Online Shopping Statistics: The Complete Guide for BDRs & AEs in 2025

The world of e-commerce is moving at breakneck speed, and if you’re a Business Development Representative (BDR) or Account Executive (AE), staying on top of these online shopping statistics isn’t just interesting – it’s essential for your success. With 2.77 billion people shopping online globally and e-commerce sales projected to hit $6.86 trillion in 2025, understanding these trends can be the difference between closing deals and losing prospects to competitors.

Whether you’re reaching out to store owners struggling with cart abandonment or targeting businesses that need better mobile optimization, these shopping statistics will give you the insights to have more meaningful conversations and position your solutions effectively. Let’s dive into the data that’s shaping the digital marketplace right now.

Online Shopping Statistics: General Trends Shaping 2025

The digital shopping landscape continues its explosive growth, creating massive opportunities for businesses – and for the sales professionals who serve them.

Global Market Size and Growth

The numbers are staggering. Global e-commerce sales are projected to reach $6.86 trillion in 2025, representing an 8.37% increase from 2024. This isn’t just growth – it’s a fundamental shift in how people buy and sell worldwide.

The number of online shoppers will increase to 2.86 billion in 2026, meaning roughly one-third of the world’s population is actively shopping online. For BDRs and AEs, this represents an enormous and expanding prospect pool.

Online Shopping’s Share of Total Retail

Here’s what makes this particularly compelling: 21% of retail purchases will take place online in 2025, which is the highest to date. It’s further expected that 22.6% of all retail purchases will be made online by 2027. This steady climb from physical to digital channels means businesses that aren’t optimizing their online presence are literally watching revenue walk out the door.

Key Regional Markets

The global nature of e-commerce creates opportunities everywhere, but some markets are particularly hot:

• China: Still dominates with over 904 million digital buyers and a market size of $3.02 trillion
• United States: 273 million online shoppers representing 80.4% of the population, with e-commerce sales of $1.192 trillion in 2024
• India: A rapidly emerging market that’s expected to add 125 million new online shoppers by 2025

The B2B Opportunity

Don’t overlook B2B e-commerce – it’s massive. The B2B eCommerce market is valued at $32.11 trillion in 2025, dwarfing the B2C market and representing huge opportunities for sales teams targeting business customers.

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Online Shopping Statistics: eCommerce Stores in the Spotlight

Understanding the competitive landscape helps you position your solutions more effectively with store owner prospects.

The Crowded Digital Marketplace

There are over 30.7 million eCommerce websites operating worldwide as of 2024, representing an increase from 27 million in 2023. This 11-14% growth year-over-year shows just how competitive the online space has become.

In the US alone, there are nearly 14 million e-commerce sites, creating intense competition for customer attention and sales. For store owners, this means every advantage counts – whether it’s better customer acquisition, improved conversion rates, or more effective marketing.

Platform Dominance

The major e-commerce platforms are seeing massive growth:

• Shopify: Hosts over 4.6 million stores and has facilitated approximately $1 trillion in cumulative online sales
• Amazon: Maintains a dominant 37.6% market share among US online retailers
• WooCommerce: Holds a 16% market share among e-commerce software solutions

What This Means for Store Owners

With over 30 million online shopping websites globally, store owners face unprecedented competition. Success requires optimization across every touchpoint – from marketing and customer acquisition to checkout processes and customer service. This constant need for competitive advantage creates opportunities for solutions that can help businesses stand out and convert better.

Online Shopping Statistics: Mobile Commerce Revolution

Mobile isn’t just important – it’s becoming the primary way people shop online, creating massive opportunities and challenges for businesses.

Mobile Commerce Scale

The numbers are mind-blowing: Mobile commerce sales will account for $2.51 trillion in 2025, representing 59% of total eCommerce sales. This isn’t a trend anymore – it’s the dominant channel.

Global smartphone users are projected to exceed 7.1 billion in 2024, and people are spending more time than ever on their phones. In 2023, global internet users spent 57.6% of their time browsing on mobile phones.

Mobile vs Desktop Shopping Behavior

Here’s where it gets interesting for sales conversations:

• 75% of female shoppers prefer to use mobile devices to make purchases compared to 63% of men
• Men are more likely to shop on computers (29%) than women (18%)
• Mobile ecommerce accounts for nearly half (44.1%) of US online sales in 2024, representing $564.1 billion in order value

The Mobile Challenge

Despite massive mobile traffic, there’s a significant conversion gap. Mobile users often browse more but convert less than desktop users, pointing to friction in the mobile shopping experience. This represents a huge pain point – and opportunity – for businesses to optimize their mobile presence.

Online Shopping Statistics: The Cart Abandonment Crisis

Cart abandonment remains one of the biggest revenue leaks in e-commerce, making it a perfect pain point to address in sales conversations.

The Shocking Numbers

The global cart abandonment rate reached 70% in 2023, meaning 7 out of 10 shoppers add items to their cart but never complete the purchase. On mobile devices, it’s even worse: mobile cart abandonment reaches 85.65%.

Device-Specific Abandonment Rates

• Desktop: 73.07% abandonment rate
• Tablet: 80.74% abandonment rate
• Mobile: 85.65% abandonment rate

Top Reasons for Abandonment

48% of shopping carts are abandoned due to excess shipping fees and taxes added during final checkout. Other major reasons include:

• Mandatory account creation (26%)
• Security concerns about sharing credit card information (25%)
• Delivery was too slow (23%)
• Too long/complicated checkout process (22%)

Industry Variations

Cart abandonment rates vary significantly by industry:

• Luxury & Jewelry: 82.84%
• Beauty & Personal Care: 80.92%
• Fashion & Apparel: 78.53%
• Food & Beverage: 63.62%
• Consumer Goods: 57.37%

The Recovery Opportunity

Cart abandonment email open rates are incredibly high at around 43%, with click-through rates of 8.76%, showing there’s real opportunity to recover these lost sales with the right approach.

Online Shopping Statistics: Technology Transforming Shopping

New technologies are reshaping how consumers discover, evaluate, and purchase products online.

Artificial Intelligence Impact

The AI-enabled eCommerce market is valued at $7.57 billion in 2024 and projected to grow to $8.65 billion in 2025. Key applications include:

• Personalization: 71% of eCommerce sites currently offer AI-powered product recommendations, and 80% of consumers are more likely to purchase when brands offer personalized experiences
• Customer Service: AI chatbots will handle 80% of all customer interactions by 2030, with 47% of consumers already open to using chatbots for purchases
• Revenue Impact: Companies effectively leveraging AI see an average revenue increase of 10-12%

Augmented Reality (AR) Growth

The global mobile AR market was valued at $11.9 billion in 2024 and is expected to rise to $13.8 billion in 2025. The impact is significant:

• 61% of consumers prefer retailers that offer AR experiences
• AR can increase conversion rates by up to 90% for engaged users
• Products with AR content see 94% higher conversion rates than those without
• AR can reduce product returns by 25-40%

Voice Commerce Emergence

The global voice commerce market was valued at approximately $49.68 billion in 2024, with projections reaching $186.28 billion by 2030. In the US, 49% of consumers use voice search for shopping-related queries.

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Online Shopping Statistics: Black Friday and Cyber Monday Performance

BFCM remains a critical period that tests every aspect of an e-commerce business’s capabilities.

Record-Breaking Sales

Black Friday 2024 US online sales reached $10.8 billion, marking a 10.2% increase from the previous year. Cyber Monday 2024 sales hit $13.3 billion. The entire holiday shopping season (November-December 2024) saw consumer spending reach $241.1 billion, an 8.6% increase from 2023.

Mobile Dominance During Peak Shopping

During the 2024 holiday season, 54.47% of all online sales originated from mobile phones, up from 51.1% in 2023. This mobile-first trend during high-traffic periods puts enormous pressure on businesses to have flawless mobile experiences.

Shopping Behavior Patterns

• Black Friday 2024: 87.3 million people shopped online vs 81.7 million in stores
• Cyber Monday 2024: 64.4 million shopped online vs 23.2 million in stores

The data shows the blending of online and offline channels, with businesses needing omnichannel strategies to capture all available revenue.

Online Shopping Statistics: Gen Z is Rewriting the Rules

Understanding Gen Z shopping behavior is crucial since they represent the future of e-commerce spending.

Gen Z’s Economic Power

Gen Z in the United States will have a buying power of $44 billion by 2025, but their influence extends far beyond their direct spending. 93% of Gen Z parents said that their Gen Z child influences their household shopping.

Social Media as Primary Discovery Channel

67% of TikTok users have been inspired to shop for a product they saw on the platform even when they weren’t looking to make a purchase. Key Gen Z behaviors include:

• 96% use smartphones to make online purchases at least once monthly
• 85% use social media to learn about new products
• 41% discover new products through short-form videos on TikTok
• 43% of Gen Z consumers use TikTok as their starting platform when searching for products

Influencer Impact

57% of Gen Z consumers are likely to purchase a product based on an influencer’s review, and 44% have completed a purchase based on a recommendation from an influencer.

Values-Driven Shopping

Gen Z prioritizes:

• Authenticity and transparency in brand communications
• Ethical and sustainable business practices
• Personalized experiences
• Flexible payment options (55.1% use Buy Now, Pay Later services)

Online Shopping Statistics: Payment Method Evolution

How people pay is evolving rapidly, with implications for conversion rates and customer experience.

Digital Wallet Dominance

Digital wallets accounted for 37% of all online transactions in 2024, projected to climb to 52% by 2027. PayPal alone is used by 71% of US adults, while 60% of millennials and Gen Z prefer digital wallets for their speed and convenience.

Traditional Methods Still Strong

Credit and debit cards remain foundational, with 99% of consumers still using some form of card for online shopping. In the US specifically:

• Credit cards: 32% of overall payments
• Debit cards: 30% of overall payments

Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) Surge

The global BNPL payment market is expected to grow by 13.7% annually to reach $560.1 billion in 2025. Key statistics:

• 15% of Americans used BNPL in 2024, up from 14% in 2023 and 12% in 2022
• Females demonstrate higher BNPL utilization at 22.7% vs males at 14.3%
• Gen Z and Millennials are the primary drivers, with 43.4% of Gen Z using BNPL
• 58% of BNPL users turn to the service to purchase something they couldn’t afford with traditional payment methods

BNPL Concerns

Despite growth, there are warning signs: Nearly 40% of BNPL users surveyed regret using BNPL once the full cost hits home, and 24% of BNPL users have made a late payment.

Online Shopping Statistics: Emerging Shopping Channels

New channels are blending content, community, and commerce in ways that are reshaping the customer journey.

Social Commerce Explosion

Global shoppers will spend $1.37 trillion on social media commerce in 2025, with projections indicating the market will be worth over $2.26 trillion in 2030. In the US:

• 100.7 million or 36.8% of American online consumers shopped on social media in 2024
• Social commerce is worth $90.6 billion, projected to exceed $150 billion by 2029
• 53% of 18- to 26-year-olds have made a purchase via social media

Platform Performance

Facebook leads social commerce with 46% of online shoppers naming it their preferred platform for purchases, followed by TikTok at 26%, Instagram at 21%, and Pinterest at 16%.

TikTok’s Rapid Rise

Roughly half (49.7%) of social shoppers on TikTok buy something from the platform at least once per month—more frequently than on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest. TikTok Shop’s gross sales have topped $1 billion monthly since July 2024.

Live Commerce Growth

The global live commerce market was estimated at $11.58 billion in 2023, anticipated to grow to $14.72 billion in 2024 and projected to reach $77.89 billion by 2030. In the US, 40% of online shoppers have made a purchase through a live commerce event.

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Actionable Insights: How BDRs & AEs Can Leverage These Shopping Statistics

These online shopping statistics aren’t just numbers – they’re conversation starters and credibility builders. Here’s how to use them strategically:

Tailor Your Outreach

Use industry-specific pain points in your messaging. For example, if you’re reaching out to luxury retailers, mention that they face cart abandonment rates of 82.84% – significantly higher than the 70% average. This immediately shows you understand their specific challenges.

Identify High-Growth Opportunities

Mobile commerce growing to $2.51 trillion in 2025 signals that businesses focused on mobile optimization are likely investing and growing. These are ideal prospects for solutions that support rapid scaling.

Speak to Technology Adoption

If a prospect mentions AI initiatives, they’re likely forward-thinking. If they haven’t adopted technologies like AR (which can reduce returns by 25-40%), this represents a competitive disadvantage you can address.

Understand Payment Trends

If a prospect doesn’t offer digital wallets (used in 37% of transactions) or BNPL (preferred by 55% of Gen Z), they could be losing sales. Use these statistics to quantify the opportunity cost of not modernizing their payment options.

Regional Market Intelligence

Focus your prospecting on high-growth markets like India (adding 125 million new online shoppers by 2025) or target established markets like the US (80.4% of population shops online) based on your solution’s strengths.

Social Commerce Positioning

For businesses targeting Gen Z, emphasize that 43% use TikTok as their starting point for product searches. If they’re not actively engaging on these platforms, they’re missing where their customers are looking.

Frequently Asked Questions