30+ Dropshipping And Ecommerce Key Statistics, Market Size, Growth [Updated: January 2023]

Dropshipping and ecommerce are ever-changing, as is everything in the digital world. And so it can be quite difficult to keep up with the latest statistics and facts in these interconnected industries.

That’s why we thought what better way to help you keep track of all than to gather the most important statistics (of course, in our opinion) in one article so you have an overview of the latest trends in dropshipping.

This way you can see if you need to realign your strategy or keep up the good work. 

The global dropshipping industry is expected to reach $557.9 billion by 2025

A report done by Grand View Research states that the dropshipping industry is expected to reach $557.9 billion by 2025, registering a CAGR of 28.8% over the forecast period. 

The same company conducted a new report in 2021 stating the global B2C eCommerce market size is anticipated to reach USD 7.65 trillion by 2028. You can read the full report here. 

In another study made by Statista, it’s forecasted that the global dropshipping market will reach $196.78 billion in 2022, and it will continue to grow, reaching $476.1 billion by 2026.

In other words, this fact proves that you took the right decision to invest your time, money and effort into a dropshipping business. This business model is clearly a very successful one and quite profitable. So give yourself a pat on the back. 

The average success rate of a dropshipping business is between 10% and 20%

According to top dropshippers around the web, it is estimated that only between 10% and 20% of dropshipping businesses succeed. Yet this doesn’t mean you won’t succeed, it only means there are many people that start this type of business without actually understanding what it’s all about.

This business model will not get you rich overnight, you need to work hard and be passionate about ecommerce and in time your business can be profitable and successful.

27% of online retailers are now dropshipping

I guess if we consider all the data we’ve been adding here, this estimation isn’t such big news, isn’t it? It’s only normal that more online retailers want to give dropshipping a try now that it’s proven to be so profitable and successful. 

So, around 27% of online retailers are now using the dropshipping business model as their primary method to fulfill orders from customers. And as a consequence of this, manufacturers and suppliers have also an increased revenue coming from dropshipping. A win-win situation!

Who wouldn’t want to start an eCommerce business without having to worry about inventory or, as a supplier and manufacturer, not having to worry about a global customer base? 

Suppliers make 18.33% more in profit when selling to dropshippers than through their own online shops

Not only retailers or store owners can get huge financial benefits when dropshipping, but suppliers and wholesalers too. It seems that they get 18.33% more profit when they sell through dropshippers than when they sell the same product through their online stores.

So, we can say it’s a win-win situation when dropshipping for both suppliers and retailers.

The global dropshipping market for fashion and apparel products will grow every year by 12.8%

According to a report by Technavio, the global dropshipping market for fashion and apparel products was valued at $43.9 billion in 2020, and it’s expected to grow at a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of 12.8% from 2020 to 2025.

This growth is driven by the increasing popularity of e-commerce and the growing demand for fashion and apparel products. The report also highlights that the growing use of social media platforms and online marketplaces has made it easier for small and medium-sized retailers to enter the market and benefit from the dropshipping model, which allows them to offer a wide range of products without having to invest in large quantities of inventory.

Additionally, the report states that the ease of setting up and running an online store, and the lower overhead costs compared to traditional brick-and-mortar stores, have also contributed to the growth of the dropshipping market for fashion and apparel products.

The Home and Garden Niche in Dropshipping: A $29.9 Billion Industry

According to a report by ResearchAndMarkets, the global dropshipping market for home and garden products was valued at $29.9 billion in 2020 and is projected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 12.3% from 2020 to 2028.

61% of retailers are making their eCommerce platform  a budget priority

According to this report, 61% of B2B retailers plan to make their eCommerce platform a top technology budget priority in the next year. 

More key data from the same report:

• 18% of retailers are looking to switch ecommerce platforms 
• 39% of retailers said that investment in ecommerce platforms in 2021 improved conversions 
• 71% of retailers who intend to invest more in ecommerce technology this year said they want to do this to attract new customers
• 42% of retailers said they’ve been using the same ecommerce platform for more than five years 
• 12% of retailers say they are most likely to choose “headless commerce” technology for their next ecommerce platform.

Ecommerce sales are estimated to reach $7.4 trillion by 2025

According to Statista, retail ecommerce sales have reached approximately $4.9 trillion worldwide in 2021. But what’s even more amazing is that they will keep on growing over the next four years.  

It’s estimated that ecommerce sales will grow by 50%, reaching approx. $7.4 trillion by 2025. Now, isn’t that the greatest news of all?!?

Online sales on B2B ecommerce sites, log-in portals and marketplaces increased to 17.8% in 2021

That’s what the 2022 US B2B Ecommerce Market Report states. It seems that in 2021, B2B online sales, log-in portals and marketplaces increased to $1.63 trillion from $1.39 trillion in 2020. All this means that in 2021, B2B ecommerce grew 1.17 times faster than the growth of all US manufacturing and distributor sales.

The same report says that B2B ecommerce sales accelerated in 2021 probably because more business buyers and sellers started to see digital commerce as a more efficient and effective way to research and purchase corporate goods and services.

Key data from the same report:

• Over a third of manufacturers had at least 25% in B2B growth in ecommerce sales between 2021 and 2022
• In 2021, e-procurement accounted for 8.5% of all US digital commerce sales and 7.1% of total B2B sales
• 51% of business buyers choose a B2B ecommerce site because of its excellent user experience
• Buyers are more willing than ever before to spend substantial amounts through remote or online sales channels, with 35% willing to spend $500,000 or more in a single transaction. 

China, the USA and the UK are the biggest ecommerce markets

It’s no surprise that China is the biggest ecommerce market with a total of $2,779.31 billion in ecommerce sales in 2021. 

But did you know that the USA came in 2nd place with an estimated $843.15 billion in sales? Well, yes, that just happened. The UK comes in 3rd place with $169.02 billion in sales.

So now you know which regions and countries are the markets. Of course, this also means the competition in these markets is very high. 

Mobile ecommerce accounts for 45% of all retail ecommerce sales in the USA

Insider Intelligence latest statistics forecast that US mobile ecommerce will double its total retail sales between 2020 and 2025. 

If in 2021 mobile ecommerce sales meant $359.32 billion, it’s estimated that retail mobile ecommerce sales will reach $728.28 billion and account for 44.2% of retail ecommerce sales in the USA.

In 2021, ecommerce accounted for 19% of all retail sales worldwide

In 2021, ecommerce accounted for 19.6 percent of retail sales worldwide. What’s even more exciting is that ecommerce sector is expected to make up close to a quarter of total global retail sales. So it keeps on increasing or, as retailers like to joke, ecommerce is starting to take over the world. 

Joking aside, these statistics show that ecommerce has now got to such a point that it can’t be ignored anymore. It’s now becoming an important part of the consumer experience worldwide and it’s expected to influence even the retail industry. 

There are 2.14 billion global digital buyers in 2021

According to a forecast done by Statista between 2014 to 2021 on the number of digital buyers worldwide, it seems that in 2021 there were over 2.14 billion people worldwide who wanted to buy goods and services online. 

To understand how huge this is, in 2016, there were only 1.66 billion global digital buyers. We could say there hasn’t been a better time to start an online store than now if you look at how many people shop online each year. It also means that we can even expect this increase to happen for a long time. 

33% of consumers have higher expectations for fast shipping

The pandemic has changed the way consumers thought about online shopping, as expected. And now, many of them expect not only that they will get their products faster but also that they can have the shipping for free.

So keep that in mind when starting a new store or finding ways to attract new customers.

83% of consumers discovered new brands online

Yes, that’s true. It seems that 83% of responders in this Ecommece Shopping Report said they often discover new brands online and that what most attracted to that brand were: discounts and promotions (53%), great photos or videos (43%), website placement (33%), digital ads (33%) and influencer recommendations or reviews (23%).

Millennials shop online more than other groups in the USA

This is another statistic that we guess didn’t take you by surprise. We all know how digital-savvy those born between 1981 to 1996, the Millennials, are.

Well, now there is another survey that proves all this. 38.4% of online shoppers in the USA are under the age of 35. Only 14.4% of the people shopping online in the USA are 65 and above. 

WooCommerce and Shopify are the most used eCommerce platforms

With over three million live websites that are using WooCommerce, a WordPress plugin that will transform their website into an eCommerce one, this is now the most used platform. 

But Shopify is definitely coming fast in 2nd place with 1.7 million websites at the moment. 

Both platforms are great, with their own pros and cons. That’s why it’s important for online store owners to do in-depth research about each of them and find out which one better fits them.

Read more on Shopify vs WooCommerce to help you make up your mind

Online stores that have at least one social media channel have an average of 32% more sales

According to the latest ecommerce statistics done by BigCommerce, online stores with at least one social media account (Facebook and/or Twitter) have, on average, 32% more sales than those not using these social media channels. 

Well, if this data didn’t convince you to create a Facebook page, then we don’t know what it will be. This data clearly states that having at least one social media channel should be a must in your marketing strategy. 

Now you know that being on social media means more than brand awareness or a new source for generating more traffic to your online store. It will also bring you more sales, which is what we all want, right?

TikTok and influencer marketing are the most promising channels for marketing

Influencer marketing is gaining more and more popularity as brands understand that SEO and other social media channels are becoming more crowded and expensive. That’s why it’s no surprise that brands are turning more to content creators to promote their products and give credibility to their brand stories.

The primary reason for abandoned carts has to do with unexpected shipping fees 

As a store owner, you will definitely want to know why your customers abandoned their carts and don’t get to make an actual order.

Well, it seems that the latest available data shows that the top reason customers abandon their carts has to do with shipping fees that cost more than they predicted. 

Other reasons for abandoned carts include discount code that doesn’t work,  order taking too long to be shipped, having to re-enter credit card details and having to re-enter shipping details. 

42% of shoppers expect a 2-day shipping option available

Heres’ what a 2021 consumer survey done by Ware2Go revealed:

• 33% of consumers have higher expectations for fast shipping
• 40% of shoppers have higher expectations for free shipping
• 42% of shoppers expect a 2-day shipping option for every online purchase they make

All the above means that fast shipping, such as Prime delivery, next-day and same-day delivery, is a must to have for your online store. Customers are willing to even pay extra just to make sure they have the item delivered as fast as possible.

It’s now decided: the top reason people shop online is free delivery

According to a survey done by Jungle Scout on 1,000 US consumers to learn why they chose online shopping in 2021, free shipping is the reason number 1. 

Did that surprise you? We weren’t, to be honest.

Actually, it’s normal that this happened if we think about how this last year was, the whole pandemic situation has changed, maybe forever, old habits. 

In the same study, 43% of consumers said they would be ok if they could never shop in a physical store again, and 73% even believed that shopping will happen online in the future. 

So, keep in mind that offering free shipping may make a difference to your customers, and this can be why they choose you and not your competition.

You only have 15 seconds to get the attention of your customers

Maybe some of you already know it, but we wanted to also have in this article some real facts that can help set up an online store based on dropshipping. 

The 15-second rule actually says that if you can’t get your customers excited in the first 15 seconds since they open your ecommerce store, then you will lose them.

So, if you want to have a better chance at keeping your customers on your website with the hopes that they will make a purchase, you should keep in mind the following:

• The looks – your ecommerce store should have a clean and beautiful design with clear information about your products. In other words, should be relevant for your target audience and easy to navigate through. 
• The tech – if your ecommerce website doesn’t load in a max. of 3 seconds, then most likely your customers will exit even before seeing what you have to offer. Speed matters in this world – people don’t wait anymore. So, be sure that your website loads as fast as possible. Also, don’t forget to secure your payments transactions, security is something you should care about a lot these days. 
• The products – to have a better chance at making a name for yourself as a store owner, you need the right products for the right people. So, we recommend selling high-quality and unique products that come with eye-catching images. After choosing the products you want to dropship, don’t forget to do some search engine optimization for each of them, this will help customers find your products faster. 

Consumer reviews are trusted 12 times more than the manufacturer descriptions

We think this data is absolutely amazing and may be one of the most important statistics ever published. Now that you know how important it is for your customers to have reviews on your online store, you can do something about it.

In a way, it’s normal that consumers trust other people’s testimonials about your products more than anything else on your store or blog. Before becoming your customer, they need reassurance that a product looks and does what it’s supposed to do. It’s normal to have doubts about it, they can’t see, touch or try it before purchasing, so they rely on other people’s experience with it. 

So, be sure to make it easy for your existing customers to come back after they made a purchase and write a review about that product. That way you can include as many reviews as possible in your online store. 

The business model and operational efficiency are the secret of successful brands

According to this study, successful stores were 6x more likely to say that “Branding and Storytelling” gave them a competitive advantage and 77% more likely to the fact that they manufactured their own product.

And operational efficiency has a large impact too, as these top brands were 25% more likely to outsource warehouse operations and 25% less reliant on paid traffic.