Nearly one third of individuals in the EU27 shopped on the internet in 2008 Travel and clothes most popular purchases. In 2008, 32% of individuals1 aged 16-74 in the EU27 had bought or ordered goods or services for private use over the internet at least once in the last 12 months.

Shopping over the internet increased steadily from 20% of individuals in 2004 and 26% in 2006 to 30% in 2007. Between 2004 and 2008, all EU Member States, for which data are available, registered an increase in e-shopping.

In connection with the European Consumer Summit on 1-2 April 2009 in Brussels, Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities presents a selection of statistics concerning e-shopping taken from the 2008 survey on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) usage in households and by individuals in the EU27. The EU Commission hosts this first European Consumer Summit, which will focus on the challenges and opportunities of the digital world.

Highest share of e-shoppers among those aged 25-34

In the EU27, the highest share of e-shoppers in 2008 was found in the age group 25-34 (47% of individuals in this age group). E-shopping was nearly as common among those aged 16-24 (41%) and 35-44 (40%), while it was less common in the older age groups: 45-54 (31%), 55-64 (20%) and 65-74 (9%).

The most popular types of goods and services purchased over the internet in the EU27 were travel & holiday accommodation (14% of individuals had bought or ordered such services in the last 12 months), clothes & sports goods (13%), books & magazines (12%), household goods and tickets for events (both 11%), film & music (9%) and electronic equipment (8%).

More than half of individuals shopped on the internet in Denmark, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden and Finland

In 2008, more than half of individuals aged 16-74 in Denmark (59%), the United Kingdom (57%), the Netherlands (56%), Germany and Sweden (both 53%) and Finland (51%) had bought or ordered goods or services over the internet in the last 12 months. On the other hand, less than 10% of individuals had shopped over the internet in Bulgaria (3%), Romania (4%), Lithuania (6%), Greece and Cyprus (both 9%).

In most of the Member States, the highest proportion of e-shoppers was recorded in the age group 25-34. The only exceptions were Malta, Slovenia, Slovakia and Bulgaria, where the proportion was highest among those aged 16-24.

Finland was the Member State with the highest proportion of those who had bought travel & holiday accommodation (31%) and clothes & sports goods (27%), while Luxembourg was highest for books & magazines (29%), Germany for household goods (26%) and electronic equipment (18%), Denmark for tickets for events (28%) and the United Kingdom for film & music (24%).