Cross-Border Online Shopping Statistics (2024): eCommerce Data

Highlights. The cross-border e-commerce consumer market is worth an estimated $1.976 trillion in 2024.

Cross-border e-commerce accounts for up to 31.2% of all global online sales.
31.9% of online shoppers in the U.S. have purchased from an online retailer in another country in the past year.
Retail e-commerce sales worldwide are expected to exceed $7 trillion by 2025, accounting for 23.6% of all retail sales.
China dominates the e-commerce market with 52.1% of the world’s e-commerce sales.

Bar Graph: Cross Border eCommerce Market Size in trillions from 2021 ($0.98) to 2023 ($1.56) with projections to 2028 ($5.06) according to Globe Newswire

Cross Border Online Sales

Cross-border e-commerce accounts for approximately 22% of all e-commerce sales worldwide.

In 2023, the global cross-border e-commerce market was worth an estimated $1.56 trillion.
The global cross-border e-commerce market is expected to reach $5.06 trillion by 2028.
From 2023 to 2028, the cross-border e-commerce market is projected to grow at a 26.4% Compound Annual Growth Rate.
Cross-border e-commerce is projected to grow at a 219% faster rate than global e-commerce as a whole through 2028.
Physical products account for 97% of cross-border e-commerce, while digital products account for the remaining 3%.
51.7% of e-commerce transactions worldwide are made with a digital or mobile wallet, followed by credit cards at 20.8% and debit cards at 12.0%.
36% of cross-border online purchases are delivered in 5 days or less; 52% are delivered within 7 days.
17% of cross-border purchases take at least 15 days to be delivered.
Approximately 13% of cross-border shoppers paid customs fees on their most recent e-commerce purchase, a 27.8% lower rate than in 2022.

Bar Graph: Cross Border Share of Global eCommerce from 2021 (19.6%) to 2023 (27.0%) with projections to 2028 (58.1%) according to Globe Newswire & Statista

U.S. Cross Border eCommerce

Around 71.8 million or one-third of all American online shoppers will make overseas purchases in 2024.

There are 69.8 million cross-border retail e-commerce buyers in the U.S.
The United States has free trade agreements with 20 countries, making eCommerce trade easier with these nations.
Cross-border buying gained popularity in the United States around 2016, with a 10.2% growth from the previous year.
In 2020, there was a 7.0% increase in cross-border buyers in the U.S., likely due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Between 2022 and 2023, there were an estimated 2.3 million new cross-border online shoppers for a 3.4% growth rate.
eCommerce imports valued at less than $800 are considered de minimis, meaning that the U.S. government does not charge customs duties for the goods entering the country.
43% of Chinese business-to-business e-commerce sellers target the U.S. market – more than any other export country.

Cross-Border eCommerce by Country
Country	Exports (in billions)	Imports (in billions)
China	$1,716.0	$88.2
United States	$90.0	$28.2
United Kingdom	$36.7	$10.2
Germany	$30.1	$30.6
France	$22.3	$80.1
India	$8.0	$18.0
South Korea	$4.9	$4.5
Japan	$2.8	$5.0
Canada	$1.7	$52.0

The International eCommerce Market

There are 2.71 billion online shoppers worldwide, or one-third of the global population.

Global e-commerce retail sales are predicted to reach $9.4 trillion by 2026.
Since 2020, there has been a 14.3% increase in online shoppers globally.
56.7% of online shoppers in Singapore purchase items from other countries, the most of any country in the world.
Canada has the highest cross-border purchase rate in North America, with 55.5% of online shoppers purchasing from a foreign online retailer in the past year.
The growth of the global retail e-commerce market is slowing down. In 2021, there was 16.8% market growth, while in 2022, the market size only grew by 9.7%.
From 2024 to 2025, the number of digital shoppers is expected to increase by 2.21%.
The e-commerce share of the total retail market is expected to grow 11.2% by 2026.
Since 2012, e-commerce has grown to account for 463% more of the retail market worldwide.
The American shopping event Black Friday has become the world’s biggest online shopping day. For example, e-commerce sales in Turkey rise 269% during Black Friday.

Bar Graph: U.S. Cross Border eCommerce Shoppers from 2020 (61.9 million) to 2023 (69.8 million) with projections to 2025 (74.5 million) according to Insider Intelligence

Global eCommerce Trends

eCommerce buying habits vary in different regions around the world. Subsections exclude Africa, Australia, and North America taken as a whole due to data availability.

85% of consumers worldwide shop online.
The Asian e-commerce market is five times larger than the Latin American and European markets combined.
eCommerce accounts for 4.5% more of total retail sales in Asia than in North America.
Approximately 4% of African retail sales are made online. African e-commerce is expected to grow 25% from 2023 to 2025 with the increased availability of smartphones.
21% of retail sales in Oceania are e-commerce purchases. The e-commerce market in the region is projected to grow by 4.76% year-over-year (YoY).

World Map: Cross-Border eCommerce Buyer Penetration according to Insider Intelligence

Asia

The Asian-Pacific region is the largest market for retail e-commerce, with $2.992 trillion in 2021 sales.

50% of global e-commerce sales come from Asian markets.
eCommerce accounts for 26% of all retail sales in Asia, the highest proportion in any region.
There are 280.0 million cross-border e-commerce buyers in China, the most of any country.
Approximately 915 million Chinese consumers have purchased goods online, resulting in a digital buyer penetration rate of 59%.
Singapore has the fastest-growing e-commerce market globally, with 36% growth in 2022.
Over 40% of Chinese e-commerce sales come from sales associated with three key festivals, Chinese New Year, 618, and Double 11, and around 50% of Indian consumers delay online purchases until Diwali sales week.

Line Graph: Worldwide eCommerce Market Growth according to Morgan Stanley

Europe

21% of all e-commerce purchases made in the European Region are shipped internationally.

An average of 25.5% of online retail orders placed in the European Union are shipped to customers in other countries.
25% of EU consumers purchase from e-commerce sellers from non-EU countries.
In 2023, the European e-commerce market generated $529.2 billion in revenue.
eCommerce revenues in the European region are expected to grow by 3.78% annually to $569.2 billion in 2025.
Western Europe has the highest proportion of online shoppers on the continent at 83% of consumers, while Eastern Europe has the least with only 36% of consumers shopping online.
51.6% of online shoppers in Spain have purchased items from a foreign seller in the past year, the most in Europe.
Luxembourg has Europe’s largest cross-border e-commerce export market, with 80.8% of total online sales shipped from retailers in the country purchased by foreign shoppers.
Monday is the most important e-commerce shopping day around the world. For example, 42% of German and 40% of French online purchases occur on Mondays.

Pie Chart: Top 10 Countries by Retail eCommerce Sales Share

Latin America

In 2023, retail e-commerce sales in Latin America totaled $121 billion and are expected to reach $160 billion by 2025.

eCommerce accounts for 11% of all retail sales in the Latin American region.
86% of South Americans shop online, 1.2% more than the global average.
Brazil accounts for 32.2% of the Latin American e-commerce market, followed by Mexico at 29.5% and Colombia at 6.3%.
13% of retail sales in Mexico are e-commerce sales, the highest percentage in Latin America.
Online purchases made on mobile devices in the Latin American region totaled $86.9 billion in 2023 and are expected to reach $106.8 billion by 2025.

Largest Global eCommerce Companies
Company	Market Value (in billions)	Country
Amazon.com	$1,357.0	USA
Walmart	$430.61	USA
Home Depot	$333.15	USA
Alibaba Group Holding	$257.66	China
Costco Wholesale	$249.63	USA
Prosus	$239.99	Netherlands
Reliance Industries	$209.68	India
Pinduoduo	$118.71	China
Meituan Dianping	$113.96	China
Booking Holdings	$111.25	USA

Cross Border eCommerce Company Statistics

The largest eCommerce company in the world is Amazon, with a market value of $1.357 trillion.

The biggest non-U.S. e-commerce company is the Chinese firm Alibaba valued at $257.66 billion.
24% of global shoppers’ most recent cross-border purchases were made on Amazon.
Alibaba accounts for 16% of the most recent cross-border purchases, and Shien accounts for 9%.
Of the top e-commerce companies in the world, five are headquartered in the United States, three in China, one in India, and one in the Netherlands.
International e-commerce giant Amazon has fulfillment centers in 16 countries. Although these warehouses are in only 9% of the world’s nations, they account for 74% of the world’s GDP.
Cross-border trade by Shopify e-commerce business rose by 74.5% between 2019 and 2020, with a total of 690,000 businesses on the platform selling internationally.
Small businesses fuel Shopify cross-border trade with 52.6% of international sales by Shopify merchants.
European Shopify merchants generate $2.8 billion in annual sales from merchants outside of Europe.

Cross Border eCommerce by Product Category according to Insider Intelligence

Cross Border Consumer Statistics

47% of cross-border shoppers consider price the driving factor for their purchases, stating that they purchased the item from another country because it was “more affordable than other offerings.”

Consumers are most likely to buy clothing and footwear from foreign companies accounting for 39% of recent cross-border e-commerce sales.
20% of recent cross-border e-commerce purchases are consumer electronics and 17% are personal care products.
75% of international shoppers want to buy products online in their native language.
59% of non-English speaking consumers rarely or never make purchases from English-only websites.
92% of global consumers prefer purchasing from e-commerce websites that state prices in their local currency.
33% of international e-commerce shoppers will likely abandon an online purchase if pricing is only available in U.S. dollars.
80% of cross-border shoppers are satisfied with the delivery speed of their most recent purchase.

These data and insights were compiled by the Capital One Shopping team based on publicly available data.

Cross-Border Online Shopping Statistics