Statistics

In 2024, the online European cross-border market reached 275.6 billion euros in sales. Compared to a year earlier, this was an increase of more than 16 percent. The cross-border market represented a 36 percent share of the overall online market in Europe.

Online sales reached a total of 85.4 billion euros in Italy last year. Compared to a year earlier, this is an increase of 6 percent. Most of that revenue came from the online sales by companies in the sector Travel and Tourism.

In the third quarter of last year, the online turnover in Spain increased 12.6 percent year-on-year. It reached 24.6 billion euros. At least 65 percent of all online transactions that originated in Spain, went to cross-border online shops.

Last year, Belgian consumers spent 17.4 billion euros on online purchases. This was a billion euros more than in 2023, representing an increase of 6.7 percent. In 2024, Belgians did a quarter of all their spending online for the first time.

Otto has grown faster than the ecommerce market in Germany over the past fiscal year, largely thanks to its popular marketplace. “The strong growth over the last 12 months gives us the utmost confidence that we are turning a corner after two challenging years”, says CEO Marc Opelt.

A majority of German ecommerce businesses are not happy with how the industry is performing. Only 6 percent of online sellers are ‘very satisfied’, which is the lowest that has been recorded since 2015. At the same time, the share of ‘very dissatisfied’ sellers has increased from 15 to 21 percent in one year.

Last year, Dutch consumers spent 36 billion euros online. This was an increase of 5 percent, compared to 2023. At the same time, the number of orders fell by 1 percent. For the first time, the majority of international purchases were placed with Chinese platforms.

The European online DIY market reached a revenue of 66 billion euros last year. Compared to the total market of online and offline DIY sales, the online share was 17 percent. The total market value came to 388 billion euros.

One in fifty visits to medium-sized and small online shops in Germany results in a purchase. The conversion rate on desktops is slightly higher than on mobile devices. The differences between industries are significant.

Online spending in Romania reached 11.7 billion euros last year with 7.7 billion euros spent on products. This was an increase of 10 percent. Growth remains strong and is expected to continue this year.

The average shipping costs of the 100 largest online retailers in Germany have increased from 3.92 euros to 4.39 euros over the past two years. Fewer and fewer retailers offer free shipping as a standard. Nearly a quarter of companies charge return fees in some form.

The European Commission has conducted an investigation into online traders of second-hand goods. A majority of the companies involved in the so-called sweep may be in breach of European consumer rights and will be further investigated.

Zalando looks back on a successful year, with higher revenue, increased profits, and more customers. The company expects growth acceleration, driven by its successful ecosystem strategy. Zalando will also expand into three new countries this year: Portugal, Greece, and Bulgaria.

In the United Kingdom, 46 percent of online shoppers feel overwhelmed by the amount of options and information on retail websites. And one in five shoppers say that they stop shopping when they get a pop-up in the initial moments of a session.

Of the world’s 250 largest ecommerce companies, 95 have their headquarters in Europe. That is three more than in North and South America combined and significantly more than in Asia. Within our continent, Germany hosts the most headquarters.