We’ve summarized the best and most relevant ecommerce statistics on shopper trends, including insightful stats about online shopping habits, the effect on global retail and consumer habits and behavior.
The results include 110+ data points that detail the consumer buying behavior related to ecommerce buyer behavior and trends
As a coupon code provider for over 1,000 of the world’s most popular ecommerce stores we are in a unique position to survey thousands of shoppers about their experience using coupon codes while they shop online.
The Growing World of Ecommerce
Whether your business is new to online sales or you’ve been virtual since your start, the ecommerce market is growing in popularity and value. Here are some stats about the prevalence of this Internet-based point of sales.
- 40% of Internet users worldwide have made a purchase online
- There are more than 1 billion online shoppers, with projections for growth
- 96% of Americans report having made at least one online purchase in their lifetime
- 80% of Americans have made at least one online purchase within the last month
- 2.1 billion shoppers are expected to be digital buyers worldwide by 2021
- In 2018, ecommerce wholesale trade sales increased to 2.64 trillion dollars in the United States
- $3.5 trillion in sales was brought in by ecommerce
- $4.9 trillion in sales is expected to be brought in by ecommerce by 2021
- $601.75 billion was spent online through U.S. merchants
- Ecommerce accounts for 10% of retail sales
- The percentage of retail sales through ecommerce is expected to grow 15% each year
- China is the largest ecommerce market in the world, bringing in $672 billion in online sales and representing 15.9% of total retail sales
- Online shopping is growing three times faster than offline shopping
- The United States is the second largest ecommerce market, bringing in $340 in online sales and representing 7.5% of share of total retail sales
- The United States’ share of ecommerce market sales is expected to decrease over the coming years
- 64% of American’s budgets are spent in-store
- 36% of American’s budgets are spent online
- 14.1% of all global retail sales were completed online in 2019
- Ecommerce is growing 23% year-over-year
- 95% of shopping is expected to be conducted through ecommerce by 2040
Who Shops Online?
One of the most important things to know as you seek to grow your ecommerce platform is who shops online. Not just online shoppers in general, but specifically your target market that you wish to reach. Here we share some general demographic information about the world of ecommerce as you grow your own sales.
- 67% of millennials prefer to shop online (those born from 1980-1995)
- 56% of Gen Xers prefer to shop online (those born from 1965-1979)
- 51% of all Americans prefer shopping online
- Millennials and Gen Xers spend 50% more time online shopping than the Baby Boomer generation
- Men spend 28% more time shopping online than women
- Offline sales are 10 times bigger than online sales
- 58% of consumers said they shopped online due to the ease of shopping at any time of day
- 86% of female shoppers look to social media as a resource prior to making a purchase
Online Shopping Behavior Trends
Once you understand who your audience is in your ecommerce platform, how do you know what they value and appeal to? Here are some important statistics relating to your online shopper’s behavior.
- 43% of shoppers have made a purchase online while in bed
- 23% of shoppers have made a purchase online while at the office
- 42% of shoppers have purchased something online that they have regretted
- 56% of consumers say that unexpected costs cause them to leave their purchase prior to completing it
- 21% of shoppers have reported that they’ve bought something online accidentally that they didn’t want
- $3 billion could be lost due to abandoned carts on ecommerce sites
- 43% of shoppers abandoned their cart due to high shipping charges
- 50% of people say it’s not safe to save your financial information online when shopping online
- 48% of online shoppers have purchased something they weren’t planning on or believe they have overspent on their purchase
- 85% of online shoppers begin making a purchase on one device and complete the purchase on another device
- 57% of shoppers have made a purchase online from a retailer from another country
- 64% of credit card holders in the United States say that they save their financial information online when shopping online
- 69.57% of carts are abandoned online
- 50% of cart abandonment cases are due to extra costs like shipping or other fees were too high
- 95% of purchasing decisions are made subconsciously
- 23% of shoppers would abandon their cart due to the need to create a new user account
- 54% of shoppers would abandon their cart if they could find the same product for a lower price elsewhere
- 21% of shoppers have abandoned their cart online due to a long and complicated process to checkout and process their order
Ecommerce Platforms Stats
Whether through mobile or desktop, the way consumers interact with your ecommerce platform matters. Here are some important stats to know in moving forward with a platform that meets both your organizational goals and customer’s preferences.
- Types of ecommerce platforms include those for B2B (business-to-business), consumer-to-consumer (C2C) and most popular B2C (business to consumer).
- Amazon is among the top leading ecommerce platforms in the world, accounting for 44% of all ecommerce sales in the United States in 2019
- Credit cards are the preferred method of payment in online shopping, accounting for 42% of transactions
- 39% of online shoppers prefer using PayPal for their transactions
- 42% of online shoppers who use a tablet say that using mobile applications help to strengthen the connection they experience with a brand
- Online shoppers using a tablet are two times as likely to make a purchase than a smartphone user
- 52% of ecommerce platforms use omnichannel capabilities
- Almost 50% of B2B platforms have their entire product line online
- In 2017, B2B online sales were expected to generate $7.6 trillion
- 44% of minutes spent online shopping were completed on a smartphone
- 11% of minutes spent online shopping were completed on a tablet
- 48% of consumers who shop online visit a large ecommerce marketplace which carry with them trust and ease of use
- 820,000 stores host with the Shopify ecommerce platform
- 40% of all purchases made during Black Friday and Cyber Monday were completed on a mobile device
- 267 million accounts were on PayPal by the end of 2018
- 72% of people prefer to use email to communicate with businesses
- 91% of Americans say that they would like to receive promotional emails that interest them
- 61% of people view brands more positively if they share in a successful mobile experience
Ecommerce Digital Marketing Stats
A key element to ecommerce is getting found online by the customers who most relate to your brand. This is often conducted through Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and other content alignment strategies that help to get the business found by the right people. Here are some key statistics and things to know about aligning brand content in a competitive online space.
- 43% of customers research products and services online even when they’re already in the store
- 49% of searches conducted can be resolved without ever even needing to click on a result
- 2.86% of visits to a company’s website actually converts into a purchase
- 80% of internet searchers ignore ads to only see organic search results that appear
- 63,000 searchers are conducted through Google each second
- 43% of ecommerce traffic can be attributed to Google
- Almost 78% of desktop traffic can be attributed to Google
Social Media & Ecommerce Stats
Like an ecommerce website, social media presence has strong implications of a successful online shopping experience. Here are some interesting stats that relate your social presence to converting to sales.
- Social media platforms have integrated features and resources for business to make it easier for shoppers to convert to making purchases online
- 74% of consumers are influenced by social media accounts as they decide on purchases to make
- 30% of time users spend online is on social media
- 30% of shoppers said they would make a purchase from a social media platform
- 56% of social media users follow brands on their respective accounts to review product lines and sales opportunities
- 80% of people say that they have received advice or recommendations regarding a certain product or service
- 93% of Millennials used a mobile device to compare deals online
- 43% of 18-29 year olds judge their social media site to base on their customer service interactions
- Conversion rates of those who reviewed products through social media platforms were up to 133%, which means big potential sales for your business
- Over 500,000 businesses use Instagram as an advertising platform
- 74% of consumers rely on social media to help them make a purchasing decision online
- 71% of online shoppers who use a tablet to make their purchases are influenced by emails from the company, while 69% of online shoppers who use a smartphone are influenced
- 5% of internet users state that they place a great deal of trust in information they gather from social media sources
- 69% of Business-to-Business platforms expect to stop printing product or service catalogs in the next five years
- Conversion rates increase 86% when video is used on landing pages
- 59% of Americans believe social media has made it easier to resolve issues and have their questions responded to when the brand takes on a customer service approach through the platform
Facebook Ecommerce Stats
- $55 is the average order value for customers referred from Facebook
- 39% of users on Facebook look to a brand’s page for research and insight into their services or products
- 54% of consumers who use a smartphone to do their online shopping are influenced by Facebook as they make their purchases
Instagram Ecommerce Stats
- $65 is the average order value for customers referred from Instagram
- 50% of Instagram users follow brands on their accounts
- $0.70 is the average cost-per-click for an advertisement on Instagram, with campaigns targeted toward younger audiences as even more competitive
YouTube Ecommerce Stats
- 79% of global internet traffic is from videos
- 1.16% is YouTube’s conversion rate
Twitter Ecommerce Stats
- A 19% increase in customer satisfaction can be seen when companies use Twitter as a tool and platform in their customer service approach
Special thanks to Let’s Talk About Money, Disruptive Advertising, Adobe, WPForms, Kinsta, Statista, SmallBizGenius, Business.com, Baymard, Oberlo and ReadyCloud who served as sources for the above data.