And while their online domestic sales grew in the two-month holiday sales period, international sales struggled amid a tougher European economy, said James Risley, research data manager and senior analyst at Digital Commerce 360. Moreover, the growth comes despite shoppers spending less time browsing ecommerce sites, with traffic down slightly to Top 1000 retailers.

Manufacturers saw a higher share of spending, Risley said, as online shoppers focused on higher-priced items like jewelry and consumer electronics. Mass merchants’ share of online sales remained flat, as shoppers spent more with specialized retailers and hard-to-find brands.

The Top 1000 is Digital Commerce 360’s database ranking North America’s largest online retailers based on their annual web sales.

Domestic holiday online sales grow in 2023

Overall U.S. online holiday spending grew 4.9% in the same November-through-December time frame, according to data from Adobe Analytics. That pushed holiday online sales to $221.1 billion in 2023, according to Adobe.

Mobile shopping overtook desktop online sales for the first time in 2023. 51.1% of online sales across the holiday season were made via smartphones in 2023, up from 47% in 2022, Adobe data showed. Mobile sales peaked on Christmas Day at 65%, from 61% in 2022. Consumers made purchases on final holiday deals while spending time with friends and family, Adobe said.

Meanwhile, curbside pickup dipped slightly. Consumers used it as a fulfillment method for 18.4% of online orders from retailers offering the option. That’s down from 21% in 2022, according to Adobe. Shoppers used it most ahead of Christmas Eve on Dec. 22 and Dec. 23, accounting for 36.8% of orders during that time frame.

Holiday spending by category

65% of online holiday spending in 2023 was in just five of the 18 categories Adobe tracks.

Top categories by online holiday spending:

• Electronics ($50.8 billion)
• Apparel ($41.5 billion)
• Furniture ($27.3 billion)
• Groceries ($19.1 billion)
• Toys ($7.7 billion)

Adobe’s data is based on 1 trillion visits to U.S. retail sites, 100 million SKUs and 18 categories. 203 online retailers in the Top 1000 use Adobe Analytics for their web analytics, and 100 use it for site design and development. Top 1000 online retailers also use it for content delivery and management, as an ecommerce platform, a marketing platform, for personalization and more.

Global online holiday sales in 2023

Globally, though, online sales grew 3% to reach $1.17 trillion, according to Salesforce Inc. data. The global average discount rate across the entire holiday season was 21%. That’s the highest it has been since 2020, Salesforce said. Salesforce uses data from more than 1.5 billion global shoppers.

The online holiday shopping season started with a strong first week, according to Salesforce data, with 4% year-over-year growth. The Cyber 5 period, or the five days from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, tied for the highest year-over-year growth with the week preceding Christmas. While they both grew at a rate of 6% year over year, the Cyber 5 week also featured the highest average discount rate of the entire November-through-December holiday sales period (27%), according to Salesforce.

Globally, online retailers held an average of 16% off their product prices at minimum. On average, the steepest discounts were in November, Salesforce data shows.

69 online retailers in the Top 1000 use Salesforce’s ecommerce platform, and 55 use its content delivery network. Top 1000 online retailers also use Salesforce for site search, marketing automation, mobile commerce, personalization and more.

November sales lead the way

Domestically, the majority of online holiday shopping happened in November, boosted by a strong Cyber 5. U.S. consumers spent $123.5 billion online in November, a 6% year-over-year increase, according to Adobe data. $38.0 billion of that spending took place between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday, growing 7.8% over 2022.

And during the Cyber 5, Cyber Monday pulled in the most online sales, making it the largest online sales day of the year. It brought in $12.48 billion, whereas Black Friday online sales reached $9.88 billion.

In November as a whole, nonstore sales, which encompass but aren’t limited to online sales, grew 10.6% over 2022, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. That’s significantly higher than total retail sales, which grew 4.4% over the same period.

Online sales in November recorded the largest growth of any category measured by The National Retail Federation (NRF) and CNBC’s Retail Monitor, growing 26.27% year over year. Retail Monitor’s data comes from credit and debit card purchases from consumer data vendor Affinity Solutions.

“November Retail Monitor data shows that consumers are embracing the holiday season and promotions being offered by retailers,” NRF president and CEO Matthew Shay said in a statement. “Value-conscious shoppers are out looking for deals as they purchase gifts for family and friends, and this data indicates that they’re finding them.”

Online retailers follow through in December

U.S. consumers kept spending to close out 2023, leading to healthy sales in December. U.S. consumers spent $98.6 billion in U.S. online sales in December. Retailer sales that continued on past Cyber Monday drove some of that December spending, Adobe said.

Nonstore sales increased 7.0% year over year in December, according to the December monthly retail sales report from the U.S. Commerce Department. Nonstore sales also grew 8.4% in Q4 2023 and 8.0% for the whole year, down from 12.8% growth in 2022.

The ecommerce addressable portion of total retail sales, excluding restaurants, fuel, and automobiles, grew 3.9% in 2023, according to Digital Commerce 360’s analysis of Commerce Department data.

“Retail sales were stronger than expected in December,” said Ted Rossman, senior industry analyst at Bankrate, in a research note. “Bars and restaurants, health and personal care stores, electronics and appliance stores and motor vehicle and parts dealers all notched double-digit year-over-year gains,” he said. Gas stations, furniture stores, department stores, and building material stores were the only notable weak spots, he added.

Online and nonstore sales increased 31.17% year over year in December, according to an NRF statement.

Comparing the months of the 2023 holiday season

Online and non-store sales increased 2.59% month over month in December, according to data from the NRF and CNBC. Total retail sales grew 3.07% year over year in December, according to the NRF’s statement citing Retail Monitor data. They also grew 0.44% over November.

That follows 4.24% year-over-year growth in November, which also grew 0.73% over October, according to Retail Monitor data that the NRF cited.

“December’s numbers combined with November’s results show retailers had a very successful two-month holiday season,” NRF’s Shay said. “Clearly, retailers got it right this holiday season, providing consumers with what they wanted, options on when and where to make their purchases and with prices customers were comfortable paying.”

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The ecommerce software provider defined the holiday season as Nov. 1 through Dec. 31. Year over year, Salesforce said, global online sales grew 3%. Moreover, the global average discount rate across the entire holiday season was 21%. That’s the highest it has been since 2020, Salesforce said. Salesforce uses data from more than 1.5 billion global shoppers.

In North America, 76 of the top 2000 online retailers use Salesforce as their ecommerce platform, according to Digital Commerce 360 data. In 2022, those 76 online retailers combined for more than $116.97 billion in web sales.

Meanwhile, U.S. online holiday spending reached $221.1 billion, according to data from Adobe Analytics.

How much did global ecommerce sales grow during the 2023 holiday season?

By week, the largest sales growth during the holiday season was a tie between Cyber Week (the week encompassing Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday) and pre-Christmas, according to Salesforce data. Each of those weeks grew sales 6% year over year, Salesforce reported. The next-highest sales growth (4%) was in the first week of November. Christmas-week sales growth declined 4% year over year.

Based on Salesforce’s data, order growth was correlated with sales growth during the 2023 holiday season. Cyber Week and pre-Christmas week each recorded 6% year-over-year order volume growth in 2023. Meanwhile, order volume during the first week of the holiday season grew 2% year over year, Salesforce said. Christmas-week order volume declined 6%.

For the holiday season as a whole, order volume grew 2% year over year, Salesforce said. That correlated with 2% year-over-year growth in units per transaction growth, and the increase in average selling price was 0.7% year over year, Salesforce said.

How popular was store pickup in the 2023 holiday season?

Each week of the 2023 holiday season, at least 22% of orders were picked up at stores, Salesforce found — or more than one out of every five orders. That grew to at least a quarter of all orders from the week after Thanksgiving through Christmas week, according to Salesforce, with about a third of orders (33%) being picked up at stores during Christmas week.

Share of online orders picked up at store during the 2023 holiday season, according to Salesforce.

Mobile shopping trends during the 2023 holidays

Traffic to mobile devices grew year over year during each week of the holiday season, Salesforce said. The largest growth in mobile traffic, 10%, was during Cyber Week. The first week of the holiday season, post-Cyber Week, and the week before Christmas each recorded 9% growth in mobile traffic, according to Salesforce.

In contrast, desktop web traffic decreased each week of the holiday season, Salesforce found.

What channels drove the most online traffic through the holiday season?

Each week of the holiday season, direct traffic accounted for the largest source of online retailers’ global website visits. From Nov. 1 through the end of December, Salesforce data shows, direct traffic accounted for 37% of all visits to online retailers’ websites, with three exceptions. During and directly preceding Cyber Week, that traffic source bumped up slightly to 38%. On Christmas week, it dipped slightly to 36%.

Search traffic accounted for about a third of all website visits throughout the 2023 holiday season, Salesforce found, hovering between 31% and 33% each week. Internal traffic accounted for 14% to 15% of visits each week during that time frame, and traffic from social media platforms combined for 10% to 11% of total visits each week. Advertising and email traffic each accounted for just 1% of global visits to online retailers’ websites.

Global web traffic growth from social media platforms grew 10% year over year in the first week of the 2023 holiday season, tied with the mid-season week halfway between Cyber Week and Christmas. Such traffic from social media platforms was its lowest during the holiday season during Christmas week (4%).

Advertisement traffic growth increased the most in the mid-season week (27%) and the week before Christmas (23%). The week before Thanksgiving, advertising traffic growth decreased 4%, the only week with negative ad traffic growth during the season.

Email and direct traffic were the only other channels to have negative growth during the 2023 holiday season, according to Salesforce data. Email traffic growth decreased 2% the week before Christmas, with a larger drop (-16%) during Christmas week. Direct traffic growth also decreased year over year (2%) during Christmas week.

How did returns factor into the 2023 holiday season?

Salesforce data shows that returns during the 2023 holiday season were largely consistent with the 2022 season. The percentage of orders consumers returned each week was essentially flat, with the exception that they grew to 19% during Christmas week in 2023, compared with 16% in 2022. They also grew slightly in the second week of November 2023 (11%) compared with the same week in 2022 (10%).

Share of orders consumers returned during each week of the holiday season in 2023 and 2022, according to Salesforce data.

Returns dipped slightly to 10% during the first week of November 2023 from 11% in 2022, and to 4% during Cyber Week 2023 compared with 5% in 2022.

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Nike ranks No. 9 in the Top 1000, Digital Commerce 360’s database of the largest North American e-retailers by online sales.

Nike Digital sales grow despite challenges

Online sales grew in most regions but faced challenges from price-conscious consumers this quarter, the retailer said. Nike Digital, encompassing global sales through the retailer’s website and mobile app, grew 4% in Q2. Digital sales grew 2% in North America, Donahoe said. That’s on top of 31% digital growth in Q2 of fiscal 2023. Meanwhile, online sales grew more than three times as quickly in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, increasing 7% year over year. Digital sales grew 14% in Asia Pacific and Latin America.

Sales were bolstered by the retailer’s strongest Black Friday week ever, CEO John Donahoe told investors. Holiday sales in both digital and brick-and-mortar channels grew 10%. However, outside of major shopping events like Black Friday, consumer demand was down online, even as in-store traffic grew over the quarter.

“While Nike’s store traffic continued to grow, we saw softness in digital traffic and higher levels of promotional activity across the marketplace,” chief financial officer Matthew Friend said. “We are seeing indications of more cautious consumer behavior around the world in an uneven macroenvironment.”

The retailer is planning to keep a tight leash on promotions going forward. “We’re not going to race to the bottom on digital. We’re going to focus on prioritizing brand health and brand strength,” Friend said.

Nike Digital sales in China

Nike Digital revenue declined 22% year over year in the Greater China region, the retailer said. At the same time, total revenue in China grew 8%. The retailer faced the same problems in China as in the rest of the world, with high promotions eating into margins as consumer demand online dwindled. However, in-store traffic remained strong enough to offset some digital losses. 

Double 11 Day, also known as Singles Day, was a bright spot for digital sales in the otherwise disappointing quarter. Nike was the top sports brand on Tmall for the shopping holiday. 

Tmall is an Alibaba-owned marketplace, along with Taobao. Taobao ranks No. 1 in the Global Online Marketplaces Database, Digital Commerce 360’s ranking of the largest such marketplaces by gross merchandise value. Tmall ranks No. 2.

Female Nike members drive sales

Nike members remain a key sales group, the retailer says of its loyalty program. Women now make up 40% of members and are poised to become a more significant portion of the total as they sign up in greater numbers. 

Female Nike members are exhibiting greater demand than members as a whole, presenting an opportunity to sell more performance and lifestyle products, Donahoe says. Nike added new lines of leggings and bras, with pieces priced above $100, a higher price point than the retailer’s regular offerings. 

“More and more women are joining our brand by purchasing these leggings. In fact, statement leggings fueled our fitness apparel growth in women’s for the quarter,” Donahoe said. He noted similar results from appealing to women in footwear through both new brands and established franchises like Air Force 1s and Dunks.

Average order value grew among members in the quarter, although Nike did not specify by how much.

For the fiscal second quarter ended Nov. 30, 2023, Nike reported:

• Revenue grew 1% to $13.4 billion, from $13.3 billion.
• Nike Digital sales grew 4% year over year.
• Gross profit grew 5% to $6.0 billion from $5.7 billion.

For six months ended Nov. 30, 2023, Nike reported:

• Revenue grew 1% to $26.3 billion.
• Gross profit increased 3% to $11.7 billion.

Percentage changes may not align exactly with dollar figures due to rounding. Check back for more earnings reports. Here’s last quarter’s Nike report.

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Black Friday was the top day for ecommerce app installations, according to mobile app experience vendor Airship. Ecommerce app downloads on Black Friday were 81% higher than the daily average holiday rate so far this year, per Airship. 

The four days with the highest ecommerce app downloads of the holiday season were the Wednesday before Thanksgiving through the Saturday after Black Friday. Airship says 2023 marks the first year the top downloads came on consecutive days.

The top ecommerce apps by downloads between Nov. 23 and Nov. 27. include many retailers in the Top 1000, Digital Commerce 360’s 2023 ranking of the largest online retailers by sales in North America. The top ecommerce apps from most to least downloads on Apple’s App Store were Temu, Walmart (No. 1 in the Top 1000), Shopify (ecommerce platform vendor to 45 of the Top 1000), Amazon (No. 1) and Shein (No. 2 in Asia Database). That’s based on Similarweb data. In the Google Play store, the top apps by downloads were Temu, Shein, Walmart, Amazon, and Target (No. 5). The lists have some overlap with the most visited retail websites during the period, as reported by Digital Commerce 360 with Similarweb data.

Holiday mobile app results

63% of consumers who shopped online used mobile apps for at least some of their purchases, according to digital experience intelligence vendor Glassbox. That’s more than the 57% of consumers who said they planned to shop via apps, based on a survey of 1,000 online shoppers with Dynata surveys. 

Even with the strong turnout, mobile apps might not have lived up to their potential. Before Cyber 5, 84% of surveyed consumers told Glassbox they were willing to download and shop through a retailer’s app if it gave them access to extra sales and promotions. However, just 31% said they actually downloaded a new app. 

A Cyber 5 survey from Digital Commerce 360 and Bizrate Insights also found that consumers shopped through mobile apps. 29.8% of respondents said they placed an order on a retailer’s app over the Cyber 5 period. App usage almost caught up to ordering on a retailer’s site through a mobile device, which 34.9% of consumers said they did. Consumers aged 40 to 54 and 55 to 64 were the most likely to order through an app, at 37.4% and 32.1%, respectively.

Women were also more likely to report shopping through a retailer app. 35.3% of women said they made a purchase through an app, versus 23.8% of men.

Mobile shopping, including through mobile apps and visiting retailers’ websites on a mobile device, was a significant force in online shopping during Cyber 5. 59% of Thanksgiving online sales came from a smartphone, compared with 55% in 2022, according to Adobe Analytics. 

Mobile shopping remained strong throughout the rest of the shopping holiday. 51.8% of Cyber 5 online sales came from smartphones. That’s up from 49.9% during the 2022 Cyber 5 period.

Why retailers care about ecommerce app downloads

Online retailers have a vested interest in consumers downloading their apps. U.S. consumers spend, on average, 88% of time on their smartphones inside apps, rather than in the browser, according to Insider Intelligence. And they’re willing to spend money there, too. Global ecommerce app revenue reached $3.59 trillion in 2022, an increase of 8.1% year over year, per Business of Apps.

Retailers have noticed. 74% of retailers say investing in mobile apps is key to profitability, according to an August 2023 survey from Ipsos and Google of 450 retail app decision makers.

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In total, Costco reported $56.72 billion in Q1 sales. That’s a 6.1% increase from $53.44 billion in the prior fiscal year’s first quarter. Costco’s net income in the quarter was $1.59 million, up from $1.37 million the prior year.

Costco is No. 6 in the Top 1000, Digital Commerce 360’s ranking of the largest North American online retailers.

Costco ecommerce sales and fulfillment in Q1

Although Costco did not provide a dollar amount for its ecommerce sales, it said they increased 6.3% year over year in its fiscal Q1. This marks the first quarterly year-over-year increase in Costco ecommerce sales in five fiscal quarters, said Richard Galanti, chief financial officer, on an earnings call with investors. He added that ecommerce “showed strength in several areas.” Costco did not say how much ecommerce sales were as a percentage of total sales in Q1.

In the food department, online sales of appliances grew in the mid-20s percentage range year over year, Galanti said. E-gift cards, pet items and snack items grew in the mid-teen percentage range. Online sales of TVs grew in the high single digits, he said.

Also in the quarter, traffic and shopping frequency increased 4.7% worldwide and 3.6% in the United States, Galanti said on the call. Costco’s average transaction decreased 0.9% worldwide and 1.6% in the United States, Galanti said.

He also said Costco Logistics completed more than 800,000 deliveries of online orders in Q1. That’s up 17% year over year.

Galanti referred to some products available online from Costco as “wow items.” That includes selling 1-ounce gold bars, which are member-exclusive items. Costco has sold more than $100 million in gold during the quarter, Galanti said.

In other rarities, he said Costco sold a Babe Ruth autographed index baseball card for $20,000. Costco is also selling a Mickey Mantle autographed 1951 rookie card “in nearly perfect condition” for $250,000.

Costco mobile app and website performance

Galanti said Costco did not make any “big enhancements and changes” to its site leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday. However, he said, the mobile site had 100% availability during the Cyber 5 period from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday.

Costco app downloads reached 2.75 million in the quarter, Galanti said. Total Costco app downloads now stand at 30.5 million, he said. That’s a 10% increase in the quarter. It also followed a 40% increase in Costco’s fiscal 2023 compared to the prior year.

Costco site traffic approached 500 million visits in Q1, he said, an increase of “just under 10%.” Average order value also increased 2.5%, Galanti said.

How many members does Costco have?

Costco ended its fiscal Q1 with 72 million paid household members. That’s up 7.6% year over year. The number of cardholders also increased, up 7.1% from last year to 129.5 million.

At the end of Q1, Costco had 33.2 million paid executive members. That’s up by 939,000 since the end of the previous fiscal year, which ended Sept. 3, 2023.

Costco executive members now represent more than 46% of the retailer’s paid members, Galanti said, and more than 73% of Costco worldwide sales. Renewal rates in the United States and Canada were 92.8%, and worldwide, it was 90.5%. Both rates are up 0.1% from the end of Costco’s Q4 2022.

Piece of the Thanksgiving-week pie

Galanti said he received several calls about how many pies Costco sold leading up to Thanksgiving. In the U.S., the mass merchant sold 2.9 million pumpkin pies, as well as more than 1.3 million apple and pecan pies, he said.

And in terms of a slice of the Cyber 5 sales pie, Costco ecommerce grew in the mid-teens year over year, Galanti said.

Along with Amazon.com Inc.’s main website, Costco was the only top holiday retailer to gain traffic share during the Cyber 5, according to a Digital Commerce 360 analysis of Similarweb data. Its share of Cyber 5 traffic among Top 1000 retailers grew modestly to 1.7% in 2023 from 1.6% last year.

How many stores does Costco have?

Costco currently operates 871 warehouses. 600 are in the United States and Puerto Rico, and 108 are in Canada. Internationally, Costco has:

• 40 warehouses in Mexico
• 33 in Japan
• 29 in the United Kingdom
• 18 in South Korea
• 15 in Australia
• 14 in Taiwan
• Five in China
• Four in Spain
• Two in France
• One each in Iceland, New Zealand and Sweden

Furthermore, Costco also operates ecommerce sites in:

• The U.S.
• Canada
• The U.K.
• Mexico
• South Korea
• Taiwan
• Japan
• Australia

Costco earnings

For the fiscal first quarter ended Nov. 26, 2023, Costco reported:

• Net sales increased to $56.72 billion. That’s up 6.1% from $53.44 billion in the prior fiscal year’s first quarter.
• Costco’s net income in the quarter was $1.59 million. That’s up from $1.37 million the prior year.
• Costco ecommerce sales increased 6.3% year over year.

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Social media platforms, including TikTok, drove 5.72% of total web traffic to retailers in the Top 1000 in November, from 5.63% in November 2022, based on Digital Commerce 360 analysis of Similarweb data. The Top 1000 database is Digital Commerce 360’s ranking of the largest North American online retailers by web sales. That represents a fairly large range, with significant differences by category.

Jewelry and apparel retailers receive far more traffic share through social media than the average, 12.96% and 11.15%, respectively. Both categories have grown traffic from social media year over year, up from 11.26% and 9.04%, respectively. Health and beauty, one of the most popular categories on TikTok, ranked third in social media referrals, with 7.38% of web traffic in November, increasing from 5.92% in 2022.

How is TikTok impacting holiday shopping?

Social media virality is a key factor in consumers’ purchasing decisions, says Ellyn Briggs, brands analyst at Morning Consult.

“Roughly half of Gen Z adults (46%) and millennials (50%) say a product going viral is important to them when considering whether or not to purchase it,” she says, citing decision intelligence at Morning Consult.

TikTok, more than any other app right now, is synonymous with viral marketing, according to Briggs.

“TikTok users have proven themselves to be voracious consumers,” Briggs says. These users have “notably higher purchase consideration” for most brands than U.S. adults as a whole, according to Morning Consult data. And that consumption extends beyond online shopping to purchases in stores, too. TikTok users are more likely than the general public to say they enjoy shopping in stores. They’re also 7 percentage points more likely to be Amazon Prime members than all adults, Morning Consult found. 

TikTok is essentially a shopping guide for consumers who are already primed to spend more than the average person, both in stores and online, Briggs says. It’s also a form of brand discovery for Gen Z, a group more likely to say it is open to purchasing from new brands than any other generation, at 77%.

Those findings are echoed by Insider Intelligence, which reports that 53% of U.S. adults between 18 and 29 years old use TikTok for product discovery. Those consumers are more reluctant to actually purchase through the platform, however. Just 8% of that age group said they would buy through a TikTok shop if it was an option.

Who is using TikTok for shopping?

Young people are the most likely consumers to make purchasing decisions based on TikTok, Briggs says.

“TikTok is one of Gen Z’s most-used social media platforms, and it’s their favorite for following influencer content,” Briggs says.

Within that cohort, there’s a sharp divide by gender, with women much more likely to use TikTok and make purchases based on that usage. 75% of Gen Z women use TikTok, according to Morning Consult’s data. 62% of Gen Z men use the app. TikTok has grown 21% among Gen Z since Morning Consult conducted the same study in 2020.

Female Gen Z TikTok users are most likely to engage with “haul” videos, in which a creator shares products they’ve purchased. These videos are the most likely type of content to drive a purchase from a Gen Z consumer, per Morning Consult. 42% of Gen Z consumers say they’ve purchased a product based on viewing a haul video. Nearly a third of Gen Z TikTok users say they’ve purchased a product because of a “get ready with me” video and “routine” videos, both of which typically show a creator using skin care and beauty products.

TikTok users are particularly prone to purchasing clothes and beauty products shown on TikTok. 49% of female Gen Z respondents said they’ve purchased clothes because they were sponsored by an influencer, and 53% said the same about beauty products. It’s no surprise that those two categories are some of the most popular on TikTok, Briggs says.

How are retailers reacting?

Retailers are paying attention to TikTok as a channel to drive sales thanks to the platform’s undeniable impact.

“TikTok has proven itself as a must-invest media channel over the last few years, at least for any brands trying to reach a young audience,” Briggs says.

She points to e.l.f. Cosmetics (No. 950 in the Top 1000), Charlotte Tilbury, Crocs (No. 104) and Skims (No. 218) as a few examples of retailers that successfully grew brand awareness, favorability, and sales through TikTok.

32% of respondents in a Digiday poll of 400 brand and retail professionals in November 2023 say TikTok is “extremely valuable” for revenue. That’s up from just 8% in 2022. 60% said TikTok will play an important role in holiday marketing, up from 55% in 2022. Those retailers are putting money behind their answers: 78% say they allocated funds for TikTok marketing in Q3 2023, up from 54% in Q1 of the same year. 35% of retailers also said they’re purchasing ads on TikTok, an increase from 24% last year. 

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Shoppers are taking longer this year to decide what they want to purchase, according to Nosto. The company analyzed more than 112 million website visits between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the period known as the Cyber 5. The visits were to 1,127 online stores that use Nosto’s platform, including merchants based in North America, the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe, Latin America and the Asia Pacific region.

Nosto consumer insights from online holiday shopping

Online shoppers viewed 22% more pages on retailers’ websites per visit during the Cyber 5 in 2023 than they did in 2022, according to Nosto. They also spent 10% longer on each page, the data showed.

Compared with the same period in 2022, online shoppers were more than five times as likely this year to click on retailers’ on-site product recommendations. They were 81% more likely to click on personalized content that retailers showed on their ecommerce sites, and 13% more likely to click through product recommendations retailers sent via email marketing.

“Shoppers are definitely putting more time and effort into their holiday shopping, meaning that the retailers who make it easier for them to find the right products are reaping the benefits,” said Jan Soerensen, general manager for North America at Nosto.

Nosto attributes a 4.41% year-over-year increase in sales to the longer browsing time. Similarly, it also attributed a 4.1% increase in average order value for the online retailers to the increased time.

Understanding traffic growth by category, channel

Nosto found that traffic grew year over year among the health and beauty, fashion and accessories, and sporting goods and hobbies categories. Although the highest year-over-year traffic increase was among fashion and accessories brands that Nosto tracks (26.38% growth), the health and beauty category had the largest increases among the three when it came to both sales and average order value (AOV) increases.

Health and beauty online retailers that Nosto tracks increased sales 14.52% as AOV grew 11.21%. Fashion and accessories retailers using the platform increased sales 4.56% as AOV rose 4.27% year over year. Sporting goods and hobbies retailers increased traffic 23.03%, lifting sales 12.85% year over year as AOV grew 7.84%

All the while, mobile commerce accounted for nearly three-quarters of all traffic (74%) to online retailers using the Nosto platform during the Cyber 5. Mobile ecommerce sales represented 62% of total sales among online retailers Nosto tracks.

“However, consumers are still using desktops for their highest-value purchases, with this channel seeing an AOV of $141.59 (USD) compared with $109.01 on mobile,” Nosto said in a press release.

This mobile-majority share of ecommerce sales during the Cyber 5 falls in line with data from Adobe Analytics. Adobe found that Thanksgiving “set a new bar” for mobile shopping. 59% of Thanksgiving online sales came from a smartphone, compared with 55% in 2022, according to Adobe. And mobile shopping carried on strong through the Cyber 5, with 51.8% of online sales coming from smartphones. That’s up from 49.9% during the 2022 Cyber 5 period.

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Online sales during the Cyber 5 reached $38.0 billion, according to Adobe Analytics. That’s 7.8% higher than 2022’s $35.27 billion. Cyber 5 2022 sales increased 4% over 2021. Adobe’s data is based on 1 trillion visits to U.S. retail sites, 100 million SKUs and 18 product categories.

Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday online sales each broke their respective records.

“The 2023 holiday shopping season began with a lot of uncertainty, as consumers shifted their spending to services, while dealing with rising costs across different facets of their lives,” said Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, in a statement. “The record online spending across Cyber Week however, shows the impact that discounts can have on consumer demand, especially with quality products that drove a lot of impulse shopping.”

Black Friday and Cyber Monday online sales statistics

Cyber Monday is still the largest online sales day in the U.S., with web sales reaching $12.4 billion in 2023, according to Adobe data. Cyber Monday 2023 online sales grew 9.6% over 2022’s $11.3 billion.

Black Friday is the second largest at $9.8 billion in online sales. That represents 7.5% growth over 2022’s $9.12 billion.

Thanksgiving online sales grew 5.5% to $5.6 billion. Saturday (also referred to as Small Business Saturday) and Sunday combined for $10.3 billion, up 7.7% year over year.

In terms of growth, Cyber Monday (9.6%) grew the most compared with 2022. Although Black Friday was the second-largest online sales day in the Cyber 5, its growth (7.5%) came in third. Saturday grew faster than Friday, at 8.1% year over year.

Share of Cyber 5 online sales

Cyber Monday took nearly a one-third share of online sales during the Cyber 5 (32.6%). Black Friday took just over a quarter (25.8%) of online sales share.

Thanksgiving took a larger share (14.8%) than either day of the weekend (Saturday took 13%, while Sunday took 13.8%). Combined, though, Saturday and Sunday took a larger share of Cyber 5 online sales (26.8%) than Black Friday.

Record number of shoppers over Cyber 5

Consumers shopped both online and in physical stores throughout the Cyber 5 period, according to the annual survey that the National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics released.

121.4 million people visited physical retail locations to browse items and make in-store purchases, the NRF said. It added that the figure is consistent with 122.7 million in-store shoppers in 2022. Online shoppers totaled 134.2 million, according to the NRF, which is up from 130.2 million last year.

“Shoppers exceeded our expectations with a robust turnout,” said NRF president and CEO Matthew Shay.

Shopping by channel during the Cyber 5 period

Thanksgiving “set a new bar” for mobile shopping, according to Adobe Analytics. 59% of Thanksgiving online sales came from a smartphone, compared with 55% in 2022.

And mobile shopping carried on strong. 51.8% of Cyber 5 online sales came from smartphones. That’s up from 49.9% during the 2022 Cyber 5 period.

Meanwhile, fewer shoppers used curbside pickup during the Cyber 5 this year. Shoppers used the omnichannel fulfillment method in 12.7% of online orders from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday, according to Adobe. That’s a decrease from 14.8% last year.

At the same time, shoppers leveraged standard shipping for 80% of Cyber 5 online orders this year.

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U.S. consumers spent $10.3 billion on the Saturday and Sunday following Thanksgiving this year, an increase of 7.7% year over year. Shopping was split nearly evenly across the two days, with $5 billion spent on Saturday, Nov. 25, and $5.3 billion on Sunday, Nov. 26, increases of 8.1% and 6.4% year over year, respectively. 

That puts Cyber Weekend slightly ahead of Black Friday’s single day total of $9.8 billion. And the shopping is far from over. Adobe predicts Cyber Monday sales to top Black Friday’s numbers. The firm projects between $12.0 billion and $12.4 billion in online spending on Cyber Monday, which would make it the largest online shopping day of all time.

“An uncertain demand environment pushed retailers to deliver big discounts this season, while also fortifying their ecommerce services with flexible payment methods, better personalization, and enhanced mobile functionality,” said Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, in a statement. “Consumers have taken note and spent at record rates during the big shopping days, despite dealing with rising costs in other parts of their lives.” 

Online sales and discounts by category

Consumer electronics recorded the highest increase in sales over the weekend, according to Adobe. Electronics sales were up 171% over the weekend compared to average daily sales in October. 

Apparel (154% growth), appliances (129%), toys (122%), jewelry (113%), personal care products (90%) and furniture (84%) also recorded significant sales compared to a typical day. Toys were a popular purchase over the weekend, alongside sneakers, activity trackers, smart watches, and TVs, Adobe found. Matthew Katz, managing partner at global management consulting firm SSA & Company, says the beauty category is poised to take off this holiday season.

“There’s some concern that there doesn’t seem to be an ‘It’ product this year—even fashion seems a bit subdued. With Target and Kohl’s heavily invested in beauty, I think the beauty category is going to be a big winner this holiday season. It’s a gift both for others as well as for oneself: a genuinely no-guilt category,” Katz says.

The average discount over the weekend was 29% off retail price, according to ecommerce software vendor Salesforce. General apparel had the highest discounts, averaging 38% off, followed by healthy and beauty at 35% off and activewear (26% off).

However, Adobe says the best deals will likely appear on Cyber Monday for certain categories. Electronics are projected to peak at 30% off on the major sales day, and furniture will also be heavily discounted. Appliances and sporting goods will most likely see even lower prices later in the week.

Consumers embrace BNPL and mobile shopping

Sales from mobile devices continue to rule online shopping so far this Cyber 5 period (the five days from Thanksgiving through Black Friday). 54% of online sales over Cyber weekend were made via mobile, up from 52% last year, Adobe found. They represented $5.6 billion in online spending over the weekend, an increase of 12.7% year over year. Mobile traffic represented 82% of of total retail traffic over the weekend, Salesforce says.

Mobile shopping will likely play a lesser role on Cyber Monday, though, Adobe says. Typically, many consumers are back at work and using laptops by Monday, making that their shopping device of choice.

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) usage was also high over the weekend. Consumers used BNPL to pay for $760 million in online orders on Saturday and Sunday. That’s an increase of 20% over the same period in 2022. It’s a continuation of a trend documented throughout the year, particularly throughout this gift-buying season. BNPL usage since Nov. 1 is up 7% year over year to $96.6 billion in online spending, Adobe says.

Adobe predicts BNPL will drive $782 million in spending on Cyber Monday, an 18.8% increase year over year.

Consumers avoid stores, but they’re open to omnichannel shopping

So far, online growth is exceeding sales growth at brick-and-mortar stores. On Black Friday, online sales grew 8.5% compared to just 2.5% growth in overall retail, according to MasterCard SpendingPulse index. The growth in online shopping may have contributed to slower traffic in stores. “Overall, last Friday was not as frenzied as pre-COVID Black Fridays, but part of that was offset by the increase in digital shopping,” Katz says.

Consumers are willing to leave their homes for a good deal, though. 13.3% of online orders over the weekend used curbside pickup. That’s a slight decline from 15.6% last year, Adobe says. The vendor projects curbside pickup will peak in the days leading up to Christmas Eve, accounting for 35% to 40% of orders on Dec. 22 and Dec. 23.

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Deep discounts, particularly in categories like electronics, smart watches and televisions, helped fuel sales, along with lower online prices overall heading into the holiday season. Adobe says prices on retail sites in October were 6% lower than a year earlier. Without that price deflation, online sales growth would have been higher, Adobe says.

“Black Friday reasserted its dominance this season with record spend of $9.8 billion driven by new demand for the major sales day,” says Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights. “The decline in online prices over the last year has created a new favorable environment for consumers with strong discounts this season that are tempting even the most price-conscious consumers.”

Growth was far stronger online than in brick-and-mortar stores, according to the MasterCard SpendingPulse index that tracks purchases with all forms of payment. Online sales grew 8.5% on Black Friday while overall retail sales increased only 2.5%, MasterCard says.

Electronics drove a big part of the Black Friday growth, with sales up 152% compared to a typical day in October, Adobe says. Adobe bases its estimates on over 1 trillion visits to sites of its U.S. retail clients. Adobe says it provides ecommerce and marketing technology to over 85% of the top 100 online retailers in the U.S., based on rankings in the 2023 Digital Commerce 360 Top 1000.

Cyber Monday will be the biggest online shopping day of the Thanksgiving period, with sales reaching $12 billion, which would be a 5.4% increase over last year.

Online sales exceed expectations on Black Friday

Salesforce Inc., another major vendor of ecommerce software, estimated online sales were up 9% in the U.S. and 8% globally on Black Friday. It noted that the growth was driven by order volume increases, not inflation, and said Black Friday discounts in the U.S. hovered around 30%.

The biggest areas of growth in the U.S. were footwear and hangbags (up 22%), sporting goods (21%) and health and beauty (17%), Salesforce says.

“Early online sales performance is exceeding any retail executive’s expectations,” says Rob Garf, vice president and general manager of retail and Salesforce. “Retailers stepped up their discounting game and shoppers, in turn, are clicking the Buy button.”

Meanwhile, Signifyd, a provider of fraud-prevention services to online retailers, said sales for its clients were up 11% year over year on Black Friday. 26% of orders included discount codes, an increase of six percentage points from Black Friday last year, highlighting the role of low prices in driving sales growth.

Signifyd says sales were up in such categories as apparel, cosmetics, groceries and household goods, and cannabis, alcohol and tobacco. Sales were lower in luxury goods, home décor and electronics. The number of fraudulent orders declined 19% year over year, Signifyd says.

Mobile and buy now, pay later (BNPL) surge

Data suggest smartphones and tablets are playing a growing role in holiday shopping.

Salesforce says mobile devices accounted for a record 79% of traffic to retail websites on Black Friday, topping the previous high of 76% last year.

“The mobile phone has been the remote control for holiday shopping, connecting consumers to brands as they navigate across online and offline channels,” Garf said in a statement.

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Adobe says it expects mobile devices to account for 51.2% of online sales during November and December, which would be the first time consumers purchased more with mobile devices than computers.

Orders using buy now, pay later (BNPL) systems are up 72% and revenue ahead 47% to $79 million for the period Nov. 18-24 compared to the previous week, Adobe reported. Salesforce also noted heavy consumer use of financing options, and said Klarna and Afterpay were the most popular BNPL options.

Cyber Week ecommerce predictions

Adobe predicts consumers will spend $4.8 billion today online and $5.2 billion tomorrow, as retailers offer attractive discounts in several categories.

The five days from Thanksgiving through Sunday will generate $37.2 billion in online retail sales, an increase of 5.4% over last year, Adobe says. That will represent 16.8% of online spend during the holiday season, which Adobe defines as November and December.

Retailers will offer the season’s best bargains in toys (up to 35% off) and apparel (25%) on Sunday of this weekend, according to Adobe. Cyber Monday will feature the biggest discounts in electronics (30%) and furniture (19%). The best deals for appliances (20%) will be on Thursday, Nov. 30, and on sporting goods (24%) on Monday, Dec., 4, Adobe says.

Here’s last year’s Black Friday online sales article.

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