Almost half of all online shoppers now start their shopping journey on marketplaces, and the majority also prefer to shop on marketplaces rather than in brand web shops. However, purchasing behavior varies considerably depending on the user group, product, or country. This means that how customers buy is a crucial success factor in e-commerce: Only those who know which customers prefer to shop where can serve them in a targeted manner.
Marketplace Shopping Behavior Report 2025
Studies like the “Marketplace Shopping Behavior Report 2025” from our partner ChannelEngine can help here. ChannelEngine surveyed 4,500 online shoppers from the UK, Germany, France, the Netherlands and the US about their purchasing habits.
Some of the results: in the Netherlands, only a quarter of shoppers start their product research on marketplaces, while almost 40 percent prefer search engines. In the UK, on the other hand, search engines are no longer the first port of call for even one in five people.
Or: around three quarters of shoppers prefer to buy products in the “Home & Living” category on marketplaces rather than in web shops; in Germany, the figure is as high as 83 percent. By comparison, across all products, an average of 63% prefer to order on marketplaces rather than in web shops. In the categories “Health & Beauty” and “Sports”, on the other hand, there is no clear preference: the same number of shoppers prefer to shop on marketplaces rather than on webshops and vice versa.
How customers buy and the strategic importance
What does this mean for brands and retailers? On the one hand, there are general trends in purchasing behavior that sellers can use to their advantage, as well as differences that brands can target. Some examples:
- Within three months, shoppers are on average on four marketplaces, and on three of them they actually buy something. Despite the preference for marketplaces, search engines are still part of the shopping journey, and some customer groups use price comparison sites intensively. Amazon is by far the most popular marketplace, with 75% of shoppers, followed by eBay with 24%. Temu and Shein are not far behind with 17% and 14%. A quarter of shoppers have already made a purchase on Temu and Shein. Strategic recommendation: A multichannel strategy is indispensable. And: Sellers need to carefully analyze which platforms and advertising spaces they use for which products.
- A good half of shoppers are tempted to make spontaneous purchases at least occasionally in marketplaces, and their buying behavior resembles a shopping trip through brick-and-mortar stores. Strategic recommendation: By recommending complementary products, brands can also achieve good cross-selling and upselling effects in marketplaces – and perhaps also push back competitors’ offers through targeted advertising.
Why customers like to buy on marketplaces
- The wide range of products, lower prices and better price comparability are the main reasons why customers are so keen to order on marketplaces. Strategic recommendation: Brands should optimize product visibility compared to the competition and make competitive advantages particularly clear.
- In contrast, their own web shops score points for reliability and trustworthiness. Strategic recommendation: If you want to strengthen your own shop, you can rely on these values and emphasize product quality or customer service, for example.
- The vast majority of shoppers are aware that they can buy from different retailers on marketplaces. However, almost half of them don’t really care which seller they click on to buy. Strategic recommendation: If a brand wants to make a name for itself on a marketplace, it needs to make an effort, such as a brand shop or corresponding advertising.
- 40% of shoppers have already made a purchase via social media platforms such as Facebook Marketplace or TikTok Shop, and a quarter would do so again. Strategic recommendation: Brands must keep an eye on these trends and analyze whether an entry can be promising or even inevitable to reach a specific target group.
Conclusion:
These examples make it clear that purchasing behavior is shaped by general trends on the one hand and significant differences on the other. For brands and retailers, this means that the more they know about their customer groups’ purchasing habits and preferences, the better they can reach them. By carefully analyzing how customers buy in individual target groups in specific countries, brands can gain a decisive competitive advantage – it’s a cruical factor for success.
Want to know more? Then watch our webinar with ChannelEngine! You can find the recording here.