Many shoppers on Black Friday ditched the mall crowds the day after Thanksgiving and spent more money online than ever before. And big retailers relied on deep discounts to draw in sizeable traffic.
Shoppers spent a record $10.8 billion online on Friday, over 10% more than they did last Black Friday, according to data from Adobe Analytics, which tracks retail transactions. That's more than double what consumers spent in 2017.
Online shoppers shelled out some $11.3 million per minute between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., Adobe said.
"Crossing the $10 billion mark is a big e-commerce milestone for Black Friday, for a day that in the past was more anchored towards in-store shopping," Vivek Pandya, a lead analyst with Adobe Digital Insights, said in a statement.
More people have grown comfortable with shopping on smartphones — and with the use of mobile wallets, buy now pay later options, and AI-powered chatbots that serve as shopping assistants to help consumers hunt for specific items. According to Pandya, the embrace of these digital shopping tools is producing "tailwinds that can prop up online growth for Black Friday moving forward."
Worldwide, 69% of all Black Friday purchases came from mobile devices, up from 68% in 2023, reported software company Salesforce.
Lighter crowds in stores this year
While people stayed home to hit the buy button, stores were emptier than they had been during past Black Friday events. Friday's in-store shopper traffic was down 8.2% compared to 2023, according to Sensormatic Solutions, which tracks retail store foot traffic.
Shoppers were more willing to line up for stores that promoted deep discounts. Retailers that slashed prices by at least 40% lured shoppers to brick and mortars, Michael Brown, a partner at management consulting firm Kearney, told The Associated Press. Forever 21, for example, which offered 50% to 70% off, drew lines to its stores, according to Brown. Fast-fashion competitor H&M, meanwhile, drew less excitement with its 30% discount.
On Black Friday, Adobe said popular purchases included: makeup and skincare products, hair care products, Bluetooth speakers and headphones, smart watches, jewelry, clothing, fragrances, bedding and linens, televisions, gift cards and espresso machines.
While higher costs and inflation account for higher sales numbers, Friday offered deeper discounts than expected across product categories, according to Adobe.
Some of the biggest deals happen on Monday
The shopping frenzy should reach its peak on Monday — retail analysts expect Cyber Monday to remain the biggest shopping day of the season and year, with Adobe forecasting a record $13.2 billion in spending that day, up 6% from the previous year.
Patience will pay off for people looking to buy electronics and apparel. Monday discounts will reach their highest in those categories at 30% and 23% respectively, Adobe said.
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