Nearly nine in 10 online shoppers reported inflation impacted their holiday shopping, according to a survey of 4,002 consumers from market research firm Numerator. Still, 37% of consumers said they purchased more online during the Cyber 5 2022 than in previous years.

Cyber 5 refers to the five-day period from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday. During that period, 41% of consumers surveyed said they did most or all of their purchasing online. 37% of consumers said they purchased more online and less in-store than during the Cyber 5 in 2021. They cited convenience, avoiding large crowds and finding better deals as their top reasons for buying online.

On Black Friday, specifically, 88% of purchases were under $100. Consumers spent $26 per item, on average, Numerator said.

However, 60% of buyers made two or more purchases throughout the day, and 15% made five or more purchases. 44% of Black Friday shoppers spent more than $100, and more than a fifth (22%) spent more than $200.

Among the retailers Numerator tracked during the Cyber 5, Best Buy recorded the largest average item price: $168.47. Kohl’s followed with $34.97 and Amazon with $33.31.

Amazon.com Inc. ranks No. 1 in the Top 1000. The Top 1000 is Digital Commerce 360’s database of the largest North American online retailers by web sales. Best Buy Co. Inc. ranks No. 6 and Kohl’s Corp. ranks No. 21.

Shoppers return to Amazon on Black Friday

Half of Cyber 5 buyers also bought on Amazon Prime Day in July, and 36% also bought during Amazon’s Early Access Sale in October, Numerator said. 

Meanwhile, Amazon announced Nov. 30 that it had its “biggest holiday shopping week ever.” Amazon declined to comment on its sales growth compared with 2021 or pre-pandemic 2019.

Customers around the world purchased hundreds of millions of products during the Cyber 5 period, Amazon said. 

Amazon said its best-selling categories during the Cyber 5 period were:

• Home
• Fashion
• Toys
• Beauty
• Amazon Devices

Amazon said some of its best-selling items were:

• Echo Dot
• Fire TV Stick
• Apple AirPods
• Hasbro Gaming CONNECT 4
• Burt’s Bees Christmas Gifts
• Apparel from Champion
• Apparel and shoes from New Balance
• The Amazon smart plug, Echo Show
• Nintendo Switch

The mass merchant said its customers bought millions of Amazon devices including Echo, Ring, Blink, Kindle and FIRE TV. Amazon did not specify how many of each item, or which sold most.

Sales for Amazon’s marketplace merchants totaled more than $1 billion over the Cyber 5, the web giant said. Some of the top sellers from marketplaces included games, Amazon announced. 

Economic climate drives Cyber 5 spending shifts

78% of Numerator’s respondents said they planned ahead to shop during the Cyber 5 period. That’s down from 90% in 2021. Meanwhile, 17% made the decision to purchase on the day they purchased. That’s more than double compared with the 8% of consumers who bought spontaneously in 2021.

35% of Cyber 5 shoppers reported spending less this year, Numerator said. They cited having less disposable income, not finding good deals, choosing to buy fewer holiday gifts, and being financially cautious with a looming recession.

The 19% of shoppers who reported spending more this year cited rising prices, Numerator said.

Among consumers who made purchases during the Cyber 5 this year, 88% said they shopped on Black Friday. That’s up from 81% who shopped on Black Friday 2021, Numerator said. 50% of Cyber 5 buyers said they made purchases on Cyber Monday. And 45% said they made purchases the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Numerator said.

Following the Cyber 5, 58% of consumers said they have mostly or completely finished their holiday gift shopping, Numerator said.

The most common gift categories, according to Numerator:

• Apparel (67% of consumers)
• Toys & Games (51%)
• Electronics (46%)
• Home Goods (44%)
• Beauty products (33%)

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