Update: Adobe reported that a record $6.59 billion was spent online in the U.S. on Cyber Monday, an increase of 16.8 percent year-over-year. It was indeed the largest online shopping day in history. Mobile transactions accounted for 21.3 percent of total revenue, also new record. eBay, meanwhile, noted that Cyber Monday was the biggest sales day in the company’s 22-year history.
Original story: It’s a historic day for the e-commerce industry.
Cyber Monday 2017 is expected to be the biggest U.S. online shopping day ever. Adobe Analytics predicts that $6.6 billion will be spent online by Americans today; as of 7 a.m. PT, $840 million had already been spent, a 17 percent growth from last year.
Adobe, which draws data from 80 percent of online transactions at the largest 100 U.S. web retailers, noted that overall web traffic today is up 12 percent from last year, with 44.6 percent coming from smartphones. Nearly 30 percent of total revenue today has come from smartphones, which is up 41 percent since last year.
“Cyber Monday is expected to make history again as the biggest U.S. online shopping day of all time, driving a billion dollars more than last year,” Tamara Gaffney, strategic insights engagement group director at Adobe, said in a statement. “As consumers make their way back to work, they are poised to be hitting the buy button all day, as most big discounts will end by midnight. A lot more of this will be happening on smartphones as well, where smoother buying experiences through auto-fill capabilities are helping drive the growth we see in mobile.”
Amazon is expected to break its own records for Cyber Monday. The company, which is offering big discounts today, said it sold more than 64 million items on Cyber Monday last year, or 740 items per second.
Adobe earlier reported that U.S. consumers spent $2.87 billion online on Thanksgiving, up 18.3 percent year over year. A record $5.03 billion was spent on Black Friday, up nearly 17 percent.
Data from consumer insights tracker Hitwise shows Amazon accounting for 54.9 percent of total online transactions in the U.S. on Black Friday; Walmart was the next-highest with 8.8 percent.
One of the key takeaways from this weekend’s shopping extravaganza is that Americans are opting to shop more online versus going to physical stores; they are also increasingly becoming more comfortable with buying products on their smartphone. Amazon, which is expected to spend a record $7 billion on shipping costs this holiday season, reported that mobile app orders on Thursday spiked 50 percent compared to Thanksgiving Day 2016.
So far in November (not counting Cyber Monday), Americans have spent $43.42 billion online, up nearly 17 percent, according to Adobe. The ease of e-commerce has changed purchasing habits and is blurring the traditional lines between the designated days of the holiday shopping season.
is cyber monday still a thing? or are we all just shopping at home on black friday now, sitting in our pajamas and cackling at the fools who actually go to the stores in person?
— Rachel Metz (@rachelmetz) November 27, 2017
Here are some resources for deal hunters today:
- Dealmaster: All the Cyber Monday tech deals we can find — Ars Technica
- The 26 best deals of Cyber Monday 2017 — The Verge
- The 10 best Cyber Monday sales you can shop right now — BGR
- The absolute best Cyber Monday deals you can get — CNET
- Cyber Monday guide: 5 things to look for as you shop — The Washington Post
