The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) score of the e-commerce website of Amazon.com has fluctuated since 2000. In 2024, the customer satisfaction score of the online retailer was 83 out of 100 ASCI points. Popularity contest Amazon is one of the most popular marketplaces worldwide. In April 2023, the U.S. domain for Amazon ranked the most visited e-commerce and shopping website by share of online visits, with around 13 percent. Ebay came in second with roughly three percent of the visit share, and the Japanese site amazon.co.jp came in third with 2.66 percent. In the same month, global online shoppers visited amazon.com around 2.2 billion times. Why Amazon? Amazon.com is the most used e-commerce website in the world, and in the U.S., the website is far ahead of its competitors. With a significant difference in website visitors of almost 45 percent, ebay.com is second to amazon.com. Furthermore, the retail giant Walmart trails behind with an online visit share of roughly six percent. Amazon is used for various reasons by its customers. For example, the online marketplace is ranked as the leading platform for product research in the U.S., surpassing even search engines in popularity. Low shipping costs, fast deliveries, and affordable product prices are the main reasons for shopping on Amazon.
Most of the latest online purchases from abroad among U.S. shoppers were made in China, according to a 2023 survey. 53 percent of the e-commerce users surveyed in the United States had made their most recent purchase from there. The United Kingdom ranked second, with 10 percent. In turn, the U.S. was the main market where Canadian cross-border shoppers last bought online.
This timeline shows the customer satisfaction with e-retail over the years, as measured in the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) score. In 2024, customer satisfaction with electronic retail reached 80 points out of 100. A bustling e-commerce market With one of the largest economies globally, it is no surprise that the United States also is a leading market for e-commerce on the global scale. In 2023, the U.S. Census Bureau reported retail e-commerce sales reaching an estimated 275 million U.S. dollars, nearly doubling since 2019. This high number of sales is made possible by the 273 million e-commerce users in the country – over 80 percent of the population. U.S. online fashion shopping Of the most popular categories to buy online, apparel and accessories is by far the most popular. In 2024, apparel, footwear and accessories made up 20.2 percent of the country’s total retail e-commerce sales. In the same year, the category was forecast to generate a total 145 billion U.S. dollars in overall revenue.
In 2023, e-commerce comprised over 15.6 percent of total retail sales in the United States. Forecasts suggest that this proportion will continue to rise steadily in the coming years, reaching approximately 20.6 percent by 2027. Fashion fever The digital revolution has significantly changed how retail is done, impacting a wide range of product categories. Out of all e-commerce product categories, apparel and accessories are the most purchased online in the United States. As of February 2023, roughly 18 percent of all fashion retail sales took place online. Furniture and home furnishing, as well as computer and consumer electronics, ranked second, with over 15 percent of each product category purchased via the internet. The product categories that are least purchased online are office equipment and supplies (1.4 percent) and books, music, and video (5.1 percent). Shopping hotspots Amazon dominates the e-commerce industry in the United States, though other competitors still have significant market share. In December 2023, amazon.com was the most-visited e-commerce and shopping site in the United States. That month, around 45 percent of all visits to e-commerce sites were made to Amazon. Other popular shopping sites include ebay.com, walmart.com, etsy.com, and target.com. The staggering proportion of online retail sales in the country attributed to Amazon is quite remarkable. In 2023, Amazon's website accounted for almost half of all online computer and consumer electronics sales. Similarly, nearly one-third of online fashion purchases in the country were made on Amazon.
Inflation was the leading issue plaguing the online shopping experience of global consumers in 2023. Nearly sixty percent of consumers surveyed worldwide in February that year reported rising prices for household goods was the issue having the greatest impact on them while shopping online. In addition, nearly a quarter reported being unable to purchase a product due to it being out of stock.
E-commerce in times of stagflation
As the global economy still reeled from the macroeconomic shock of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war dealt a further blow to worldwide trade. Along with record food inflation, an unprecedented wave of layoffs in tech companies brought the pandemic-induced e-commerce boom to a halt. While online retail sales growth reached a peak of 25.7 percent in 2020, this figure was forecast to slow to 9.7 percent in 2022.
Impact of inflation on consumer behavior
As of January 2023, the European Union hit a double-digit inflation rate and consumers have had to adjust their purchasing behavior accordingly. Discretionary sectors such as clothing and consumer electronics were the most affected, with almost 50 percent of global consumers reporting they have either stopped or reduced their purchases of clothing, shoes, and accessories in response to rising prices.
In the fourth quarter 2024, the share of e-commerce in total U.S. retail sales stood at 16.4 percent, up from the previous quarter. From October to December 2024, retail e-commerce sales in the United States hit over 309 billion U.S. dollars, the highest quarterly revenue in history. How e-commerce measures up in total U.S. retail In 2023, the reported total value of retail e-commerce sales in the United States amounted to over one trillion U.S. dollars—impressive, but the figure pales compared to the total annual retail trade value of seven trillion U.S. dollars. E-commerce still accounts for a mere 15.4 percent of total retail sales in the United States. Rising e-commerce segments Online shopping is popular among all age groups, though digital purchases are most common among Millennial internet users. In 2022, around 55 percent of Millennials purchased items via the internet. Mobile commerce is also growing in popularity, as consumers increasingly rely on their smartphones and mobile apps for shopping activities. In the fourth quarter of 2022, m-commerce spending made up 38 percent of the overall online spending in the United States.
In 2024, marketplaces were the primary source of inspiration for online shopping globally. According to a survey, ** percent of online shoppers said they sought inspiration through searches on this channel. Browsing in-store ranked second, with almost one-third of respondents using it for this purpose.
The top in every category Marketplaces were the most popular places to get ideas for general online shopping, and this also applies to different types of shopping. When looking for beauty products online, around ** percent of consumers used marketplaces for inspiration, followed by brand websites and social media channels. Similarly, around ** percent of consumers stated that they use marketplaces to find inspiration for luxury products. When it came to finding inspiration for purchasing health and pharmaceutical products online, around a fourth of consumers favored online marketplaces.
Under the social media influence Social platforms have a greater influence on consumers than ever before when it comes to purchasing specific items. In 2023, the share of shoppers who purchased an item after seeing it on social media varied by country, with consumers in the United States being the most affected. Social media influenced over half of U.S. shoppers to open their wallets. In comparison, around ** percent of shoppers in Czechia had purchased an item after seeing it on a social platform.
Online purchases in the non-grocery retail category were more prevalent among online shoppers in Australia than in the groceries category in the 12 months to July 2024, according to a 2024 survey. Those aged between 18 and 49 years old were the key demographic for online non-grocery retail product purchases, with over ** percent of respondents across this demographic purchasing non-grocery products online every month during the survey period. In the groceries category, 30 to 39-year-olds were the leading age group buying groceries online at around ** percent of respondents.
In 2023, over 53 percent of households with two or more people in Japan purchased goods or services online, remaining at a similar level as the previous year. The number of households using e-commerce services increased steadily in recent years, with fashion and electronics representing a recurring category purchased online. B2C online retail Business-to-consumer (B2C) online retail is the main consumer-oriented e-commerce market, with marketplaces, direct-to-consumer (D2C) stores, and digital general merchandisers being common websites accessed in Japan. In particular, marketplaces, taking on the form of a virtual shopping mall, are considered popular one-stop solutions for consumers’ needs. Consequently, Amazon, Rakuten Ichiba, and Yahoo! Shopping are the most successful e-retailers in Japan, gathering millions of visitor numbers regularly. Apart from the business-to-many (B2M) platforms, the companies also offer consumer-to-consumer (C2C) services. Japanese C2C platforms C2C e-commerce in Japan is made up of the reuse market encompassing online auctions and flea markets, and the smaller sharing economy segment. The auction business is dominated by Yahoo’s C2C platform Yahoo! Auctions, whereas the successful mobile application operated by Mercari has been shaking up flea market platforms in the country. The main user base of second-hand platforms are adults between the age of 20 to 49, as it is considered a popular mean to save money or shop sustainable.
As of the first quarter of 2023, the main categories that Gen Z shoppers would mostly shop for online if they could choose freely were entertainment and fashion. On the other hand, Gen Z consumers would mostly shop for in-person groceries, pharmaceuticals, and home and garden.
During a 2021 survey, a total of ****** consumers from ** global markets were asked why they choose to shop online. The most frequently stated reason was the ease of shopping at any time of day, mentioned by ** percent of respondents. On the other hand, around half of the global consumers surveyed said they chose to shop over the internet because it is more convenient than going to a physical store.
According to estimates, Amazon claimed the top spot among online retailers in the United States in 2023, capturing 37.6 percent of the market. Second place was occupied by the e-commerce site of the retail chain Walmart, with a 6.4 percent market share, followed in third place by Apple, with 3.6 percent.
Amazon’s continued success
Amazon has long dominated the e-commerce market as the world’s favorite online marketplace. In 2022, company hit over half a trillion U.S. dollars in net sales. The United States is by far Amazon’s most profitable market, as the U.S. branch generated over 356 billion U.S. dollars in sales in 2022. Germany ranked second, with 33 billion dollars, followed closely by the United Kingdom with 30 billion dollars.
Online shopping on the rise
Online shopping has grown significantly over the past decade, with more people turning to the internet for their shopping needs. The proof is in the numbers: the U.S. e-commerce industry was worth almost a trillion dollars in 2023. By 2027, forecasts show that the online market will grow to more than 50 percent. U.S. online shoppers purchase fashion and food and beverages the most via the internet.
In 2024, around ** percent of 25- to 45-year-olds in Germany had ordered and purchased products online in the past three months. They were also the largest age group of online consumers. 65- to 75-year-olds were the group that shopped online the least. Where are people shopping online? Some of the most visited fashion websites in Germany included zalando.de, hm.com, and vinted.de. Zalando is especially popular because it sells items from multiple different brands, allowing the consumer to find all different types of clothes, shoes, accessories, and more in one place. Another advantage of shopping online is that consumers are not just limited to shopping in the country in which they live. Products can be ordered from almost anywhere in the world (if, of course, consumers are willing to pay a little extra). If a better deal is available elsewhere or a product is not available anywhere in the home country, then this can be a good reason to make a purchase on a foreign website. Challenges of online shopping Online shopping, however, is not without its challenges. Retailers themselves continued to be worried about challenges facing e-commerce. These included customer reluctance to buy due to higher prices, as well as competitive pressure from other businesses and supply bottlenecks. Most customers preferred to return products they did not want to keep via an online self-service, which means declaring a return online and then dropping off the package, e.g. at the post, a return point located in another establishment or a package pick-up station. While the return option is an integral part of online shopping, it brings with it a multitude of issues. These include putting a significant strain on the environment, transportation and logistics, as well as staff involved.
In a February 2022 survey, the ability to shop at any time was the most mentioned benefit of e-commerce among consumers worldwide. Almost half of respondents preferred this channel because of its flexibility. Better prices was the second main advantage of shopping online, with almost four in ten of the answers.
Among consumers worldwide, a total 47 percent reported that they dislike shopping online because they are unable to see products in-person. Additionally, 43 percent of global consumers stated that their main reason for not liking to shop online was that they are not able to try out the things they like before purchasing them.
According to data from an April 2021 survey of Canadian online shoppers, ** percent of online shoppers from the country were Millennials from ages 27 to 40. The second-largest group were Boomers from 65 to 75 years old, who made up ** percent of overall online shoppers in the country.
According to a 2024 survey, millennials made up the largest share of consumers globally who mostly shopped for beauty products online (** percent). Gen Z (** percent) and Gen X (** percent) consumers followed, while around ** percent of Baby Boomers did so.
Doubling the money
The online beauty and personal care market worldwide generated a revenue of about **** billion U.S. dollars in 2022, with China, the United States, and Japan being the three biggest markets. The cosmetics market is the fastest growing segment of the beauty market worldwide and is estimated to incur almost double its current revenue by 2027. In 2023, around *** million people around the world purchased beauty products online. This number is expected to increase to over *** billion by 2027.
Trending on TikTok
With social media becoming more and more prominent, especially in younger generations, it is not a surprise that more people also engage in social commerce and purchase beauty products from apps. In the United States, TikTok has become the leading social media platform for purchasing various beauty items, followed by Instagram and Facebook. On TikTok, content creators and brands promote sales in two main ways, video sales and live sales. The majority of app-based sales are made through live sales, which refer to livestreams that promote products and offer shopping links. It is easy to see how popular beauty products are on TikTok from the number of views they receive, with Dyson, Cerave, and The Ordinary being the most popular beauty brands.
The leading benefit of online shopping according to Japanese consumers is the flexibility of being able to order at any time, as stated by **** percent of respondents in a survey conducted in February 2024. Convenience played a major role in online shopping, with products getting delivered to one's home being the second most commonly named reason for mail orders.
In 2023, around 34 percent of online shoppers in Brazil were people aged between 35 and 44. The 45-54 age group was the second most common range, accounting for 22.6 percent of the market. Men in Brazil spend more on e-commerce than women, on average.
Millennials aged 25 to 34 years were the largest group of digital buyers in the United States. As of February 2020, this particular demographic group accounted for 20.2 percent of digital buyers in the United States. The second-largest online buyer audience were 35 to 44 year olds who accounted for 17.2 percent of U.S. digital buyers.
The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) score of the e-commerce website of Amazon.com has fluctuated since 2000. In 2024, the customer satisfaction score of the online retailer was 83 out of 100 ASCI points. Popularity contest Amazon is one of the most popular marketplaces worldwide. In April 2023, the U.S. domain for Amazon ranked the most visited e-commerce and shopping website by share of online visits, with around 13 percent. Ebay came in second with roughly three percent of the visit share, and the Japanese site amazon.co.jp came in third with 2.66 percent. In the same month, global online shoppers visited amazon.com around 2.2 billion times. Why Amazon? Amazon.com is the most used e-commerce website in the world, and in the U.S., the website is far ahead of its competitors. With a significant difference in website visitors of almost 45 percent, ebay.com is second to amazon.com. Furthermore, the retail giant Walmart trails behind with an online visit share of roughly six percent. Amazon is used for various reasons by its customers. For example, the online marketplace is ranked as the leading platform for product research in the U.S., surpassing even search engines in popularity. Low shipping costs, fast deliveries, and affordable product prices are the main reasons for shopping on Amazon.