E-commerce in Portugal is growing rapidly, offering significant opportunities for merchants and consumers.
Although the country is often overshadowed by its larger neighbours such as Spain, France and the United Kingdom, e-commerce in Portugal is actually very interesting to analyse, as it has recorded incredible numbers in recent years, with growth forecasts for the coming years equally promising.
In this article we analyse all the data on eCommerce in Portugal, explore the main trends in Portuguese eCommerce and provide a comprehensive overview for merchants interested in this emerging market.
Internet users and eShoppers in Portugal
How many Internet users are there in Portugal
In 2018, 75 per cent of the Portuguese population was connected to the Internet. Five years later, in 2023, Internet users increased by ten percentage points to 85%. A significant figure that represents a solid basis for the expansion of eCommerce.
Widespread access to the Internet is indeed a fundamental prerequisite for the growth of online sales, enabling greater digital inclusion of a wide range of consumers.
How many eShoppers are in Portugal
If the number of consumers with access to the Internet has increased over the last five years, it is easy to imagine that, as a consequence, eShoppers, i.e. those who choose to make their purchases via the digital channel, have also increased.
In 2018, eShoppers were less than half of the population, 49%. In 2023, Internet users in Portugal who made online purchases were 62% of the total, 13 percentage points more (more than four million digital shoppers in absolute terms).
E-commerce, therefore, has an increasingly significant penetration in this country.
The pandemic of COVID-19, as in the rest of Europe and the world, has accelerated this trend, prompting more and more people to experiment with online purchasing (rising from 51% in 2019 to 56% in 2020, and 62% in 2021).
In 2024, almost five out of ten inhabitants are expected to shop online.
How much is eCommerce worth in Portugal
In 2024, it is estimated that digital shoppers in Portugal will generate over USD 4.7 billion in eCommerce retail revenues.
This figure represents steady growth from previous years and indicates an expanding market with enormous potential.
Indeed, the eCommerce market in Portugal is expected to continue to grow steadily until 2029, with total sales reaching 7.7 billion (+60.6%)
This steady growth trend is supported, as we have seen, by an increase in the number of users accessing the Internet and the average value of transactions per user.
The eCommerce penetration rate in Portugal
The eCommerce penetration rate in Portugal is also expected to continue to increase, reaching 55% by 2029. This reflects an increased consumer confidence and habit towards online shopping, supported by improvements in infrastructure and shopping experiences.
The main eCommerce players in Portugal
In 2023, the main online shops in Portugal, i.e. those with the highest sales, were shein.com (with sales of USD 3,271 million), amazon.es (USD 2,791 million) and zara.com (USD 1,746 million).
Some local companies, however, also did particularly well online last year. Worten – Equipamentos para o Lar S.A. was a clear leader in 2023 among Portugal-based retailers, especially in the electronics and media segment. This indicates that, despite the presence of global giants, local companies maintain a prominent position in the market.
According to data from the European eCommerce Report 2023, 85% of Portuguese eShoppers completed an online purchase from national sellers; 45% from eCommerce in other European countries, and 53% from eCommerce in other countries.
Best-selling product categories
The most popular product categories among Portuguese consumers for online shopping are clothing and shoes, with 56% and 35% of consumers choosing these categories, respectively.
However, the variety of products available online is constantly growing, offering consumers a wide range of options.
The Portuguese Network of Lockers and Pick-up Points
There is only one last question, perhaps the most important one, that remains to be asked about eCommerce in Portugal: what is the state of the art of the Portuguese network of Lockers and Pick-up Points? In other words, how is Portugal positioned with respect to alternative, so-called Out of Home deliveries?
How many Lockers and Pick-up Points are there in Portugal
Providing us with some useful data to frame the situation is the Report Out Of Home Delivery in Europe 2024 by Last Mile Experts, according to which Portugal now has a robust infrastructure of pick-up points, including PUDOs (6,693) and APMs (1,163), for a total of 7,856 OOH points, including points shared between different partners.
Major OOH operators in Portugal
The main OOH operator in Portugal is CTT (Portugal Post), although DPD is growing rapidly in the country, especially in the APM network, i.e. Locker. In contrast, the most important PUDO network is that of InPost, which, however, is also investing heavily in the APM network, which could make it an important challenger in the Portuguese OOH market.
In short, even on the alternative delivery front, Portugal is a booming market to keep an eye on in the coming years. With forecasts of steady growth in the coming years, the Portuguese market is indeed an interesting opportunity for merchants and investors.
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