CVS saw both overall visits (+0.6%) and average visits per location (+2.9%) elevated year-over-year (YoY) in the fourth quarter of 2024, suggesting that its recent store closures have helped bolster the chain, according to new foot traffic data from research firm Placer.ai.
The research also found that Walgreens, which closed a significant number of stores over the past two years, saw overall foot traffic lag slightly throughout 2024. However, “average visits per location to the chain were up in all but one quarter of the year, suggesting that Walgreens’ rightsizing moves are having a positive impact on the chain, directing more traffic to higher-performing locations,” Placer.ai said.
These patterns held into 2025, with CVS seeing elevated YoY visits in all weeks analyzed, while Walgreens visits remained slightly below 2024 levels.
Between Q1 2023 and Q4 2024, CVS’ share of overall drugstore and pharmacy visits increased from 41.9% to 44.0%, while Walgreens’ share grew modestly from 49.2% to 50.4%, reported Placer.ai. Meanwhile, the share of visits to smaller chains declined from 8.9% to 5.5%. This indicates that “CVS’s growing visit share has not come at the expense of Walgreens—underscoring both chains’ resilience and growth potential in the face of sector-wide headwinds.”
Earlier this month, CVS Health said it plans to open a dozen stores offering full-service pharmacies but very limited retail. The new stores will be less than 5,000 square feet on average—not even half the size of a typical CVS location, the company said. The 12 new stores are expected to open over the next year throughout the U.S.
CVS also recently launched a new app feature that will allow customers to open locked cabinets themselves so they no longer have to push a button and wait for a clerk to unlock one of the glass cabinets to purchase an item.
Adjacent to the drugstore industry, Dollar Tree announced earlier this week that it will sell its Family Dollar business for $1 billion, a fraction of the $9 billion acquisition cost it paid almost 10 years ago.