The share of the European population that bought online in 2019 reached 60%, almost double compared to 10 years ago

Online shopping is continuing to increase in the European Union (EU). Together with increasing use of the internet and improving security standards, consumers appreciate the possibilities of being able to shop anytime, anywhere, with access to a wide range of products and easy price comparisons. During the current coronavirus pandemic, with high streets in lockdown and consumers under social distancing restrictions, e-commerce can be expected to grow further. 

„60% of people in the EU aged 16 to 74 shopped online during the year prior to the 2019 survey, compared with 56% in the 2018 survey. Compared with 2009, the share of online shoppers had almost doubled from 32%.”, according to Eurostat.

Men tend to shop online slightly more than women, with 61% of men and 59% of women shopping online. However, the share of online shoppers has increased more among women over the last 10 years (from 29% in 2009 to 59% in 2019) than among men (from 35% in 2009 to 61% in 2019). 

The share of online shoppers has increased substantially among all age groups over the last 10 years, in particular for the age groups between 16 and 54 years old. The highest share and the highest increase was among internet users aged 25 to 34 years (from 46% in 2009 to 79% in 2019), followed by the age groups 16 to 24 years (up from 41% to 73%), 35 to 44 years (up from 41% to 71%) and 45 to 54 years (up from 31% to 61%).

The share of online shopper rose also in the group of persons aged 55 to 64 years,  from 19% in the 2009 survey to 45% in the 2019 survey, as well as for those aged 65 to 74 years (up from 8% to 28%).

Looking at the 2019 figures for the EU Member States, high shares of people who shopped online during the previous year were recorded in particular in the Scandinavian countries. The highest shares were found in Denmark (84%) and Sweden (82%), followed by the Netherlands (81%), Germany (79%) and Finland (73%). However, the highest increase over the last 10 years was in Estonia, with the share of online shoppers up 51 percentage points from 17% in 2009 to 68% in 2019. 

Eurostat has released data for the Community survey 2019 on ICT usage in households and by individuals; methodological information related to the survey can be found here, the full data from the survey is available here.