Online retail in the United Kingdom has been gaining ground in the past decade. With the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, the value of online retail sales in the United Kingdom peaked at around 129.5 billion British pounds in 2021. In 2022, the figure decreased to ***** billion British pounds. However, they then went through another recovery and achieved around ***** billion British pounds in 2024. What ranks high in UK e-commerce? In the United Kingdom, clothing and household goods were the most popular retail items consumers purchased through the internet in 2020. Data published by the Office for National Statistics (UK) showed that other leisure activities and services such as booking holiday accommodations, travel arrangements and event tickets were other areas consumers depended on the internet to buy. German e-commerce market The UK might have the highest share of online sales in retail trade, but other European countries such as Germany and France have had impressive track records over the years as well. According to the forecasts provided by German E-commerce and Distance Selling Trade Association (bevh), the market volume of Germany’s e-commerce sector was projected to see over ** billion euros in 2021.

In March 2025, the value of internet sales as a percentage of total retail sales in Great Britain amounted to 26.3 percent. This was a slight increase compared with the previous month, when online retail sales accounted for 25.9 percent of total retail sales.

What does the online shopper want? The answer for UK consumers was price comparisons, according to results of a consumer survey conducted each year from 2018 to 2020. In each of these years, those surveyed predominantly cited price comparison and greater variety as the two leading motivations to do their shopping online. Most popular items purchased online The latest reports published by the Office for National Statistics (UK) also suggested that, for both British men and women alike, clothing and sports goods were the number one items that shoppers purchased online in 2020. Ranking second that year, deliveries from restaurants, fast-food chains or catering services were ordered by approximately a ***** of consumers in Great Britain. UK: Europe’s leading e-commerce market UK’s online shoppers drive the sovereign country’s retail sector. Currently, the share of online sales as a proportion to all retail trade makes the United Kingdom the leading e-commerce market in Europe. Forecasts indicate that the total value of online sales in the UK will have reached approximately ********* British pounds in 2020.

The main driver for online shopping activity in the United Kingdom was free delivery, with ** percent of digital buyers in the country reporting so. Another driver to purchase products online was having no hidden fees. The rise of e-commerce in the UK with fashion leading the way Already a part of daily life for millions of consumers in the UK, the popularity of online shopping only increased considerably after the COVID-19 pandemic. In the United Kingdom, e-commerce generated *** billion U.S. dollars in revenue in 2023; revenue figures are forecast to grow in the coming years, reaching a total of *** billion by 2029. The leading e-commerce industry was the fashion segment, accounting for a revenue of around ** billion U.S. dollars. Tesco leads UK's e-commerce food sector Aside from fashion, the food sector also stands out when analyzing e-commerce in the United Kingdom. Food e-commerce generated ***** billion U.S. dollars in revenue in 2023. Tesco, the popular British grocery store which started its online activities in the 2000s, was the leading online grocery store in the country in 2023, generating net sales of around **** billion U.S. dollars.

In 2023, approximately ** percent of e-commerce retail sales in the United Kingdom were conducted through mobile devices. Projections for 2027 anticipate a further rise, with mobile commerce (m-commerce) expected to account for about **** percent of the total online shopping market in the UK.

Over the past pandemic year, a significant number of consumers in the United Kingdom (UK) have reported changes in their online shopping behavior. Specifically, in March 2020, about ** percent of UK shoppers said they had been shopping more online, compared to before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. By February 2021, however, this percentage had grown to approximately ** percent. By the same token, offline shopping has decreased over the analyzed period.

During a late 2023 survey carried out among working-age consumers from the United Kingdom (UK), roughly ** percent of respondents stated they started their online shopping journey on search engines. Approximately ** percent said they started their journeys on marketplaces.

In August 2025, the value of internet retail sales in Great Britain reached a value of over *** billion British pounds, down from the previous month. Overall the value of internet retail sales has steadily increased with peaks during the winter season, reflecting sales increase from the holiday season.

During the second quarter of 2025, smartphones accounted for ***percent of retail site visits in the United Kingdom and were used to make ** percent of online shopping orders. Meanwhile, desktop computers generated ***percent of retail website traffic and were behind ***percent of all purchases. Digital and contactless: new ways to pay Using smartphones for online and in-person shopping has become increasingly popular. Consumers now enjoy a variety of options when it comes to digital wallets and contactless payments. The share of consumers using digital wallets in the United Kingdom reached ** percent in 2024. One brand appears at the top, at around ** percent of usage, when it comes to e-commerce payment methods, PayPal, with double of use compared to the second placed, Apple Pay. PayPal: dominating digital payments After being founded in 1998 and becoming an independent company in 2015, PayPal is now one of the most widely used digital payment platforms globally, especially for e-commerce. Due to its reputation for security and ease of use, the brand is widely accepted by consumers. In 2024, in countries such as Mexico, Germany and Switzerland, consumers use PayPal for online payments over ** percent of the time.

According to the results of Coronavirus Consumer Tracker conducted by Internet Retailing, coronavirus (COVID-19) had the most impact on takeaway food ordering habits of consumers. In the week ending May 6, more than ********* of UK consumers who took part in this tracker said they stopped ordering food online completely. Just over ** percent of consumers said they reduced ordering takeaway food.

For further information about the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the United Kingdom (UK) and elsewhere in the world, please visit our dedicated Facts and Figures page.

In 2024, global retail e-commerce sales reached an estimated ************ U.S. dollars. Projections indicate a ** percent growth in this figure over the coming years, with expectations to come close to ************** dollars by 2028. World players Among the key players on the world stage, the American marketplace giant Amazon holds the title of the largest e-commerce player globally, with a gross merchandise value of nearly *********** U.S. dollars in 2024. Amazon was also the most valuable retail brand globally, followed by mostly American competitors such as Walmart and the Home Depot. Leading e-tailing regions E-commerce is a dormant channel globally, but nowhere has it been as successful as in Asia. In 2024, the e-commerce revenue in that continent alone was measured at nearly ************ U.S. dollars, outperforming the Americas and Europe. That year, the up-and-coming e-commerce markets also 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 ** percent.

When asked about "Attitudes towards online shopping", most UK respondents pick ******************************************************************************* as an answer. ** percent did so in our online survey in 2025. Looking to gain valuable insights about customers of online shops across the globe? Check out our reports about consumers of online shops worldwide. These reports offer the readers a comprehensive overview of customers of eCommerce brands: who they are; what they like; what they think; and how to reach them.

In August 2025, monthly internet retail sales increased by 4.7 percent in Great Britain, compared to the same month of the previous year.

As of early 2023, men and women in the United Kingdom (UK) had similar preferences when it came to shopping channels. Around a ***** of male and female consumers surveyed said they would prefer to shop mostly online for goods and services, given the choice.

According to the data published by the Office for National Statistics in August 2025, online sales of department stores showed a yearly increase of 12.1 percent. Stores selling household goods also saw a positive change of 9.5 percent.

Online retail shops in the UK have achieved growth of more than ** percent between 2013 and 2018, based on expenditure. In contrast, the growth rate of offline shopping locations such as retail parks, malls and town centres remained below ** percent. Town centres are especially afflicted by slumping growth rates, as more store closures are taking place in British high streets. The future is not that dark for offline retail The outlook for online and offline shopping locations changes somewhat dramatically for the next few years until 2023. While online still has a greater growth rate than offline shopping locations, and increasingly accounts for a larger share in retail trade, significant improvements are forecast for offline shopping locations, particularly for retail parks and town centres. Combining online and offline This can be accounted for increasing multichannel and omnichannel capabilities conventional retailers are adopting, with a view to gradually bridge their brick and mortar business with online sales and service.

Since 2010, retail internet sales have shown a positive trend in Great Britain. However, 2022 represented an exception, as online retail sales declined by 9.8 percent that year. In 2024, internet sales increased again by 8.7 percent.

In 2024, the online food market showed a two percent sales increase in the United Kingdom (UK). It was a smaller increase than the one seen from 2022 to 2023. Monthly data from the second half of 2023 aligned with this trend and showed that the share of food retail sales made online plateaued at around nine percent. Fewer consumer goods in the shopping cart Rampant inflation and a general economic recession together with a return to brick-and-mortar changed the online spending intentions of buyers. Only one-fourth of UK consumers intended to purchase fast-moving consumer goods like groceries and household goods online. Nearly one in two users favored electronics, while clothing and footwear came third in the ranking of product categories bought on the internet. Grocery delivery against the clock When the purchase decision is made, some grocery products are still preferred over others due to delivery conditions. Shipping timing plays an important role in grocery shopping, as it affects the quality of delivered fresh products. About two-thirds of UK shoppers would buy frozen products and dry goods, leaving perishables near the end of the wishlist. A surprising 30 percent of UK shoppers claimed their groceries did not arrive fresh enough, the third-most common cause of a negative shopping experience in 2022.

According to the source, the online share of retail sales in the United Kingdom (UK) was estimated to be **** percent by the end of 2022. This figure is down from 2021, where online sales accounted for **** percent of the online retail industry.

The online purchasing penetration in Great Britain from 2008 to 2020 has demonstrated an exponential increase. In 2008, just over half of British consumers stated having made a purchase through online methods. Whereas in 2020, 87 percent of British consumers stated utilizing online channels to make purchases. This demonstrates that e-commerce in the UK shows no signs of slowing down in the future.

B2C vs. B2B e-commerce

Generally speaking, e-commerce sales to private customers through a website trumps sales to private businesses or public authorities. In 2018, sales to private customers through a website accounted for almost 200 billion pounds in revenue and sales to businesses or public authorities accounted for 165.3 billion pounds in revenue. From 2014 to 2018, with the exception of 2015, year after year e-commerce sales to private customers has increased. The most popular goods purchased online in Great Britain in 2019 were clothing or sports goods; 60 percent of consumers surveyed reported having purchased clothes or sporting goods online. Another popular category for online shopping among British consumers was household goods, with 49 percent of those surveyed stating they had purchased these online.

Most popular online activity

Although shopping is clearly a popular online activity, the leading online activity among UK citizens in 2019 was online banking. 73 percent of those surveyed reported having done so in 2019. Browsing for leisure activities such as cinema times and live music was also a popular online activity of UK citizens.