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Research 10 March 2023

8 cross-border e-commerce statistics you need to know

Maybe you already see 5% of your traffic originating outside your home country, but aren't sure it's worth the effort to sell to those shoppers. These eight numbers answer the question.

01
57%

International shopping habits accelerated during the pandemic — 57% now shop globally online.

More than half of online shoppers surveyed in the US, Germany, Australia and the UK had made at least one purchase from abroad as of August 2021, with a further 22% considering it. 43% agreed that increased online shopping during the pandemic encouraged them to buy from overseas.

Statista →
02
69%

High shipping costs are the main reason for cart abandonment.

In 2021, shipping costs that were too high were the leading reason 69% of US shoppers abandoned a purchase from a UK brand. Delivery time being too long came second at 62%. A further 44% abandoned because they did not want to risk paying import duties on collection.

Statista →
03
34%

Global shoppers are primarily after apparel, electronics, and health & beauty.

The three leading cross-border categories were clothing, footwear and apparel at 34%, consumer electronics at 22%, and health and beauty at 19%.

IPC Cross-Border Shopper Survey →
04
46%

Customer satisfaction is lowest for delivery speed.

Asked to rate each element of the delivery process — cost, tracking, speed, location, customs and returns — shoppers were most satisfied with delivery location at 68% and least satisfied with delivery speed at 46%.

IPC Cross-Border Shopper Survey →
05
$5.58T

$719 billion in 2021, and an estimated $5.58 trillion by 2030.

The global cross-border B2C e-commerce market was valued at $719.02 billion in 2021 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 25.8% from 2022 to 2030, reaching $5,576.73 billion.

Grand View Research →
06
50%

US-based merchants account for almost half of cross-border purchases.

US merchants make up almost 50% of cross-border e-commerce purchases in Canada, Mexico, South Korea and Brazil. China alone spends over $79 billion a year on cross-border purchases from US-based merchants.

PaymentsJournal / PPRO →
07

Cross-border e-commerce will outpace domestic e-commerce by almost two to one.

The value of cross-border e-commerce has been predicted to grow by 25% a year — almost twice as fast as domestic e-commerce.

DHL Express →
08
91%

Fast and free shipping makes all the difference.

91% of shoppers will abandon retail sites if they don't offer fast or free shipping.

Pitney Bowes →

These statistics make it clear that a staggering opportunity exists for e-commerce brands. Ready to take advantage of it? We can help.

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