are already using drones and robots for last-mile delivery, albeit as pilot cases and in limited markets.

The use of autonomous vehicles could become a bigger part of future delivery, said Nick McKeehan, managing director at Protiviti, a global consulting firm located in Menlo Park, Ca. Logistics companies have focused more on incorporating autonomous vehicles into warehouse operations and long-haul driving, but test cases for last-mile delivery using autonomous vehicles have also occurred.

4. More environmentally sustainable vehicles

More companies are now using more sustainable delivery vehicles.

A greater portion of last-mile delivery vehicles are now electric or powered by natural gas, so they produce less emissions than conventional delivery vehicles powered by gasoline or diesel, said Alison Ponder, managing director at FTI Consulting, a business consulting firm located in Washington, D.C.

5. More delivery flexibility and insights

Customers already have some control over their delivery location and time, with the most frequent set of options being home delivery and in-store pickup.

Delivery options will continue to expand, said Ponder. Companies and delivery services will develop a larger network of locations for package pickups and give consumers the ability to select delivery times.

In addition, some companies are using technology that enables customers to see exactly where their packages are.

Customers are increasingly expecting companies to offer that visibility instead of only estimated delivery times, Ponder said.

6. End customer communication

Connecting the customer and the delivery person can help resolve issues.

Some last-mile delivery services already enable communication between delivery workers and customers, Ponder said. For example, some food delivery service apps include this capability. More delivery services will make this possible to help improve customer experience and attempt to make it possible to resolve any delivery issues in the moment.

For example, if a delivery worker is unsure which door is best for leaving a package, they can contact the customer and ask instead of potentially leaving the package at the wrong door.

7. Collaborative delivery models/asset sharing

Teamwork in the last mile, and before it, will likely become even more prevalent.

Companies -- even those who are competitors -- are going to use technology to share delivery assets, said Alan Amling, an assistant professor of practice at the University of Tennessee Haslam College of Business' Global Supply Chain Institute.

This asset sharing will be more prevalent in middle-mile delivery, where the need is greatest, as many tractor-trailers today don't carry full loads, Amling said. However, asset sharing will also extend to last-mile delivery, with platforms enabling companies to combine shipments so everyone involved can minimize costs.

Mary K. Pratt is an award-winning freelance journalist with a focus on covering enterprise IT and cybersecurity management.