When choosing between a physical, digital, or hybrid model, entrepreneurs face a unique challenge in Dubai's retail landscape. Though online shopping has become more popular worldwide, regional tastes vary a lot. To increase market reach, a lot of digital-first retailers are establishing physical locations.

In the UAE, e-commerce is expanding quickly, but because of cultural trust issues and a preference for in-person shopping, it complements traditional retail rather than replaces it. The retail industry, both online and off, is predicted to grow and change to meet the varied needs of customers.

Here are some key statistics about the UAE online e-commerce and physical retail market. Have a look!

UAE E-commerce Statistics

  1. The value of e-commerce sales in the United Arab Emirates increased from $12.34 billion to USD 27.08 billion between 2018 and 2022, more than doubling. LinkedIn
  2. The UAE e-commerce market generated a revenue of USD 33.0 million in 2023 and is expected to reach USD 110.4 million by 2030. grandviewresearch
  3. By 2029, the market is projected to have grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.63%, with a volume of $10.56 billion. Statista
  4. Saudi Arabia is the fastest-growing regional market in the Middle East & Africa and is projected to reach USD 264.1 million by 2030. grandviewresearch
  5. It is anticipated that the average revenue per user (ARPU) will be around $1,590.00.  Statista
  6. While some businesses only operate online but still have physical locations, many combine their online and offline businesses. Online shopping is becoming more popular in certain areas, such as groceries, where only 7% of Dubai residents never use grocery delivery apps.  LinkedIn
  7. In the United Arab Emirates, the percentage of e-commerce transactions has doubled to 12% since 2019, with mobile phones handling about 70% of these transactions. Majid al Futtaim
  8. About two million UAE citizens, or 20% of the total population, have switched to online shopping over the past few years, which has caused the number of online shoppers to rise significantly from 4.5 million in 2019 to 6.5 million in 2023. UAE News 24/7
  9. The trend towards e-commerce is anticipated to continue growing, with a growing generation of digital natives and 100% of the UAE population having access to the internet.  LinkedIn
  10. According to a report by Dubai Economy, the UAE's e-commerce industry grew by 64% in 2020, reaching a total valuation of AED 44.8 billion, or about $12.2 billion.  LinkedIn
  11. Globally, the e-commerce market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of about 27.4 per cent. thenationalnews
  12. 73% of all sales in the United Arab Emirates came from locally based e-commerce websites. NationalNews
  13. The UAE's e-commerce business-to-business channels are projected to expand at a 17.43% CAGR through 2031. Mordorintelligence
  14. The e-commerce food and beverages market is forecast to log the highest 13.16% CAGR through 2031. mordorintelligence
  15. Following electronics, which accounted for 33.3% of total revenue, are fashion (30.2%), groceries (17.0%), hobby & leisure (8.4%), care products (3.8%), DIY (3.7%), furniture & homeware, and hobby & leisure (3.7%). ECDB's analysis identifies seven key markets within the UAE e-commerce sphere. Aletihad
  16. E-commerce was dominated by mobile devices. According to the report, smartphones accounted for 78.67% of the UAE e-commerce market share in 2025, and the segment is expected to grow at 16.24% CAGR through 2031. Mordorintelligence
  17. To support businesses' digital migration and customer acquisition, Huawei Cloud has invested over RMB1 trillion Chinese Yuan (roughly US$160 billion) in cloud technology development over the past ten years, according to Sebastian Shi, CEO of Huawei Cloud UAE. UAE News 24/7
  18. The CEO of Eros Group, Rajat Asthana, emphasized that online sales yield a substantially higher return on investment (RoI) of 7%, while offline retail offers a meager 1% RoI. UAE News 24/7
  19. The UAE's e-commerce industry is expanding at a rate of 18% annually, which is less than the 36% global growth rate. UAE News 24/7
  20. Notably, there has been a notable 39% increase in electronics sales online compared to a meager 0.4% increase in sales at physical stores, indicating changing market dynamics. UAE News 24/7
  21. AE Pass surpassed 11 million users by early 2025 and processed 2.6 billion transactions across 322 public and private services. Mordorintelligence
  22. Local retail websites were clearly preferred over international retailers by UAE shoppers. Domestic e-commerce websites made up 73% of total sales in 2021, while international websites only made up 27%. Dubai Chamber
  23. Due to the nation's high internet penetration rate, the electrical industry had the highest penetration of any industry in 2020 at 36.8%, and it is predicted to reach 49.8% by 2026. Global Data

Online Stores Aligned by Monthly Revenue

  1. The majority of online stores in the United Arab Emirates, with 17.69K stores making up 41.11% of the total, have monthly sales between $1.00K and $10.00K. Aftership
  2. 19.08% of all stores, or 8.21K stores, have monthly sales of less than $100.00.  Aftership
  3. The monthly sales of 7.52K stores range from $10.00K to $100.00K, or 17.48% of the total. Aftership

Distribution of Online Stores Based on Employee Count

  1. With 9.45K stores accounting for 89.27% of all online stores in the UAE, the majority of these stores employ fewer than ten people. Aftership
  2. 263 stores, or 2.48% of the total, employ between 10 and 20 people. Aftership
  3. Twenty to fifty workers work in 239 stores, or 2.26% of the total. Aftership

Shops Dispersed Among Monthly Visitors

  1. Less than 100 people visit UAE online stores each month on average; 16.47K stores account for 73.78% of all UAE online stores. Aftership
  2. 17.09% of all visits, or 3.81K stores, occur between 100 and 1K times a month. Aftership
  3. The monthly visits to 1.67K stores range from 1,000 to 10,000, or 7.47% of the total. Aftership

Shops Listed according to Monthly Views

  1. Thirteen thousand stores, or 59.07% of all UAE online stores, have fewer than 100 views per month. Aftership
  2. 24.99% of all stores, or 5.58K, have views per month in the range of 100 to 1K. Aftership
  3. The monthly views for 2.58K stores range from 1,000 to 10,000, or 11.55% of the total. Aftership

United Arab Emirates Total Online Stores by Industry

  1. The distribution of online stores in the United Arab Emirates across various industries reveals that Apparel leads with 6.52K stores (17.68%), followed by Home & Garden with 5.37K stores (14.57%), Beauty & Fitness with 4.25K stores (11.52%), Hobby & Leisure with 2.51K stores (6.81%), and Electronics with 2.22K stores (6.02%). Aftership

United Arab Emirates Total Online Stores by Platform

  1. Shopify, with 18.81K (41.97%) online stores, is the platform with the most stores, followed by WooCommerce (16.19K) with 36.12% and Custom Cart (3.18%) with 3.18K stores.  Aftership

United Arab Emirates Online Stores Monthly Sales by Platform

  1. Custom Cart leads in monthly sales with $4.75 trillion (87.72%), followed by WooCommerce ($73.08 billion; 1.35%) and Salesforce Commerce Cloud ($488.55 billion; 9.21%). Aftership

UAE Digital E-commerce Statistics

  1. Per Project 2030 goals, the UAE aims to be 75% cashless by 2026 and 100% cashless by 2031. forrester
  2. By 2028, it is anticipated to have grown to a total value of US$23.75 billion at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.53%.Statista
  3. By 2028, there will be 7.82 million users in the digital commerce market, according to projections. Statista
  4. Online payment statistics also show that digital commerce accounts for the highest transactional value, at USD 8.67 trillion. electroiq

UAE Retail Statistics

  1. In 2023, consumer spending rose by 13% compared to 2022, with retail-specific expenditures growing by 14%. researchandmarkets
  2. In that market, cash on delivery (71.2%) and PayPal (e-wallets), which are accepted by 36.5% of retailers, are two other widely used payment methods. Aletihad
  3. In the UAE, overall consumer spending grew by 13% in 2023 over 2022. Retail spending increased by 14%, while non-retail economy spending increased by 12%. Majid al Futtaim
  4. Due in large part to increased tourism brought about by the FIFA World Cup the year before, consumer spending increased most during the first half of 2023. Majid al Futtaim
  5. Throughout 2023, spending remained robust, especially in the last quarter when it accounted for 27% of all retail economy spending, primarily from traditional seasonal spending and COP28. Majid al Futtaim
  6. In 2023, spending in the supermarket and hypermarket sectors increased by 3%. Spending in the first half rose by 5%, while in the second half it stayed the same as the year before. Majid al Futtaim
  7. A 19% increase in e-commerce and digital sales drove the hypermarket/supermarket sector's growth, while spending in physical stores stayed constant.  Majid al Futtaim
  8. Brick-and-mortar stores remained the market leader, accounting for 85% of all sector spending, even in the face of the digital upsurge. Majid al Futtaim
  9. In 2023, consumer spending in retail general categories increased significantly, rising 16% over the previous year. Majid al Futtaim
  10. Consumer spending increased by 33% in electronics over the previous year, with food and beverage coming in second with 25% and hotels with 17%. The sector growth was primarily driven by the food and beverage industry (41%), with hotels (35%) and electronics (9%). Majid al Futtaim
  11. In 2023, hotel occupancy rates reached a record 77%. Dubai saw 17.2 million overnight stays, up 19% from 2022 and higher than pre-pandemic levels. Majid al Futtaim
  12. Spending in the leisure and entertainment sector increased by 15% over the previous year, with over two-thirds of the growth coming from a 33% increase in movie ticket sales. Majid al Futtaim
  13. The growth of the UAE's retail sales, which reached US$83.5 billion (Dh306.6 billion) in 2022, is being accelerated by this surge in online shopping. UAE News 24/7
  14. The UAE's retail sales are predicted to grow by 6.6% annually to $70.5 billion (Dh259 billion) by 2026, according to the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry. khaleejtimes

Future Outlook of Online and Retail Market in the UAE

  1. According to projections, the e-commerce market will have 5.7 million users by 2029. Statista
  2. According to projections, the percentage of users will rise to 58.0% by 2029. Statista
  3. According to ECDB, the market is anticipated to maintain a strong compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.7%, reaching $9.378 billion by 2028. Aletihad
  4. Presently holding a 14.4% share in the UAE's retail market, the online portion is expected to increase by an average of 3.4% to 16.5% by 2028. Aletihad
  5. According to projections, the e-commerce market will continue on its current upward trajectory, growing to AED 59.4 billion, or roughly $16.2 billion, by 2026. LinkedIn
  6. The e-commerce market in the United Arab Emirates is expected to grow by nearly 92% from 2021 to $9.2 billion in 2026. NationalNews
  7. The global e-commerce market is predicted to reach $55.6 trillion by 2027 from $13 trillion in 2021. NationalNews
  8. In 2021, the UAE's mobile retail market was valued at $2.6 billion, or 44% of the country's overall e-commerce market. From 2022 to 2026, it is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 15.6%, reaching $4.6 billion. NationalNews
  9. From 2022 to 2027, the retail market in the United Arab Emirates is anticipated to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) exceeding 5%. UAE News 24/7
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