Europe's e-commerce sector is projected to achieve 7% growth in 2025, consolidating its position as a pivotal driver for the continent’s digital economy. According to the European E-commerce Report 2025, online retail turnover reached €819 billion in 2024, marking an increase from €765 billion the previous year. This expansion, while substantial at a continental scale, masks sharp disparities between regional markets, signals of shifting consumer behavior, and competitive challenges faced by digital merchants.
Market Overview and Regional Divergence
The European e-commerce landscape is characterized by pronounced regional dynamics. In 2024, Eastern Europe posted the fastest B2C turnover growth at 18%, propelled by market liberalization, digital infrastructure upgrades, and rising consumer adoption. Central and Southern Europe followed with 8% and 9% growth respectively, demonstrating the continued rise of undersaturated markets. By contrast, Western Europe, although the largest region by value, grew by only 5%, a clear sign of market saturation and maturity. Northern Europe matched the European average at 7%. A deeper dive into these regional variations and their impact can be found in our article on Europe counts 2.4B product listings but only ~300M unique products — NotPIM’s perspective.
A dramatic shift in market leadership also emerged: for the first time, France overtook the UK to become Europe’s largest national e-commerce market, posting a turnover of €175.3 billion. Adjusted methodologies played a role, as the UK is now measured on goods-only sales, dropping to €127 billion. Spain, with €95.2 billion, surpassed Germany’s €94 billion, reflecting divergent trajectories even among the continent’s largest economies. Other vital stories include Ukraine’s 92% recovery-driven surge and Bosnia and Herzegovina’s 117% growth, partly explained by methodological changes and renewed consumer engagement.
Such fragmentation across geographies highlights both growth opportunities in emerging markets and the stabilization tendencies of mature regions. For e-commerce infrastructure and digital content strategies, these differences necessitate regional customization—both in product assortment and digital operations.
Inflation, Real Growth, and Consumer Confidence
The e-commerce sector’s growth now rests on more sustainable foundations following the volatility of recent years. While 2023 saw European inflation peak at 6.1%, 2024 brought a marked decrease to 2.6%, enabling 4.2% real growth in online retail. However, inflation-adjusted growth varied: Western Europe’s mature markets delivered just 3% real expansion, while fast-developing Eastern European countries reached 10%. These figures reflect not only variable consumer purchasing power but also the responsiveness of digital merchants to economic uncertainty—often by leveraging dynamic pricing, diversified catalogues, and strategic product positioning. To learn more about managing product data for fluctuating market conditions, check out How to Create Sales-Driving Product Descriptions Without Spending a Fortune.
Digital Access and E-Shopper Saturation
Europe has achieved near-universal internet penetration, with rates rising from 93% in 2024 to a projected 94% in 2025. The spread is not uniform: while Northern and Western Europe are virtually fully connected, Eastern Europe remains at 85%. E-shopper engagement continues to rise; 73% of Europeans aged 16–74 now buy online, compared to 71% the year before. The spectrum remains wide—from Moldova’s 27% penetration to Ireland’s 95%—providing a roadmap for where future growth in e-commerce adoption is most likely. For details on how to handle different levels of e-commerce infrastructure maturity, refer to our blog post about Product Feeds: A Comprehensive Guide for Suppliers.
For retailers and SaaS operators, this saturation changes the strategy for assortment launch and digital onboarding: mature markets demand product depth, real-time content updates, and improved personalization, while emerging markets are fertile ground for broad catalog rollouts and lightweight, mobile-first solutions.
Impact on Product Feeds and Catalog Infrastructure
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NotPIM perspective: The European e-commerce market's evolving dynamics, particularly the regional variations in growth and consumer behavior, highlight the crucial need for adaptable catalog management solutions. Managing diverse product feeds, complying with localized regulations, and ensuring timely product updates becomes critical for competitive success. NotPIM solutions target these challenges by offering automated feed management and localization, enabling merchants to seamlessly scale across different markets and cater to rapidly evolving consumer demands.