In 2023, global retail e-commerce sales reached an estimated 5.8 trillion U.S. dollars. Projections indicate a 39 percent growth in this figure over the coming years, with expectations to surpass eight trillion dollars by 2027.

World players Among the key players on the world stage, the Chinese retail giant Alibaba holds the title of the largest e-commerce retailer globally, accounting for a 23 percent market share. Nevertheless, forecasts suggest that by 2027, Seattle-based e-commerce powerhouse Amazon will surpass Alibaba in estimated sales, reaching a staggering 1.2 trillion U.S. dollars in online sales.

Leading e-tailing countries The Chinese e-commerce market was the biggest worldwide in 2023, as internet sales constituted almost half of the country's retail transactions. Indonesia ranked second with the highest share of retail sales online (32 percent), closely trailed by the United Kingdom and South Korea, exceeding the 30 percent mark. That year, the up-and-coming e-commerce markets centered around Asia. The Philippines and India stood out as the swiftest-growing e-commerce markets based on online sales, anticipating a growth rate surpassing 20 percent.

Internet sales have played an increasingly significant role in retailing. In 2024, e-commerce accounted for over 17 percent of retail sales worldwide. Forecasts indicate that by 2029, the online segment will make up close to over 21 percent of total global retail sales. Retail e-commerce Online shopping has grown steadily in popularity in recent years. In 2024, global e-commerce sales amounted to over seven trillion U.S. dollars, a figure expected to exceed 10.4 trillion U.S. dollars by 2028. Digital development in Latin America boomed during the COVID-19 pandemic, generating unprecedented e-commerce growth in various economies across the region. So much so that Brazil and Argentina appear to lead the world's fastest-growing online retail markets. This trend correlates strongly with the constantly improving online access, especially in "mobile-first" online communities, which have long struggled with traditioe-comernal fixed broadband connections due to financial or infrastructure constraints but enjoy the advantages of cheap mobile broadband connections. M-commerce on the rise The average order value of online shopping via smartphones and tablets still lags traditional e-commerce via desktop computers. However, e-retailers around the world have caught up in mobile e-commerce sales. Online shopping via smartphones is particularly prominent in Asia. By the end of 2021, Malaysia was the top digital market based on the percentage of the population that had purchased something by phone, with nearly 45 percent having made a weekly mobile purchase. South Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines completed the top of the ranking.

According to estimates, e-commerce sales revenue in Mexico amounted to 34 billion U.S. dollars in 2021. The value was forecast to increase by over 85 percent and reach about 63 billion dollars in 2025 – mostly due to the rise of m-commerce in the North American country.

Amazon is by far the leading U.S. company in the e-commerce space. According to forecasts, online sales through Jeff Bezos' platform were set to reach more than 386 billion dollars in 2021. Coming in a distant second is retail chain Walmart, with sales expected to surpass 67 billion dollars, and followed in third place by e-commerce company eBay, with sales of about 40.5 billion dollars.

While having slowed down from an impressive 24.9 percent year-on-year growth in 2017, Amazon's retail e-commerce sales in the United States are still growing in the double digits. In 2019, U.S. e-retail sales of the online platform increased by 19.1 percent and amounted to over 222.6 billion U.S. dollars.

Costco's e-commerce sales were forecast at 14.8 billion U.S. dollars worldwide in 2021, with the United States accounting for approximately 85 percent of this value. Moreover, online sales of the retail giant were set to reach 25.5 billion U.S. dollars by 2026.

China's e-commerce retail sales saw strong growth amid the coronavirus pandemic. In 2022, China's retail e-commerce sales value amounted to around 2.68 trillion U.S. dollars, representing a 6.1 percent year-on-year growth. Forecasts show that online retail sales in China will approach four trillion U.S. dollars by 2027.

According to a study, Tmall.com is and will continue to be Alibaba's main e-commerce banner. From nearly 685 billion dollars in sales recorded in 2021, this figure is forecast to double by 2026. AliExpress ranks second, expected to grow from more than 54 billion dollars in 2021 to close to 96 billion five years later. Freshippo, Lanzada.com, and Kaola.com followed further behind.

The statistic shows the leading e-commerce platforms worldwide in 2021. At that time, Shopify was run on 20 percent of e-commerce sites worldwide. E-commerce platforms provide a virtual store for consumers to buy products and services. The software provides both a virtual storefront as well as a variety of other services necessary for a retailer to run their business, such as inventory and customer relationship management or marketing and promotional tools.

In 2021, food and beverage stores generated 26.7 billion U.S. dollars through online retail sales in the United States. In total, sales of this type of retail establishments amounted to nearly 890 billion U.S. dollars that year. E-commerce sales of apparel and clothing accessories, in turn, registered e-commerce sales of 20.5 billion U.S. dollars.

From July to September 2024, U.S. retail e-commerce sales amounted to roughly 300 billion U.S. dollars, marking an increase compared to the previous quarter. Overall, retail e-commerce sales outdid the quarterly sales records registered in 2020. E-commerce in the post-pandemic era During the second quarter of 2020, as COVID-19 spread across the globe, the U.S.'s quarterly e-commerce revenue reached 200 billion for the first time in history. In 2021, online retail sales account for ten percent of total retail in the United States. Clothing and accessories, including footwear, is one of the largest B2C e-commerce merchandise categories. Retail e-commerce sales in the United States are estimated from samples used for the Monthly Retail Trade Survey and exclude online travel services, ticket sales agencies, and financial brokers. Latest trend? Quick commerce Shoppers expect fast delivery of their purchases, especially when it comes to grocery products. This segment of the e-commerce industry goes under quick commerce and is expected to generate increasing revenue in the next years. Major quick commerce companies like Instacart or Uber Eat operate in the United States, where the quick commerce market is forecast to hit nearly 40 billion U.S. dollars by 2027.

Online shopping sales across India amounted to around 67 billion U.S. dollars in 2021. The e-commerce market is likely to grow to over 145 billion U.S. dollars by 2025. The e-commerce market in India is the fastest-growing market in the world.

Online retail segments

In fiscal year 2017, the retail market was led by electronics with a penetration rate of about 20 percent. However, in terms of groceries, local offline vendors or kiranas continued to be the preferred choice for daily groceries due the ease of bargaining and benefitting from the ‘old-customer’ designation with extra rations as a gesture from the vendor. Nevertheless, the number of online shoppers in the country was estimated to increase to over 220 million in 2025, up from around 80 million in 2017.

Impact of COVID-19 on the market

The coronavirus outbreak in March 2020 caused a surge in prices across e-commerce platforms. Panic purchasing resulted in the shortage of sanitary and food items online as well as in physical stores across the country. As the online consumption continued to increase, unscrupulous sellers jacked up the prices on certain items. Amazon and Flipkart, the two e-commerce market leaders in India urged sellers and even blocked certain products to exercise responsible pricing. Manufacturers increased production in order to keep up with the supply of fast-moving items. With the uncertainty surrounding the impact of COVID-19, manufacturers and retailers will presumably have to work in unison to keep track of an unprecedented demand and supply scenario.

In 2021, the value of business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce sales reached 1.7 trillion U.S.dollars in the United States. Estimating a compound annual growth rate of 10.7 percent, U.S. B2B e-commerce will generate over three billion U.S. dollars sales by 2027.

In 2021, the business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce market in Japan increased by over seven percent compared to the previous year. Domestic online sales grew steadily in recent years, reaching more than double in size within the last decade. A slight decline was recorded in 2020 due to a drop within the online service segment, which included travel booking services.

The revenue in the e-commerce market in the United States was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 657.8 billion U.S. dollars (+53.79 percent). After the tenth consecutive increasing year, the indicator is estimated to reach 1.9 trillion U.S. dollars and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the revenue of the e-commerce market was continuously increasing over the past years.Find other key market indicators concerning the average revenue per user (ARPU) and number of users. The Statista Market Insights cover a broad range of additional markets.

In 2023, retail e-commerce sales in the United States reached an estimated 275 million U.S. dollars, up from 142 million dollars in 2019. E-commerce's growth trajectory Driven by the escalating integration of technology into daily life, e-commerce has witnessed a remarkable surge in popularity. Projections indicate a significant uptick in e-commerce users in the United States, rising from 254 million in 2023 to over 316 million by 2028. As of the outset of 2023, apparel and accessories ranked as the most sought-after e-commerce product category, comprising over 18 percent of all retail sales in the U.S. This trend persists despite inflationary pressures, positioning this category among the e-commerce segments experiencing the most significant year-on-year price changes. M-commerce users demographic While the demand for the convenience of purchasing from the palm of one's hand is also rapidly increasing, various demographic factors influence mobile commerce usage. There's a higher proportion of male online shoppers than females, with a split of 53 percent versus 47 percent. Age is another determinant. Younger consumers exhibit a greater inclination towards m-commerce, with 46 percent of mobile shoppers falling within the 18 to 24 age bracket. Furthermore, income levels also shape mobile shopping habits, with individuals earning less than 25,000 U.S. dollars annually showing the highest propensity for mobile-based purchases.

Estimates indicate that in 2021, online shopping via desktop computers in Latin America's six largest e-commerce markets generated approximately 55 billion U.S. dollars in revenue. Brazil and Mexico alone accounted for some 18 billion and 15 billion dollars, respectively. Revenues from desktop sales in these countries are forecast to grow by a combined 58 percent to reach 87 billion U.S. dollars by 2025. As for mobile commerce in Latin America, sales in Argentina were forecast to grow by 160% over the same period.

Brazil: desktops prevail, but mobile trends upward In the largest Portuguese-speaking country, personal computers (PCs) play a major role in internet usage. Desktop devices generated almost half of Brazil's web traffic in 2021. Still, the employment of mobile phones in Brazilian e-shopping is on the rise. B2W Companhia Digital is just one example of an online retail company experiencing increased mobile web traffic. In 2020, smartphones generated 82 percent of traffic to that Rio de Janeiro-based e-tailer's platform.

PCs in Mexico: a billion-dollar segment Desktops are also key for the use of the internet in Mexico, albeit to a lesser extent than in Brazil. In 2020, 54 percent of the total web traffic generated in that North American country was through desktop computers. The appeal of PCs towards Mexican consumers is highlighted by the year-on-year growth in revenue between 2016 and 2021. The value of the market was projected to reach over 1.55 billion U.S. dollars by the end of 2021.

In the first quarter 2024, e-commerce and electronic data interchange represented 28.6 percent of net sales generated by the group Fastenal. That was an increase compared to the same quarter of the previous year, when digital channels accounted for 21.9 percent of the revenue generated by the industrial supplies distributor.

A study revealed that in 2021, Alibaba's net e-commerce sales amounted to an estimated 258 billion U.S. dollars. According to forecasts, this figure could almost double by 2026. Similar increase is expected for other categories. By that year, the sale of electrical goods through Alibaba would exceed 373 billion U.S. dollars, while leisure and entertainment items would amount to 163 billion dollars.

Food was the fastest growing e-commerce category in Russia. In 2021, the revenue from online food sales increased by 138 percent compared to the previous year. Furthermore, pet goods recorded a 123 percent growth in online sales revenue.