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Black Friday has officially gone digital as customers are embracing the convenience of online shopping.
This year, online sales reached a record $10.8 billion, a 10.2% increase when compared with last year, according to Adobe (ADBE-0.70%) Analytics data.
“Crossing the $10 billion mark is a big e-commerce milestone for Black Friday, a day previously anchored by in-store shopping,” said Vivek Pandya, Adobe’s lead analyst. “With mobile, AI, and chatbots reshaping consumer behavior, we expect online sales to continue growing in the years ahead.”
In just five years, online Black Friday spending has more than doubled, rising from $5.03 billion in 2017. Higher spending isn’t all that’s changing — the way customers want to shop is, too. Convenience is now king, and customers are making smarter, faster purchasing decisions while seeking the best deals. Retail giants such as Amazon (AMZN-1.81%), Walmart (WMT-6.20%), and Target (TGT-2.15%), have expanded their online offerings in a bid to give shoppers more choices and discounts than ever before.
This year, toys were a standout category, with online toy sales soaring 622% above October averages. Other categories such as jewelry, appliances, personal care, apparel, and electronics also saw substantial growth. Popular items included Harry Potter Lego sets, PlayStation 5 consoles, Bluetooth speakers, smartwatches, and skincare bundles.
According to Adobe, customers traded up on typically pricer items this year, as retailers exceeded discount expectations. The growing trend of “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) also contributed to the surge, accounting for $686 million of Black Friday’s online sales.
Adobe previously forecasted that the year’s holiday shopping period — including Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday — would generate $40.6 billion in sales, making up about 17% of overall holiday sales.
But as Black Friday continues to evolve, one thing is clear: The future of holiday shopping is firmly online.
“Black Friday as we know it, is officially dead,” said Jerry Sheldon, vice president of global retail research firm IHL Group. With many retailers offering Black Friday deals online, Cyber Monday is now set to surpass Black Friday in total sales.
Adobe is projecting Cyber Monday will remain the biggest shopping day of the year, driving a record $13.2 billion in online sales, a 6.1% increase from last year.
The firm’s analysis draws from over 1 trillion visits to U.S. retail websites and covers 100 million products across 18 categories.