36 Up-To-Date Ecommerce Statistics
Written by Backlinko Team
Ecommerce has transformed the retail landscape. In fact, ecommerce is forecasted to capture 41% of retail sales worldwide by 2027, up from only 18% back in 2017.
From the convenience of fast and free shipping to wide product choice, more consumers opt to shop online.
To help you learn about the dynamic landscape of online shopping, we’ve curated a list of recent ecommerce statistics to know in 2024.
Let’s dive right in.
Here’s a quick overview of what you’ll find on this stats page:
- General Ecommerce Statistics
- Online Shopping Behavior Statistics
- Mobile Ecommerce Statistics
- Social Media Ecommerce Statistics
General Ecommerce Statistics
What’s the share of ecommerce in retail sales worldwide and in the US? What are the top ecommerce categories? In this section, we’ll cover recent stats on retail ecommerce sales worldwide and in the US.
- Retail ecommerce sales worldwide are estimated to reach $6.33 trillion in 2024, that is an 8.76% year-over-year increase (eMarketer)
Here’s a detailed breakdown of retail ecommerce sales growth since 2021:
Year Retail Ecommerce Sales Worldwide 2021 $4.98 trillion 2022 $5.29 trillion 2023 $5.82 trillion 2024 $6.33 trillion 2025 $6.86 trillion 2026 $7.41 trillion 2027 $7.96 trillion - Ecommerce accounts for 20.1% of total retail sales worldwide in 2024. Ecommerce share in global retail sales is forecasted to reach 22.6% by 2027 (eMarketer)
Here’s a table with ecommerce share of total retail sales worldwide since 2021:
Year Retail Ecommerce Worldwide (% Share of Total Retail Sales) 2021 18.8% 2022 18.7% 2023 19.4% 2024 20.1% 2025 21.0% 2026 21.8% 2027 22.6% - Retail ecommerce sales in the US amounted to $1.1 trillion in 2023, up from $1.03 trillion in 2022 (U.S. Census Bureau)
In Q1 2024, US retail ecommerce sales reached $289.2 billion.
Here’s a detailed breakdown of US retail ecommerce sales since 2018:
Year US Retail Ecommerce Sales 2018 $512.57 billion 2019 $599.51 billion 2020 $787.93 billion 2021 $870.71 billion 2022 $1.03 trillion 2023 $1.1 trillion Q1 2024 $289.2 billion - As of Q1 2024, ecommerce represents a 15.89% share of all retail sales in the US (U.S. Census Bureau)
Here’s a table with ecommerce share of US retail sales worldwide since 2018:
Year US Retail Ecommerce (% Share of Total Retail Sales) 2018 9.63% 2019 10.97% 2020 14.02% 2021 13.22% 2022 14.54% 2023 15.28% Q1 2024 15.89% - Amazon accounts for 40.4% of total retail ecommerce sales in the US, representing $491.65 billion in gross sales in 2024. To put it in perspective, Walmart’s retail ecommerce sales amounted to $83.18 billion in 2024 (eMarketer 1, eMarketer 2)
Year US Amazon Retail Sales Share of Total US Retail Sales 2020 $309.48 billion 37.9% 2021 $364.55 billion 38.0% 2022 $398.13 billion 38.3% 2023 $444.76 billion 39.6% 2024 $491.65 billion 40.4% 2025 $540.29 billion 40.9% - Amazon, eBay, and Walmart are the top 3 most popular ecommerce sites ranked by US monthly visits as of November 2023 (eMarketer)
Here’s a full ranking of top 10 ecommerce websites in the US ranked by number of monthly visits:
Website Monthly Visits amazon.com 2.08 billion ebay.com 543.8 million walmart.com 492.7 million etsy.com 276.2 million target.com 217.4 million t-mobile.com 202.3 million homedepot.com 191.0 million att.com 173.8 million bestbuy.com 155.9 million apple.com 150.3 million - By 2027, grocery is forecasted to be the largest ecommerce category in the US, accounting for 19.0% of ecommerce sales, closely followed by apparel and accessories (18.7%), computer and consumer electronics (15.5%), furniture and home furnishings (14.6%) (eMarketer)
- Clothing, shoes, and beauty products are the top 3 digital purchases in the US (eMarketer)
Here’s a complete list of the most popular digital purchases in the US:
Product Category Share of US Digital Buyers (who made a purchase in the past month) Clothing 67.1% Shoes 44.0% Beauty products 43.1% Food and beverages (non-alcoholic) 41.8% Household supplies 40.9% Toys and games 37.1% Books, music, and videos 36.7% Pet products 35.7% Pharmacy and health 35.3% Accessories 31.8% - 56.1% of internet users worldwide aged 16 to 64 make an online purchase each week (DataReportal)
- On average, annual spending per online shopper worldwide reached $1,109 in 2023. In the US, the average online spend per buyer is $2,700 (DataReportal)
- Electronics is currently the largest consumer product category with the most ecommerce spending in the US, accounting for 781.3$ billion in sales in 2023 (DataReportal)
Here’s a detailed breakdown with largest product categories by annual consumer spending in the US:
Product Category Annual Ecommerce Spending (B2C, US) Electronics $781.3 billion Fashion $673.6 billion Food $370.7 billion Beverages $209.3 billion DIY & Hardware $201.8 billion Furniture $188.0 billio Physical Media $182.7 billion Beauty & Personal Care $151.2 billion Tobacco Products $104.4 billion Toys & Hobby $80.53 billion Household Essentials $72.98 billion Over-the-Counter Pharmaceuticals $59.65 billion Luxury Goods $54.42 billion Eye-Wear $23.48 billion
Online Shopping Behavior Statistics
What are the online purchase drivers? Why do consumers abandon their shopping carts? In this section, we’ve curated a list of online shopping behavior statistics to answer these questions.
- Free delivery (50.6%), coupons and discounts (39.3%), and easy returns policy (33.2%) rank as the top 3 online purchase drivers among internet users worldwide (16-64 years old) (DataReportal)
Here’s a complete ranking of online purchase drivers:
Factor Share of Internet Users Free delivery 50.6% Coupons and discounts 39.3% Easy returns policy 33.2% Simple online checkout 30.6% Customer reviews 30.5% Next-day delivery 30.4% Loyalty points 27.2% Cash on delivery 19.8% Social likes and comments 19.4% Eco-friendly credentials 18.9% Click and collect 17.7% Interest-free payments 14.7% Guest checkout 11.2% Social buy buttons 10.8% Exclusive content or services 10.2% - 48% of US consumers state that their main reason for abandoning shopping carts during the checkout process are high extra costs (shipping, tax, fees).
Other common reasons for abandoning a shopping cart include a requirement to create an account (26%) and security concerns with sharing credit card information (25%) (Statista)
Here’s a complete list of popular reasons why US consumers abandon their shopping carts:
Reason Share of Respondents Extra costs too high (shipping, tax, fees) 48% Requirement to create an account 26% I didn’t trust the site with my credit card information 25% Delivery was too slow 23% Too long / complicated checkout process 22% I couldn’t see / calculate total order cost-up front 21% Returns policy wasn’t satisfactory 18% Website had errors / crashed 17% There weren’t enough payment methods 13% The credit card was declined 9% - For 40.4% of US consumers marketplaces were a starting point in their online shopping journeys in 2023. Another 29.7% of online shoppers stated use of search engines, followed by preferred brand’s website (18.2%) and social media (9.9%) (Attest)
- Lower prices (29%), convenience (21%), free shipping (14%), product availability (7%), and good customer service (7%) are the top 5 reasons consumers choose to shop online (Feedvisor)
- More than 7 in 10 US adults believe home delivery, free shipping, and in-stock products are necessary online shopping attributes for conveniences (eMarketer)
Online Shopping Attribute Share of Respondents Ordering for home delivery 81% Free shipping 76% In-stock products 71% Package tracking 68% Fast shipping 66% Free returns 63% Website filtering and search tools 62% Mobile shopping 61% Saving products in cart to come back later 60% Ease of finding discounts 56% Comparing prices across sites 54% Mail-in returns 51% Comparing products across sites 49% Saving checkout details in a user profile 47% Generous return windows 43% - 66% of consumers cite free shipping as a key online shopping feature (PYMNTS)
- 5 in 10 consumers take into account the ease of checkout process on a retailer’s website or app when making a decision where to shop online (PYMNTS)
- As of April 2024, the average shopping cart abandonment rate worldwide is 73.27% (Dynamic Yield)
Mobile Ecommerce Statistics
With the increased usage of smartphones, more consumers are looking for mobile-first online shopping experiences. These stats will help you understand the mobile commerce landscape.
- 29.9% of internet users worldwide (16-64 years old) buy something online each week via a mobile phone (DataReportal)
- Revenue from mobile ecommerce sales worldwide reached $2.07 trillion in 2024, accounting for 57% of total ecommerce sales (Statista)
Here’s a table with mobile commerce revenue worldwide, including a share of total retail ecommerce since 2017:
Year Mobile Commerce Worldwide Share of Total Retail Ecommerce 2017 $500 billion 40% 2018 $660 billion 43% 2019 $810 billion 46% 2020 $1.1 trillion 48% 2021 $1.4 trillion 49% 2022 $1.48 trillion 52% 2023 $1.71 trillion 54% 2024 $2.07 trillion 57% 2025 $2.51 trillion 59% 2026 $2.74 trillion 60% 2027 $3.02 trillion 62% 2028 $3.35 trillion 63% - Mobile ecommerce accounts for nearly half (44.1%) of US online sales in 2024, representing $564.1 billion in order value.
By 2027, mobile commerce is forecasted to reach $856.4 billion in sales in the US, accounting for 49.79% of online sales (eMarketer)
Here’s a detailed breakdown of mobile ecommerce growth in the US since 2023:
Year Online Sales (Mobile Devices) Online Sales (Dekstop/Laptop) Online Sales (Total, US) 2023 $491.1 billion $645.8 billion $1.137 trillion 2024 $564.1 billion $692.2 billion $1.256 trillion 2025 $648.0 billion $744.0 billion $1.392 trillion 2026 $744.7 billion $800.3 billion $1.545 trillion 2027 $856.4 billion $863.3 billion $1.720 trillion - There are an estimated 161.6 million mobile wallet users in the US alone, accounting for 64.9% of US smartphone users (eMarketer)
- 61% of American adults consider mobile shopping as a necessary online shopping attribute (eMarketer)
- The average conversion rate for online purchases made mobile devices was 2% vs. 3% for desktops (eMarketer)
- In April 2024, traffic from mobile devices to ecommerce sites accounted for 73% share (Dynamic Yield)
Social Media Ecommerce Statistics
From brand and product discovery to direct purchases, social media has transformed the ecommerce industry. These statistics offer valuable insights about social commerce.
- 50.3% of social media users in the US have made at least one purchase via social channel in 2024 (eMarketer)
Here’s a detailed breakdown of US social buyers since 2021:
Year US Social Buyers Share of Social Media Users 2021 96.9 million 46.6% 2022 102.6 million 48.4% 2023 106.8 million 49.5% 2024 110.4 million 50.3% 2025 113.2 million 50.6% 2026 115.8 million 50.7% 2027 118.1 million 50.9% - US social commerce sales reached $67.06 billion in 2023, up from $26.97 billion in 2020 (eMarketer)
Social commerce sales in the US are forecasted to grow to $144.52 billion by 2027.
- Average social commerce spending per buyer in the US amounted to $627.8 in 2023, up from $337.7 in 2020. Sales per buyers forecasted to reach $1,223.7 by 2027 (eMarketer)
- 23.1% of social commerce users in the US are 25 to 34 years old (eMarketer)
Here’s a detailed breakdown of US social buyers by age group:
Age Group Share of US Social Buyers 14-17 7.5% 18-24 16.8% 25-34 23.1% 35-44 19.1% 45-54 13.5% 55-64 10.4% 65+ 9.6% - Facebook (49%), YouTube (46%) and Instagram (40%) are social media platforms where American adults are most likely to make direct purchases (eMarketer)
- Among Gen Z (ages 18-26) in the US, Instagram (71%), YouTube (68%) and TikTok (68%) are leading destinations for social commerce (eMarketer)
- 30% of American adults reported they have purchased a product from a brand founded by a social media influencer. Among Gen Z and millennials that’s as much as 53% and 47%, respectively (Morning Consult)
- Among US consumers, YouTube is a go-to social media platform to start their search when shopping online. 13% of US adults start their search on YouTube (Jungle Scout)
Other popular networks to start a search when shopping online include Facebook (10%), TikTok (7%), Instagram (7%), and Pinterest (5%)
- 50% of consumers say they discover new products on social media (Salesforce)
- 59% of shoppers report they have made a purchase on social media (Salesforce)
