UK Online Retailing Market Report 2025
Online sales grew by 3.1% in 2024 and are forecast to grow by 1.7% in 2025. Amazon continues to lead the UK online market with 91% of online shoppers using its platform.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- Opportunities for the online retailing market
- Recovery in household finances will see consumer focus shift away from price…
- …with the need to build levels of trust and loyalty
- A new era of AI-driven search and product discovery…
- …and growing openness to AI tools
- Focus on modern British identity in a changing geopolitical climate
- Local stories, global values
- Market dynamics and outlook
- Market size and forecast
- Market predictions for online retailing
- More modest growth expected in the future
- Graph 1: market size and forecast for all online retail sales (including VAT), 2019-30
- Fashion accounts for nearly a quarter of online sales
- Graph 2: online retailing market, percentage breakdown by category, 2019-25
- What consumers want and why
- Fashion the most purchased category
- Graph 3: online shopping by product category, 2025
- Almost two fifths shop online weekly or more often
- Graph 4: frequency of online shopping, 2025
- Amazon dominates
- Graph 5: online-only retailers shopped with the last 12 months, 2025
- Argos, the leading multi-channel operator
- Graph 6: store-based retailers shopped with online in the last 12 months, 2025
- Value motivates most when choosing where to shop
- Graph 7: factors influencing choice of one online retailer over another, 2025
- Nearly two thirds of online shoppers are interested in AI or technology-assisted tools
- Graph 8: interesting in using emerging technologies when shopping online, 2025
- Online shoppers open to sustainability “nudges”
- Graph 9: attitudes towards shopping online, 2025
- Retailer activity
- Amazon maintains its dominance, but store-based retailers are strong
- Graph 10: market share of leading online retailers, 2022-24
- A plethora of AI and AR driven innovation
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MARKET DYNAMICS
- Market size
- Online share of sales continues to edge-up
- Real term growth returns in 2024
- Graph 11: online retail sales including VAT and as a percentage of total retail sales (excl. fuel), 2019-24
- Online sales continue to grow in 2025…
- Graph 12: all online sales, value non-seasonally adjusted, year-on-year performance, 2024-25
- …but online’s share of total retail sales was flat in the first half
- Graph 13: online sales as a percentage of all retail sales, 2022-25
- Market forecast
- The impact of US trade disruption on the online retailing market
- Online sales set to grow consistently through to 2030
- Graph 14: market size and forecast for online retail sales (incl. VAT), 2019-30
- Online retail sales to reach £151bn by 2030
- Shoppers are beginning to trade back up while retaining savvy shopping behaviours
- Using technology to further enhance the online shopping experience
- Market segmentation
- Store-based retailers are making the most of their business models
- Graph 15: share of online sales, by type of retail operation, 2022-25
- Stronger footfall drives store-based online sales in 2025
- Graph 16: share of online sales by month, by type of retail operation, 2022-25
- Stronger growth is coming from less developed online sectors
- Graph 17: online sales of store-based retailers (incl. VAT), by broad type of retailer, 2019-24
- Clothing has grown its share of online spending
- Graph 18: estimated percentage breakdown of total online sales*, by product category, 2024
- Grocery and clothing grow both share of sector and value sales
- Value players continue to drive online fashion
- Convenience and savvy shopping have driven growth in grocery
- BPC has thrived due to the lipstick effect and convenience
- Electricals is a mature market
- Market drivers
- Steady recovery in day-to-day confidence continues
- Graph 19: the financial wellbeing index, 2019-25
- Household finances recovery becomes widerspread
- Graph 20: consumers’ financial situation, by household income, 2025
- Rising incomes boost confidence, but inflation still a concern
- Graph 21: CPI inflation rate and total pay growth rate, 2021-25
- Britishness as a differentiator
- New UK-EU Strategic Partnership set to remove trade barriers…
- …with pros and cons for UK business
- A seismic shift in search and discovery will lead to buying directly with AI
- Retailers must balance online AI innovation with transparency
- Sustainability is back on the agenda
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WHAT CONSUMERS WANT AND WHY
- Products bought online
- Online buying remains stable and almost universal
- Graph 22: trends in online purchasing in the last 12 months, 2019-25
- Six out of 10 have bought fashion online
- Food & drink, BPC and jewellery & watches have been the big winners
- Fashion remains the most popular purchase
- Graph 23: products bought online in the last 12 months, 2019-25
- Untapped potential among Baby Boomers
- Graph 24: comparison of products bought online by Baby Boomers with all adults, 2025
- Affluent shoppers maintain savvy online shopping habits
- Graph 25: comparison of online purchasing by high earners and all adults, 2025
- Frequency of online shopping
- Frequency of online shopping continues to grow
- Graph 26: frequency of online shopping, 2024-25
- 25-34s are the heaviest online shoppers
- Graph 27: frequency of online shopping among 25-34s, 2025
- Affluent people are among the most frequent online shoppers
- Graph 28: frequency of online shopping among people from households with incomes of £75,000 or more, 2025
- Busy parents are looking for ways to further streamline their online shopping
- Graph 29: frequency of online shopping, by presence of children aged under 16 in the household, 2025
- Retailers could look to drive purchases of consumables by Boomers
- Graph 30: frequency of online shopping among the Baby Boomers generation, 2025
- Retailers shopped with online
- Amazon’s dominance contributes to the ongoing popularity of online-only retailers
- Graph 31: type of retailer shopped online with in last 12 months, 2025
- Usage of value-driven marketplaces has soared
- Graph 32: online-only retailers shopped with in the last year, 2019-25
- More recent entrants have made an immediate impact
- Amazon and eBay are closely aligned
- Graph 33: demographic profile of shoppers at online-only retailers in the last 12 months, 2025
- Temu goes up against Amazon and eBay
- Shein is competing for similar customers to boohoo and ASOS
- Argos the most widely used multi-channel retailer
- Graph 34: store-based retailers shopped with online in the last 12 months, 2019-25
- Tesco makes a leap forward
- M&S still has the oldest online shoppers…
- Graph 35: demographic profile of online shoppers of retailers with physical stores in the last 12 months, 2025
- …but has made progress in bringing that number down
- Store-based retailers have made the biggest overall share gains
- Graph 36: retailers shopped online with in the past year, 2024-25
- Factors influencing choice of retailer
- Value remains the key driver for online purchases
- Value for money is the top motivator
- Graph 37: factors influencing choice of one online retailer over another, 2025
- As consumers begin to feel better off, make value for money about more than just price
- Use endorsements and partnerships to create added value
- Use curated marketplaces for cost-effective expansion of product range
- Graph 38: wide range of products, by age, 2025
- Match delivery and collection options to different lifestyles
- Graph 39: wide range of delivery options, by gender, 2025
- Use AI to make intelligent delivery location selections
- Graph 40: wide range of delivery options, by gender and age, 2025
- Emphasise sustainability credentials as differentiator to appeal to younger, more-affluent shoppers
- Interest in emerging technology and AI
- AI will transform customer engagement on the buying journey
- Consumers want tools to simplify the online shopping journey
- Opportunities abound with younger online shoppers…
- Graph 41: interest in using AI tools to aid online purchasing, by generation, 2025
- …who are enthusiastic for hacks that save time and increase convenience
- Graph 42: interest in using selected other AI tools to aid online purchasing, by generation, 2025
- AI appeals strongly to highly engaged affluent shoppers…
- Graph 43: interest in using AI tools to aid online purchasing, by household income, 2025
- …with high levels of interest in using smart phones and smart appliances
- Graph 44: interest in using selected other AI tools to aid online purchasing, by household income, 2025
- Integrating the smart home with online shopping
- Attitudes towards online shopping
- Consumers open to sustainability “nudges”
- Graph 45: attitudes related to the ethics and sustainability of shopping online, 2025
- Significant generational differences in sentiment towards sustainability
- Graph 46: attitudes related to the ethics and sustainability of shopping online, by generation, 2025
- Use sustainable practices to persuade affluent shoppers to switch retailers
- Graph 47: attitudes related to the ethics and sustainability of shopping online, by household income, 2025
- Emphasise “localness” of products sold online
- Graph 48: “I have ethical concerns about buying from retailers that ship from outside the UK”, by generation, household income and presence of children, 2025
- Reward sustainable fulfilment, ensure rapid fulfilment comes at a cost
- Graph 49: agreement with statements relating to the convenience of online shopping, 2025
- Exploit demand for faster delivery with tiered plans
- Graph 50: agreement with statements around delivery speed, by generation and household income, 2025
- Continue to address the need to budget and spread payments
- Graph 51: attitudes towards impulse purchasing and credit use, 2025
- Tap into the growing sway of “finfluencers”
- Graph 52: agreement with the statement “I find it easier to stick to a budget when I shop online than when I shop in-store”, by generation, 2025
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RETAILER ACTIVITY
- Leading online retailers and market shares
- Amazon accounts for a quarter of all online sales in the UK
- Graph 53: leading online retailers’ estimated market shares, 2024
- Amazon still dominates, launching “Haul” to compete with Temu, Shein and TikTok
- Tesco the largest online grocer
- Ongoing digitalisation at Argos and Sainsbury’s
- Ocado growing strongly
- Kingfisher investing in its digital offer
- M&S moving on from cyber-attack
- Launch activity and innovation
- Amazon and eBay developing AI tools
- Zalando integrating beauty into its platform…
- Amazon and AliExpress unveil new express delivery services
- Drone deliveries getting closer
- ASOS launches tiered loyalty programme for UK customers
- Advertising and marketing activity
- Advertising spend dips in 2024
- Graph 54: total advertising expenditure across the channels tracked by Nielsen Ad Intel by online retailers, 2020- 24
- Amazon focuses on its ethics and sustainability measures
- “There’s More To Argos” campaign highlights diverse product range
- Ocado uses storytelling to emphasise trust and reliability
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APPENDIX
- Supplementary data: leading online retailers
- Online retailers: revenues
- Online retailers: market shares
- Market forecast data and methodology
- Online retailing market size and forecast: underlying data
- Market forecast and prediction intervals (value)
- Supplementary data: advertising and marketing activity
- Social is the prime advertising channel
- Graph 55: top 30 online retailers spending on advertising, by media type, 2022-24
- Amazon continues to lead adspend
- Forecast methodology
- Report scope and definitions
- Market definition
- Abbreviations and terms
- Consumer research methodology
- Nielsen Ad Intel coverage
UK Online Retailing Market Analysis
The UK online retail market grew by more than 3% in 2024, reaching over £125 billion, with a significant growth in 2025. Fashion continues to account for nearly a quarter of online sales, while grocery has grown. Beauty and personal care saw strong growth, though it remains a smaller category of total online sales. The online retailing market size is forecasted to grow above 20% in the foreseeable future.
UK Online Retailing Market Trends
Convenience is a key driver in the UK online retailing market, Nearly 40% of consumers shop online once a week or more often, with a small proportion of consumers shopping multiple times per week
Online shoppers express interest in AI or technology-assisted tools, with consumers interested in using visual search tools on smartphones and in receiving curated product displays that match their preferences.
Sustainability is important, with many shoppers agreeing that retailers should offer incentives for eco-friendly choices and buying products from UK brands.
Social commerce, particularly on platforms like TikTok, is influencing younger consumers, especially in beauty and fashion categories, allowing brands to gain online retailing market share.
About The Report
The UK Online Retailing Market Report 2025 provides valuable insights into the current state and future outlook of the online retailing market in the UK, highlighting key trends such as the rise of AI-driven personalisation, the growing importance of sustainability, and shifting consumer preferences toward convenience and local products. The research covers areas like market performance, consumer behaviour, retailer activity, emerging technologies, and sector-specific growth forecasts. It also examines the impact of geopolitical factors and economic shifts on retail strategies. Retailers, marketers, technology developers, and investors in the e-commerce space will find this report essential for understanding market dynamics, identifying growth opportunities, and shaping future strategies in the UK online retailing market.
Key Topics Analysed in the Report
- The continuing impact of the cost of living crisis on leisure centres and swimming pools
- Opportunities to diversify into health and wellness services
- Attracting new players to leisure centre sport
- Effective responses to some key demographics’ declining facility use
- How leisure centres can raise their activities’ profile
| Report Attributes | Details |
|---|---|
| Published Date | August 2025 |
| Data Range | 2019 – 2030 |
| Measurement Metrics | Revenue in £ |
| Country Focus | United Kingdom (UK) |
| Consumer Data | 2,000 internet users aged 16+, May 2025 |
| Number of Pages | 102 |
| Market Segmentation | Clothing, Footwear, Accessories, Food & Drink, Toiletries, Fragrances, Cosmetics, Hard-copy Books, CDs, DVDs, Video Games, DIY and Garden Products, Consumer Electronics, Household Electrical Appliances, Music, Video, Game Downloads, Ebooks, Toys, Games, Furniture, Home Furnishings, Jewelry, and Watches. |
| Leading Companies | Amazon, eBay, Temu, Shein, Etsy, ASOS, Ocado, boohoo, Debenhams, Very.co.uk, Littlewoods, JD Williams, Jacamo, Simply Be, AO.com, Argos, Tesco, Boots, Marks & Spencer, Asda, John Lewis, Sainsbury’s, Next, IKEA, Superdrug, Currys, and Sports Direct. |
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