Groupon: global revenue 2008-2023

In 2023, the daily deal website Groupon generated an annual revenue of nearly 515 million U.S. dollars. This figure has steadily decreased in recent years. The coupon company reached its highest global revenue in 2016 at just over 3 billion U.S. dollars. 

A failing business model?

Groupon aims to connect local merchants and online shoppers through daily deals on its website. Merchants offer heavily discounted services, often cutting prices in half. Groupon, in turn, acts as the middleman and pockets lofty commission rates. On top of that, taxes eat part of the profits. The question remains how beneficial this business model is for the retailers who are participating in hopes of upselling, gaining market exposure, and securing repeat customers. Moreover, as discount shoppers are not excessively spending consumers, merchants are left with poor customer-return rates and small profits.

Voucher fatigue

Coupon, or voucher hunting, has seen its heyday. With price comparison websites and e-retailers’ own deals and offers, the need for “deal-of-the-day” sites has decreased. In 2022, Groupon still attracted over 20 million monthly global visitors to its website. However, the number of active customers has steadily declined, going from over 50 million customers at its peak in the fourth quarter of 2014 to only 18 million customers in the first quarter of 2023.