- Saudi ecommerce was worth USD 11–28 billion in 2025, depending on what each source counts. Most forecasts expect 10–15% growth a year.
- Internet use is 99.6%, and about 77% of internet users bought something online in 2025 (CST).
- 85% of retail payments were electronic in 2025 (SAMA). Digital wallets carry 40% of online payments, and cash on delivery about 8%.
- Saudis placed 124 million orders through delivery apps in Q4 2025 (+60% YoY) and 118 million in Q1 2026 (+49% YoY).
- Amazon.sa, Temu, Shein and noon are the most-visited shopping sites. Riyadh, Makkah and the Eastern Province take about 82% of delivery orders.
Saudi Arabia is the biggest ecommerce market in the Gulf, and the numbers keep climbing.
Saudi ecommerce was worth USD 11–28 billion in 2025, depending on the source. Almost every resident is online, and cash is now the exception at checkout.
Here are the key Saudi ecommerce statistics for 2026, each with its source, its date and what it means for your store.
How big is the Saudi ecommerce market?
Saudi ecommerce was worth roughly USD 11–28 billion in 2025. The spread is about scope, not disagreement. Some firms count only consumer goods, while others add B2B sales or measure gross merchandise value.
So which number should you use? For a pitch deck or business plan, ECDB's B2C goods figure is the safest base. Use the bigger GMV numbers only when you want to show the whole digital economy.
Most forecasts expect double-digit growth for years to come. Statista is the cautious outlier:
| Source | Forecast | Growth rate |
|---|---|---|
| ECDB | Next year | 10–15% a year |
| Statista | USD 16.0bn (2026) | 4.2% a year (2026–31) |
| MarkNtel Advisors | USD 21.3bn (2026) → USD 29.3bn (2032) | About 5.5% a year |
| Mordor Intelligence | USD 31.3bn (2026) → USD 60.7bn (2032) | 11.6% CAGR |
| Ken Research | USD 54.4bn GMV (2032) | 12% CAGR |
| Economist via Economy Middle East | Over USD 30bn (2027) → about USD 44bn (2030) | 13.5% a year |
What share of retail is online?
Online is still a small slice of Saudi retail, so most of the growth is ahead. Two kinds of figures get quoted, and they measure different things:
| Measure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Ecommerce share of retail sales | About 10% (2025) | trade.gov / McKinsey |
| Ecommerce share of retail sales | 5–10% (2025–26) | ECDB |
| Ecommerce share of retail sales, outlook | Over 25% by 2035 | McKinsey via trade.gov |
| Ecommerce share of consumer retail payments | 29% (2024) → 46% by 2030 | Visa |
Visa's figure is higher because it tracks card payments and includes services. For physical goods, plan around the 10% figure.
Registrations tell the same story, and they're speeding up. The Ministry of Commerce counted 48,497 active ecommerce registrations by midyear, up 23% in a year.
That's a big jump from 9% growth at the end of 2025. By the third quarter of 2026, growth had reached 25% (Saudi Gazette).
How many people shop online in Saudi Arabia?
Nearly everyone is online, and most of them already buy online. Here's the shopper base you're selling to:
GASTAT's own survey puts online buying a little lower, at about 71% of all individuals. It counts everyone, not just internet users, which explains the gap.
A few facts shape who you're actually selling to:
- Young. Seven in ten Saudi nationals are under 35 (GASTAT).
- Women shop online more. About 83% of women took part in online shopping last year, against 78% of men (GASTAT).
- Big households. The average Saudi household has about five people, which suits family packs and home goods.
- Arabic-first. Saudis make up 55.6% of residents, so Arabic listings reach the core market.
Who are these shoppers, and what do they buy? Our Saudi Arabia ecommerce guide covers the full market picture.
How much Saudi shopping happens on mobile?
Most of it: Saudi shoppers browse on phones, and the share is even higher once you count apps.
Source: StatCounter, September 2026. Web page views only; app sessions are not included.
StatCounter only sees websites, not apps. That's why Mordor's estimate of smartphone share by sales value runs higher.
| Mobile stat | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Web page views on mobile | 68% | StatCounter, Sep 2026 |
| Smartphone share of B2C ecommerce value | 78.8% | Mordor, 2026 |
| People aged 15–74 who go online by phone | 98.4% | GASTAT, 2025 |
| Mobile data used per person | 53 GB a month (about 3× global average) | CST, 2025 |
| Median mobile download speed | 216 Mbps | CST, 2025 |
| Users online 7+ hours a day | 61.3% | CST, 2025 |
What does that mean for you? Design and test your store on a phone first. Our mobile commerce guide shows how.
How do Saudi shoppers pay online?
Mostly by wallet and card, and cash on delivery is now a small slice of online orders.
Source: Worldpay data via Antom, 2025. Wallet payments mostly run on mada cards underneath.
The wallet slice and the mada slice overlap. Most Apple Pay payments in Saudi Arabia run on a mada card inside the phone.
Across all retail, the switch from cash happened fast:
| Payment stat | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Electronic retail transactions | 14.6 billion | SAMA, 2025 |
| mada online spend, one quarter | SAR 69.3bn, +56% YoY | SAMA via WAM, Q1 2025 |
| mada online spend, record month | SAR 30.7bn, +68% YoY | SAMA via Argaam, Oct 2025 |
| Shoppers naming Apple Pay their favourite | 36% | Checkout.com survey via Juspay |
| Digital wallet share by 2030 | 51% | Worldpay via Antom |
| Adults using digital wallets for purchases | 79% | Checkout.com, 2026 |
| Tabby and Tamara's share of BNPL | About 95% | Ken Research, 2025 |
So your checkout needs mada and Apple Pay first, then cards and a BNPL option. The Saudi payments guide walks through gateways and fees.
How common is cash on delivery?
COD is still offered almost everywhere, but few shoppers pick it. Sources land between 8% and 18% of online payments, depending on how they measure:
| COD measure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Share of ecommerce payments | 8% | Worldpay via Antom, 2025 |
| Shoppers who prefer cash | About 10% | Checkout.com, 2024 survey |
| Share of orders | About 18% | eGrow, 2026 |
| First-attempt COD delivery failure | 15–30% | COD vendors, 2025–26 |
| Courier COD fee per order | SAR 3–14 | OTO aggregator rates, 2025 |
New brands and shoppers outside the big cities still choose COD more often. Keep it on for first orders, and confirm each one on WhatsApp before shipping. See cash on delivery in the Gulf for the full playbook.
How many orders do Saudis place through delivery apps?
Well over 100 million every quarter. The Transport General Authority (TGA) counts every order placed through licensed delivery apps.
These figures include food and grocery as well as parcels. They're the best official signal of how often Saudis order online.
Where do the orders go? Three regions take most of them:
Source: Transport General Authority, Q4 2025.
That's why a single Riyadh warehouse is the usual first step. Compare Saudi 3PL providers when your volume justifies it.
What sells best online in Saudi Arabia?
Electronics and fashion lead by revenue, while beauty leads on independent stores.
Store-builder data shows a different mix. On Salla, the biggest Saudi platform for independent shops, beauty comes out on top:
Mordor puts consumer electronics at 26.7% of B2C ecommerce in 2026. It names food and beverage the fastest-growing category through 2032.
For a smaller brand, that points to beauty, fragrance, wellness and modest fashion. See the best products to sell in Saudi Arabia for the ranked list.
Which shopping sites do Saudis use most?
Amazon.sa is the most-visited shopping site, with Chinese cross-border apps close behind.
Three of the top six are Chinese cross-border apps. The full list is in top shopping sites in Saudi Arabia.
How much is cross-border?
A lot, but it's shifting local. Sources range widely because they measure different things:
| Cross-border measure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Share of ecommerce revenue | 59% (2021) → about 49% (2026 forecast) | Kearney / Mukatafa |
| Share of consumer retail payments | 15% (2024) | Visa |
| Online buyers using international sites | 55.4% (2025) | Ken Research survey |
| Online buyers using local retailers | 95.3% (2025) | Ken Research survey |
Most shoppers buy from both. Shein and Trendyol now hold stock in local warehouses, so more of their sales count as domestic.
How much do Saudis spend in Ramadan and White Friday?
Ramadan is the biggest shopping season, and shoppers plan for it. White Friday is the biggest event of the fourth quarter.
White Friday runs for about ten days around Black Friday. Last year Amazon.sa offered discounts of up to 70%, while noon's Yellow Friday went up to 80%.
Ad costs climb in both windows, so book stock and ad budget early. Our Ramadan selling guide has the timeline.
How many Saudis use social media?
Almost all of them, with Snapchat and YouTube reaching the most people. These are ad-reach figures, the audience each platform says you can target:
Snapchat's reach is about 73% of the population, far above most countries. TikTok reaches effectively the whole adult online audience. The platform-by-platform view is in GCC social media statistics.
Notes for marketplace sellers
- Traffic is concentrated. Amazon.sa and noon sit in the top four sites, so most new sellers test there first.
- Prepaid skews higher. Big marketplaces see far less COD than small stores do.
- Fulfilment counts. FBA and FBN warehouses near Riyadh reach the regions that take most orders. Start with selling on Amazon.sa.
Notes for DTC brands
- Beauty wins on own stores. Cosmetics and care lead Salla sales, ahead of electronics.
- COD runs higher for new brands. Expect more cash orders until shoppers trust you, and confirm them on WhatsApp.
- Mobile is the store. With phones carrying most sales value, your product page is a phone screen first.
Notes for cross-border sellers
- Small parcels skip duty. Orders under SAR 1,000 pay VAT and a small declaration fee, but no customs duty (ZATCA).
- Local stock is the trend. Cross-border's share is falling as big players move stock into the Kingdom.
- Chinese apps lead traffic. Temu, Shein and AliExpress prove demand for value goods from abroad.
Comparing markets? See the UAE ecommerce statistics for the same numbers next door.
Frequently asked questions
Each research firm measures something different. ECDB counts only B2C physical goods, so it lands lowest at about USD 11 billion. Mordor and Ken Research include B2B sales or measure GMV, which pushes them to USD 25–28 billion. Quote the source next to the number and you'll be fine.
Sources & further reading
- E-Payments Account for 85% of Total Retail Payments in 2025 — Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)
- Saudi delivery sector tops 124 mn orders in Q4-2025 — Mubasher / Transport General Authority
- eCommerce market in Saudi Arabia — ECDB
- Saudi Arabia E-commerce Market — Mordor Intelligence
- Saudi Arabia E-Commerce Market — MarkNtel Advisors
- eCommerce - Saudi Arabia — Statista Market Insights
- Saudi consumer spending rises 14% to SAR 138.2B (mada ecommerce SAR 30.7B in October 2025) — Argaam / SAMA
- Saudi Internet Report 2025 — Communications, Space & Technology Commission
- Payment Methods in Saudi Arabia (Worldpay data) — Antom
- Desktop vs Mobile vs Tablet Market Share, Saudi Arabia — StatCounter Global Stats
- Top retail websites in Saudi Arabia — Semrush
This guide is for general information only and is not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules and fees change — always confirm with the official source or a licensed advisor.
Maya is MiddleEastEcom's lead guide and editor. She researches GCC marketplaces, payments and regulations and turns them into practical playbooks for sellers.
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