E-commerce sales continue to grow in Europe, but at a slower pace

In 2022, B2C European e-commerce grew to €899 billion, representing a 6 percent growth from 2021, according to the 2023 European E-commerce Report. The growth rate decreased from a 12 percent growth in 2021. The deceleration was attributed to saturation in e-commerce markets after the fading of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2022. The growth rate is expected to slightly increase to 8 percent in 2023.

The 2023 European E-commerce Report was jointly published by Ecommerce Europe, which represents the European digital commerce sector, and EuroCommerce, the main European organization representing the retail and wholesale sectors.

UK, France and Germany lead the way in e-commerce turnover

In 2022, Western Europe traded €603 billion online and was by far the largest region, holding 67 percent of the total B2C turnover in Europe for that year. Southern Europe followed with a 16 percent share, then Central Europe at 8 percent, Northern Europe at 7 percent, and Eastern Europe at 2 percent. The leading countries in B2C e-commerce turnover are the U.K. (€291bn), France (€146bn), Germany (€102bn) and Spain (€72bn).

The highest growth rates were found in Estonia (106 percent), Romania (51 percent), Bulgaria (31 percent), Spain (31 percent), and Belgium (22 percent).

Internet penetration in Europe stood at 92 percent in 2022, up from 90 percent in 2021. Southern and Eastern Europe are still lagging behind in terms of internet use, at just 89 percent and 88 percent, respectively. Northern Europe and Western Europe boast the highest shares of internet users, with 97 percent and 95 percent, respectively.

No e-commerce cool-down yet

Regarding e-shopper penetration, the percentage of Europe’s online population in 2022 remained stable at 76 percent. Industry experts had anticipated a cool-down of online sales after the hyper-growth caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and related lockdown measures. Several national e-commerce associations have also reported a decrease in online shopping in their country due to the increasing inflation.

Western Europe has the highest share of e-shoppers, with 87 percent of internet users shopping online in 2022, followed by Northern Europe at 85 percent, Central Europe at 77 percent, Southern Europe at 64 percent, and Eastern Europe at 48 percent. Eastern Europe showed a promising growth of six percentage points from 41 percent in 2021.

The U.K. holds the highest share of e-shoppers (95 percent), followed by the Netherlands and Norway (both at 92 percent), Denmark (90 percent) and Switzerland (90 percent). Montenegro (31 percent) showed the lowest share of online shoppers in 2022. 

The 2023 European E-commerce Report encompasses 37 countries on the European continent and includes the latest data and trends about internet penetration, e-shopper penetration and B2C e-commerce turnover for all 37 countries, with an additional in-depth look at data for the EU-27 countries. A light version of the report is available online while the full version is only available to Ecommerce Europe’s and EuroCommerce’s members and policymakers.