Japan has one of the world’s largest economies, but ecommerce growth is relatively slow, at around 6% per annum.
In this latest set of ecommerce stats, we’ll look at some key data on the ecommerce market in Japan.
Key market data
- Annual online sales (including travel): $166 billion
- Annual online sales per capita: $400
- Internet penetration: 93.5%
- Annual ecommerce growth: 6.2%
- Annual mobile commerce growth: 14%
Ecommerce market size
The ecommerce market in Japan is predicted to be worth $135.5 billion by 2024, though growth is relatively modest.
Note: this chart excludes online travel, which accounts for roughly half of all online sales in Japan.
Online spend by product category
Travel is the biggest online product category for Japanese shoppers, with $53.5 billion spent in 2019, according to Statista.
Preferred payment methods for online purchases
Credit or debit card is the most popular online payment method in Japan, with bank transfer and cash the next on the list. Digital wallets have yet too take hold, accounting for just 2% of payments last year.
Top social media platforms in Japan
LINE, a messaging app with has its own payment system, is the dominant social media platform in Japan, followed by Twitter and Instagram.
The dominance of LINE is reflected in stats from PayPal showing purchases made via social platforms.
Most popular ecommerce sites
While known international brands feature in Japan’s top 10 ecommerce sites, there is a strong local presence too.
- Amazon Japan
- Rakuten
- Yahoo! Auctions Japan
- Yahoo! Shopping Japan
- Mercari
- DMM
- Zozo Town
- Wowma
- Rakuma
- Qoo10 Japan
