Despite the broader economic uncertainty looming over this year’s holiday season, Americans flocked to stores and online platforms in droves during Black Friday, spending billions of dollars.
According to a report by the Associated Press, data from “Adobe Analytics”, which tracks e-commerce, shows that U.S. consumers set a record of $11.8 billion in online spending on Black Friday, a 9.1% increase from the same period last year. Particularly between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. local time across the U.S., online traffic surged with an average of $12.5 million worth of goods being added to online shopping carts every minute.
Based on Adobe’s data, consumers also set a record of $6.4 billion in online spending on Thanksgiving Day. The categories showing the most significant growth in sales over the two days included gaming consoles, electronics, and household appliances. The company noted that shopping services driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and social media advertising significantly influenced consumers’ purchasing decisions.
Meanwhile, software company Salesforce estimated that online sales in the U.S. during Black Friday totaled $18 billion, with a global total of $79 billion. E-commerce platform Shopify stated that its merchants achieved a record of $6.2 billion in global sales on Black Friday. During peak hours, sales reached $5.1 million per minute, with categories like cosmetics and clothing being among the top sellers.
A report by “Mastercard SpendingPulse”, which tracks physical and online consumer spending, indicated that excluding automotive sales, overall sales on Black Friday this year increased by 4.1% compared to last year. Unadjusted for inflation, retail indicators showed a 10.4% surge in online sales, while in-store spending saw a slight increase of 1.7%.
Michelle Meyer, chief economist at the Mastercard Economics Institute, stated that consumers this holiday season are navigating a “uncertain environment” by “engaging in early shopping, taking advantage of promotions, and purchasing items on their wish lists” to cope with the situation.
The National Retail Federation estimated that total holiday season spending by U.S. consumers from November to December will surpass $1 trillion for the first time. However, the growth rate is slowing down — with an expected year-over-year growth rate of 3.7% to 4.2% this holiday season, compared to a 4.3% increase in the 2024 holiday season.
In contrast to scenes from decades ago that saw midnight crowds and frenzy, today’s Black Friday sees an increasing number of consumers opting for the comfort of shopping online for post-Thanksgiving deals or gradually spending over an extended promotional period offered by retailers.
Preliminary data from RetailNext, which monitors real-time foot traffic in physical stores, showed a 3.6% decrease in foot traffic in U.S. brick-and-mortar stores on Black Friday compared to 2024.
According to the Associated Press, Joe Shasteen, the Senior Analytics Manager at RetailNext, stated in an email on Saturday, November 29th that “The issue is not just that consumers are staying home, but that they have changed their shopping habits and timing.” He explained that consumers now spread their shopping over longer periods and have clearer shopping goals when entering stores compared to previous holiday seasons.
Experts anticipate that the holiday shopping frenzy will continue into the weekend. For e-commerce, Adobe predicts that U.S. consumers will spend an additional $5.5 billion on Saturday and $5.9 billion on Sunday, reaching a peak of around $14.2 billion on “Cyber Monday”, setting another record.
However, rising prices may partially account for the increase in spending. Despite an overall increase in consumer spending, Salesforce’s survey found that the quantity of goods purchased by U.S. consumers during Black Friday checkout decreased by 2% compared to last year. The company noted a 1% decline in order volume, while the average selling price increased by 7%.