A decade in review: E‑commerce sales vs. retail sales

Online retail sales to consumers in the U.S. crossed $453 billion in 2017 by the U.S. Commerce Department’s measure, a 16.0% jump compared with 2016. That’s the biggest jump since 2010, and far eclipses the growth in retail sales in physical stores, which reached 3.6% last year. It means that e-commerce now accounts for 13% of total retail sales when factoring out the sale of items not normally purchased online, such as fuel, automobiles and sales in restaurants. And it also means that in only a decade, the web has more than doubled its share of retail sales. Ten short years ago, e-commerce was at 5.1% of total retail purchases.

The charts on this page show the growth of e-commerce versus total retail sales in the U.S. It also shows how e-commerce penetration has grown over the past decade.

For immediate access to this chart and hundreds of other exclusive data points, charts and in-depth research reports, become a Digital Commerce 360 Premium Member. See benefits and membership options by clicking on the white “Become a Member” button below.

 

This Content is Exclusively for Research Members

Sign in or purchase a Digital Commerce 360 Research Membership to unlock this content and much more!