Average Ecommerce Conversion Rate (2023–2024)
Given the increasing number of online shoppers, as an ecommerce store owner, you need to understand some key ecommerce issues. This includes asking questions like: “What is a good conversion rate for ecommerce?” and “What is a good ecommerce conversion rate benchmark to aspire to?”
The answers to these questions will give you the insight you need on how to improve your average ecommerce conversion rate on your website.
What is an ecommerce conversion rate?
Before we get to ecommerce conversion rate benchmarks, we need to first know what this rate refers to and how to calculate it.
Ecommerce conversion rate is a key performance indicator (KPI) for online stores that measures the effectiveness of turning visitors into paying customers.
How to calculate ecommerce conversion rate?
The ecommerce conversion rate is calculated by dividing the number of transactions (or sales) by the total number of visitors to the site, then multiplying the result by 100 to express it as a percentage.
Ecommerce conversion rate: (Total number of sales/Total number of visitors) x 100%
For example, if an online store receives 1,000 visitors in a month and makes 20 sales, the conversion rate would be calculated as follows: (20/1000) x 100% = 2%
This means that for every 100 visitors to the site, two of them make a purchase.
What is a good conversion rate for ecommerce?
Determining a good conversion rate for ecommerce isn’t as straightforward as it looks. The prevailing opinion among market experts and analysts is that 2.5% is a good benchmark.
However, as we’ll see in the next few sections, setting realistic ecommerce conversion rate benchmarks can depend on factors ranging from season to product and industry.
Average conversion rate for ecommerce
|
Month |
Average ecommerce conversion rate |
|
Sep 2023 |
2.05% |
|
Oct 2023 |
2.10% |
|
Nov 2023 |
2.27% |
|
Dec 2023 |
2.26% |
|
Jan 2024 |
1.84% |
|
Feb 2024 |
1.70% |
|
Mar 2024 |
1.94% |
|
Apr 2024 |
1.90% |
|
May 2024 |
1.80% |
|
Jun 2024 |
1.91% |
|
Jul 2024 |
1.76% |
|
Aug 2024 |
1.65% |
|
Sep 2024 |
1.58% |
According to the latest data, as of September 2024, average conversion rates across ecommerce businesses were at 1.58%. This represents a 0.07 percentage point decrease from the previous month and an even larger fall of 0.47 percentage points from a year ago. Unlike conversion rates, average order values rose year over year.
This is the lowest ecommerce conversion rate in 12 months and the third consecutive month it has fallen. The highest average conversion rate for ecommerce over the past year came in November 2023, when rates surged to 2.27%. This was a result of the year-end holiday season, one of the busiest shopping events of the year.
Average ecommerce conversion rate by product category
If you’re looking for an ecommerce conversion rate benchmark for your store, you’ll need to look deeper as rates differ greatly from product to product and market to market.
As of September 2024, products related to arts and crafts have the highest ecommerce conversion rates of 5.2%. This category is followed by kitchen and home appliances at 3.57% and health and well-being at 2.89%.
After these three categories, the next five converting product types are as follows:
- Pet care: 1.62%
- Toys, games, and collectibles: 1.53%
- Sports and recreation: 1.32%
- Fashion clothing and accessories: 1.31%
- Food and drink: 1.17%
Average ecommerce conversion rate by market
What you eventually set as an ecommerce conversion rate benchmark also depends on your industry, market, and your target audience’s preferred device.
For instance, the latest data on ecommerce conversion rates by industry shows that the food and beverage industry currently has the highest conversion rates, with 6.11%. This is followed by multi-brand retail, with 4.9%. Beauty and personal care follows with 4.55% and the consumer goods and fashion, accessories, and apparel sectors round out the five industries with the highest conversion rates, with 3.01% each.