One in every three orders is ice cream: Flink data reveals Germany's hot summer of 2026
The most-ordered summer vegetable is a surprise
On the record-breaking hot day in late June, one in three Flink orders included ice—in winter, it was one in 25. Orders for ice cubes and sunscreen tripled during the heat wave.
When Germany was hit by a heat wave in late June, ice cream orders at Flink reached an all-time high. On June 25—the peak day of the heat—nearly one in three Flink orders included at least one ice cream product. In winter, it’s barely one in every 25. Nationwide, Magdeburg leads in ice cream consumption, while Berlin surprisingly ranks last—and what exactly people order varies greatly by city: Kiel eats Snickers, Munich eats protein ice cream, and Hamburg eats Langnese. Flink has released the order data for the summer of 2026.
7 times more ice cream than in winter
The difference between summer and winter is nowhere more pronounced than with ice cream. Compared to the winter months, Flink customers order a good seven times as many ice cream products in the summer. Barbecue season also drives beer sales: Beer ends up in shopping carts 2.6 times more often in the summer than in the winter—and shandy as much as 4.4 times more often.
The most-ordered summer vegetable is a surprise: it’s the cucumber. Across all varieties, it ranks ahead of cherry tomatoes, bell peppers, and avocados. Watermelon and cantaloupe are also staples in the summer shopping cart.
As the temperatures rose, so did ice cream sales
During the heat wave from June 24 to 27, ice cream orders doubled compared to the normal summer level. Two other categories saw an even stronger surge: Ice cubes were ordered 3.5 times more frequently than in the early weeks of June—and sunscreen, as much as 3.6 times more. Water sales also rose again: Mineral water sales increased by about 37 percent during the heatwave week, and beer sales by 40 percent.
“The summer of 2026 showed just how heavily Flink is used as an infrastructure for spontaneous heat-related purchases. When it gets hot, you need ice cream, ice cubes, water—and preferably right away. That’s exactly what we’re here for.”—Lucas Rietz, Managing Director of Flink Germany
Spaghetti Ice Cream Beats Magnum—and Gösser Naturradler Leads in Beer
The most-ordered ice cream product in the summer of 2026 was Ja! Spaghetti Ice Cream, followed by Langnese Konfekt and Snickers Ice Cream. In the water ice cream category—the segment with the strongest seasonal growth—Langnese Capri Vegan and Nestlé Pirulo lead the way, with orders six times and three times more frequent, respectively, compared to winter. When it comes to beer, the radler takes the lead: Gösser Naturradler is the most-ordered beer-mix drink of the summer.
9 p.m. Is Ice Cream Time
Demand for ice cream in the summer follows a clear daily pattern: Starting in the late morning, it rises steadily and peaks at 9 p.m. In winter, however, the peak in ice cream demand occurs after midnight—a sign of late-night snacking on the couch.
City Ranking: What Each City Orders Most
Magdeburg leads the nation in ice cream consumption, followed by Essen, Frankfurt, and Hanover. Berlin brings up the rear among the major cities, ordering a good quarter less ice cream than Magdeburg. Particularly striking in Magdeburg: large packs and sundaes are ordered there twice as often as the national average—Magdeburg is Germany’s stronghold for large packs.
But even more interesting than the ranking is the question of what exactly people are ordering.
Spaghetti Ice Cream is the most-ordered ice cream product in seven of the twenty largest Flink cities—including Berlin, Cologne, Leipzig, Magdeburg, Chemnitz, and Nuremberg. It is the only product that never falls completely out of the top three in any city.
Southern Germany opts for protein. In Munich, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, and Mannheim, Rewe Beste Wahl High Protein Double Chocolate ice cream ranks number one—even when it comes to dessert, the South prioritizes fitness.
Hamburg remains loyal to Langnese. In Hamburg, Langnese Konfekt tops the rankings, as it does in Düsseldorf and Braunschweig. Langnese originated in Hamburg—brand loyalty is measurable.
Kiel is a Snickers city. In Kiel, Snickers Ice Cream takes the top spot, with a clear lead over second place. Hanover, Wuppertal, and Dresden are also firmly in the Snickers camp.
Essen loves Split. Langnese Cuja Mara Split—the tropical fruit popsicle—is more popular in Essen than anywhere else in Germany. Essen is also the city with the second-highest overall ice cream consumption rate and the highest share of popsicles nationwide.
Water ice pops: Wuppertal in the lead. When it comes to classic water ice pops—Capri, Pirulo, Flutschfinger—Wuppertal leads the nation. Surprisingly, Kiel—geographically close to the water—ranks only in the middle of the pack for water ice pops.
Note: This article has been translated using a computer system without human intervention. LUMITOS offers these automatic translations to present a wider range of current news. Since this article has been translated with automatic translation, it is possible that it contains errors in vocabulary, syntax or grammar. The original article in German can be found here.
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