Sales growth of e-commerce Australia 2023, by category

Australia's online shopping landscape witnessed significant growth in the variety stores segment in 2023, with a notable increase of over nine percent compared to the previous year. Additionally, the food and liquor segment showed an increase of almost 2.5 percent. However, across all other categories, online sales declined, with fashion and apparel e-commerce sales decreasing by over eight percent.

Maintaining momentum in Australia’s e-commerce market

Since 2021, Australia’s online retail market has been gradually expanding, accelerated by restrictions to in-store shopping throughout the pandemic. Now, the industry is tasked with maintaining online spending momentum through harnessing technologies including AI to foster consumer engagement through marketing techniques such as social media advertising. In 2023, total online spending on goods in Australia reached just over 63.5 billion Australian dollars, lingering at around the same level as 2022. The home and garden category emerged as the leading segment for online spending in Australia, accounting for around 25 percent of online expenditure that year. 

Is Australia’s online marketplace landscape becoming more competitive?

From global marketplaces such as Amazon to local Australian retailers including Kmart and supermarket giants, Coles and Woolworths, Australia’s online retail market offers diverse shopping options. In particular, online marketplaces have been a key contributor to the country’s e-commerce market expansion owing to their extensive product ranges, largely lower prices, and convenient shopping experiences. With a climbing number of site visits, Amazon emerged as the most popular online retailer or marketplace in Australia in 2023, followed closely by Kmart and eBay. Nonetheless, new market entrant Temu, which entered the Australian market in early 2023, has been causing a stir due to its heavily discounted goods. The Chinese e-commerce platform has been attracting an average of 1.2 million Australian shoppers per month, according to a survey conducted in December 2023.