U.S. sees record Black Friday online sales, driven by price-conscious shoppers

Black Friday online shoppers in the U.S. spent a record $9.8B, according to Adobe Analytics, up 7.5% from a year ago, a bright spot for retailers that are expecting muted sales this holiday season.

The record spending, which was widely expected, was driven by shoppers hunting for the best deals online amid deep discounts and flexible payment options. The top-selling categories were smartwatches, TVs, toys and gaming.

“With persistently high inflation, consumers are increasingly seeking out value and buying closer to need,” Bank of America analyst Jason Hass noted earlier.

Consumers also spent more through buy-now, pay-later options. Of the total Black Friday online sales, $79M came from shoppers who opted for BNPL payment options, up 47% Y/Y.

“The strong online sales momentum for Black Friday further emphasizes the staying power the major holiday shopping days continue to have,” said Vivek Pandya, analyst, Adobe Analytics.

As for Thanksgiving, online spending rose 5.5% Y/Y to a record $5.6B, nearly double the amount seen in 2017.

Adobe Analytics expects Cyber Monday to be this year’s biggest online shopping day at $12B, up 6.1% Y/Y. However, Pandya said spending will likely taper off deeper into the holiday season as discounts fade.

Salesforce said Black Friday online sales reached $16.4B in the U.S. and $70.9B globally. Thanksgiving online sales totaled $31.7B globally and $7.5B in the U.S., up 1% Y/Y each.

Adobe Analytics’ data is based on 1T visits to U.S. retail websites, 100M SKUs, and 18 product categories. Salesforce’s numbers are based on data from over 1.5B global shoppers.

Related stocks: Amazon (AMZN), Target (TGT), Walmart (WMT), Best Buy (BBY), Apple (AAPL), Costco (COST), Home Depot (HD), Lowe’s (LOW), eBay (EBAY), Macy’s (M), and TJX (TJX).

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