What Groupon does

Groupon, Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) is a Chicago-headquartered, Delaware-incorporated multi-sided marketplace that connects local merchants with value-conscious consumers through discounted deals, gift certificates, and prepaid bookings. Founded in 2008 and a daily-deals pioneer that reached a ~$25B valuation at its 2011 IPO, the company today operates a horizontally segmented platform spanning local services, experiences, beauty and wellness, food and drink, automotive, home services, travel (Groupon Getaways), physical goods (Groupon Goods), and third-party promo codes (Groupon Coupons). Distribution is overwhelmingly mobile-native, with 100M+ app downloads and 71% of network redemptions originating in the Groupon app, supported by website, email, affiliate (CJ.com/RetailMeNot ecosystem), and a reintroduced TV/brand presence ("Turn Life On"). The company served 16.2M active customers as of Q1 2026 (up 5% YoY) and operates across North America, Western Europe, the UAE, and Australia, with an Italian subsidiary (Groupon S.r.l.).

The merchant side runs a self-serve platform with no upfront cost or monthly fee: merchants set their own terms, capacity, and pricing tiers, and Groupon takes an agreed percentage only when a customer redeems a deal. The platform layers AI-assisted deal drafting (copy, packages, fine print) and a recommendation engine that proposes starting, upgrade, and premium price tiers based on category-level transaction history, aiming to raise order value without deeper discounting. Consumer pricing spans roughly $5 to $500+ across categories with discounts up to ~90%, and the prepaid model reduces merchant no-show risk while delivering high-intent, geo-proximate traffic.

Revenue mechanics are transaction-fee/marketplace-commission based, monetizing merchant redemptions rather than clicks or media spend. FY2025 revenue was approximately $498M, with Q1 2026 revenue of $117.2M (a continuing net loss of $12.6M). After a decade of revenue contraction, the company reported a return to billings and revenue growth in Q4 2025 (North America Local Billings +9%, Local Revenue +4%) under CEO Dušan Šenkypl, and is executing an AI-native restructuring ("Project Foundry") that cuts ~25% of headcount (~400 roles) to fund reinvestment in marketing, AI infrastructure, and talent.

Name

Groupon

Legal name

Groupon, Inc.

Website

https://groupon.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Groupon is a NASDAQ-listed local-commerce marketplace connecting merchants with consumers via discounted deals across services, experiences, travel, and goods. It monetizes merchant redemptions through a revenue-share take rate, serving 16.2M active customers, primarily through its mobile app.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online Local Deals Marketplace

NAICS

General Merchandise Retailers (455)

akta.pro primary industry

Local Services & Experiences Generalist Marketplaces (CRAFAAAD)

Keywords

• Local deals marketplace
• Daily deals platform
• Discount vouchers online
• Local experiences marketplace
• Merchant deals platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Transaction/Revenue Share: Groupon charges merchants an agreed percentage when a customer redeems a deal. Merchants set their own offer terms and pay only after successful customer redemptions. No upfront media spend or monthly fees for merchants.
2. Deal Commission: Revenue generated from commissions on local deals and experiences sold through the marketplace.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Groupon operates a two-sided local deals marketplace in which local merchants create discounted, prepaid deal offers that consumers discover, purchase, and redeem via the Groupon mobile app or website. The merchant side uses a self-serve platform with AI-assisted deal recommendations and charges merchants a revenue share only at redemption, while consumers access deals across local services, travel, goods, and experiences with discounts up to 90%.

Product overview

Groupon is a multi-sided marketplace platform that connects local merchants with consumers through discount deals and promotional offers. The core Groupon Consumer Platform serves as the main marketplace where users discover deals across local services, travel, goods, and events, while the Groupon Merchant Platform allows businesses to create and manage deals with AI-assisted drafting, performance analytics, and prepaid customer management. The portfolio includes vertical-specific sub-brands: Groupon Getaways (travel and hotels), Groupon Coupons (promotional codes), Groupon Goods (retail merchandise), Groupon Local/Things to Do (attractions and activities), Groupon Beauty & Spas, Groupon Automotive, Groupon Food & Drink, and Groupon Gifts. Revenue is generated through revenue share on merchant redemptions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Groupon Consumer App A mobile-native consumer application with 100M+ downloads that provides access to discounted deals across local services, travel, goods, and entertainment with geolocation-based discovery and digital vouchers. Designed for value-conscious consumers who want up to 90% off local experiences.
• Groupon Merchant Platform A self-serve marketplace platform that enables local businesses to create, manage, and promote discounted deals. Merchants set their own terms, capacity, and pricing tiers with AI-assisted deal drafting, category benchmarking, and real-time redemption analytics, paying Groupon only when customers redeem.
• Groupon Getaways A travel booking sub-brand offering discounted hotel stays, vacation packages, waterpark resorts, and family-friendly accommodations through Groupon's travel vertical.
• Groupon Coupons A promotional codes and discounts aggregator featuring deals from third-party retailers across categories including automotive, food, travel, electronics, and beauty.
• Groupon Goods An e-commerce sub-brand offering discounted physical goods, electronics, fashion, household items, wholesale club memberships, and software licenses.
• Groupon Local (Things to Do) A local experiences sub-brand featuring discounted tickets, activities, attractions, and events including amusement parks, waterparks, concerts, and family entertainment.
• Groupon Beauty & Spas A beauty and wellness vertical offering discounted spa treatments, massages, facials, hair salons, and cosmetic procedures from local providers.
• Groupon Automotive An automotive services vertical offering discounted oil changes, car washes, detailing, brake services, and auto repairs from local and national service providers.
• Groupon Food & Drink A food and dining vertical offering discounted restaurant meals, grocery memberships, meal kits, and beverage delivery services.
• Groupon Gifts A gift marketplace offering experiential and physical gift options organized by recipient type and occasion, including the 'Ungiftables' campaign for hard-to-shop-for loved ones.

Quantifiable outcome

• Merchants see 75% of buyers intend to return
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability7 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.

• CostcocoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 22 June 2026Official partnership where Groupon offers discounted Costco memberships. Gold Star membership at $65 with $50 promo code, Executive at $130 with $100 promo code. Valid through July 5, 2026. Exclusive Groupon deal driving new Costco member acquisition.
• CostcocoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 22 June 2026Groupon partnered with Costco for Member Appreciation Sale, competing with Amazon Prime Day. Groupon offers discounted memberships with shop card bonuses.
• eDrugstoreminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 25 November 2025eDrugstore partnered with Groupon for exclusive Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals on men's health products and telehealth services, with up to 95% off erectile dysfunction medications.
• M+C Saatchi PerformanceflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 November 2025Groupon launched 'Turn Life On' campaign with M+C Saatchi Performance to inspire rediscovery of real-world experiences in NYC, Chicago, and Madrid. Campaign uses AI-assisted storytelling across media channels and city activations.
• RechargeminorOthers · 15 April 2025Recharge, a European prepaid payments leader, acquired Giftcloud (digital rewards platform) from Groupon to expand into the B2B rewards market.
• Sam's ClubminorGTM or Marketing PartnerGroupon offers discounted Sam's Club memberships as part of warehouse club deals.
• BJ's Wholesale ClubminorGTM or Marketing PartnerGroupon offers discounted BJ's Wholesale Club memberships up to 75% off.
• DoorDashminorGTM or Marketing PartnerDoorDash exclusive promo code partnership on Groupon platform - $10 off first order $30+.
• RetailMeNotminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGroupon competes with RetailMeNot in the digital coupons and cashback ecosystem, both competing for redemption infrastructure control as first-party transaction data becomes valuable.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Vegas.com / Viator (Tripadvisor): Viator (Tripadvisor) is a tours-and-activities marketplace; it directly competes with Groupon's Things-To-Do vertical for experience merchants and consumer attention in the discounted-attractions category.

Direct peers

• Honey (PayPal): Honey (owned by PayPal) is a browser-based coupon, cashback, and rewards platform monetizing the same value-discovery journey; it competes for affinity wallet share and merchant-affiliate relationships.
• Rakuten: Rakuten is a global cashback, coupon, and rewards platform that monetizes the same value-conscious consumer segment Groupon targets via its Coupons and Goods verticals, with overlapping merchant relationships and affiliate economics.
• Slickdeals: Slickdeals is a community-driven deals and coupons aggregator competing for the same value-seeking consumer; it sits adjacent to Groupon Goods and Coupons and competes for the same promotional-merchant budget.
• Yelp: Yelp is the closest direct competitor — a two-sided local marketplace connecting consumers with local businesses (restaurants, beauty, services). Both monetize by intermediating discovery and transactions between consumers and SMBs in overlapping categories; Yelp's local deals and gift-card products directly substitute for Groupon.
• RetailMeNot: RetailMeNot is a digital coupons and promotional-codes platform competing head-to-head with Groupon Coupons in the deal/coupon ecosystem; both compete for redemption infrastructure control and access to first-party transaction data for merchants.
• Travelzoo: Travelzoo is a curated travel-deals publisher overlapping directly with Groupon Getaways; both aggregate discounted travel and experience inventory from suppliers and merchants for value-conscious consumers.

Broad incumbents

• OfferUp: OfferUp is a local-services and goods marketplace, broader than Groupon Goods in vertical scope but sharing the same two-sided model connecting local buyers and sellers via a mobile-first platform with merchant/consumer take-rate economics.
• Booking Holdings: Booking Holdings (Booking.com, Priceline, KAYAK) is a much larger travel-deals marketplace overlapping with Groupon Getaways and Travel for discounted lodging and experience inventory, with marketplace commission economics.
• DoorDash: DoorDash is a large on-demand local-marketplace operator and a strategic partner of Groupon; competitively it owns Food & Drink local demand and has been expanding into broader local services — categories that overlap with Groupon's verticals.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/groupon
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/Groupon
• Facebookfacebook.com/groupon
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/groupon
• Instagraminstagram.com/groupon

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds10 records

Investors22 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A43 records

Investments8 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Groupon