Highlights. Online consumers in the U.S. spend the most on DIY and hardware, followed by food and fashion.
- American consumers are most likely to buy their apparel and accessories online as opposed to in-store.
- Food and household essentials have the fastest year-over-year (YoY) online sales growth among all product categories, up 25.8% and 22.6%, respectively in 2025.
- eCommerce sales grew 9.24% from 2023 to 2024, resulting in a total of $1.337 trillion in sales.
- Online shopping makes up 18.4% of total U.S. retail sales, up 6.36% from 2023.
What Americans Buy Most Online
In the United States, people are more likely to buy clothing and electronics than perishable groceries.
- 18.3% of retail revenue for clothing and accessories comes from online purchases.
- 15.7% of computer and consumer electronics retail sales are online.
- 15.7% of furniture and home decor sales revenue comes from online purchases.
- 11.3% of retail revenue for health and personal care comes from online purchases.
- In 2024, 43% of American consumers purchased clothing online; 33% purchased shoes.
- 27% of Americans purchase food and beverages online, excluding restaurant delivery.
- 24% of U.S. consumers purchase cosmetics or body care products online, while 22% purchase pet products.
What Americans Prefer to Purchase Online
Consumer preferences for buying items online vary by product category.
- 36.6% of Americans prefer to purchase their personal electronics online.
- 33.1% of American consumers prefer to purchase apparel online.
- 30.4% of American shoppers prefer to purchase their personal care and beauty online.
- 24.0% of American shoppers prefer to purchase home goods online.
- 20.9% of American consumers prefer to purchase their groceries online.
| Product category | 2024 Sales Revenue (in billions) |
YoY Growth |
|---|---|---|
| DIY & Hardware | $252.8 | 12.4% |
| Fashion | $197.4 | 8.44% |
| Food | $195.3 | 35.1% |
| Furniture | $125.0 | 4.29% |
| Beverages | $112.8 | 23.7% |
| Electronics | $94.9 | 4.39% |
| Beauty & Personal Care | $61.2 | 12.8% |
| Toys & Hobby | $34.0 | 12.2% |
| Household Essentials | $26.7 | 30.1% |
| Media | $13.6 | 7.59% |
What Foods Americans Buy Most Online
Online grocery shopping has become increasingly popular among Americans.
- In 2023, 82% of American households purchased groceries online over a three-month period.
- Consumers were 15.5% more likely to buy groceries online in 2023 than they were in 2022.
- The top three food items in terms of the number of shoppers purchasing online are non-perishable foods (78%), soft drinks (67%), and fresh food (61%).
- From 2017 to 2023, the share of shoppers purchasing soft drinks online grew by 103%.
- In 2023, 87.5% more shoppers purchased frozen foods online than in 2017.
| Product Category | Share of Online Grocery Shoppers Purchasing | YoY Change 2022-2023 |
|---|---|---|
| Non-perishable foods | 78% | 11.4% |
| Personal care items | 77% | 10.0% |
| Home care items | 73% | 10.6% |
| Soft drinks | 67% | 9.8% |
| Fresh food | 61% | 8.9% |
| Frozen foods | 60% | 11.1% |
| Alcoholic beverages | 23% | 15.0% |
| Baby care items | 22% | 10.0% |
Where Americans Buy Online
Americans often select different online resources when shopping for different products, purchasing groceries from a different website than they purchase shoes.
- American consumers spend 18.4% of retail sales dollars on e-commerce websites.
- Walmart earns the most online grocery sales revenue at $7.76 trillion in 2024.
- Americans spend 488% more on Amazon than they spend at Walmart, the second-highest performing online retailer.
- Among online retailers, Amazon has a 37.6% market share.
- As of 2025, 73% of American consumers shop on Amazon on a monthly basis.
- 51% of consumers shop online at Walmart, and 26% shop at Target online.
What Americans Buy on Amazon
Clothing, shoes, and jewelry are the most popular product categories on Amazon.
- 30% of Amazon Prime Day shoppers in the U.S. purchased apparel or shoes during the 2025 sales event.
- 29% of 2025 Prime Day shoppers bought household essentials while 26% bought home goods.
- 20% of Amazon retailers and 15% of small businesses selling on Amazon primarily sell clothing, shoes, or jewelry.
- 14% of Amazon retailers primarily sell groceries or gourmet food.
- 9% of Amazon retailers specialize in electronics, while 8% primarily sell appliances.
- Among Amazon sellers or SMBs, 11% sell home or kitchen products, while 8% specialize in beauty and personal care.
What Global Consumers Buy Online
Globally, consumers are more likely to purchase clothing and accessories than household essentials.
- Fashion eCommerce sales are expected to reach $920.2 billion in 2025, up 12.1% YoY.
- Online food purchases increased by 22.0% in 2025 to $838.1 billion.
- Consumers are also likely to purchase DIY and hardware products and electronics online with $369.5 billion and $342.2 billion in 2025 sales, respectively.
- Hardware e-commerce sales in the U.S. account for 75.6% of global sales, the highest share among all categories.
These data and insights were compiled by the Capital One Shopping team based on publicly available data.
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau, Monthly Retail
- Morning Consult, Retail & E-commerce
- Jungle Scout, The State of the Amazon Seller
- Power Reviews, Grocery and CPG
- Statista, E-commerce