The ecom secrets of the Italians: how much is it worth and what they buy online

More than 11 out of every 100 products are purchased online. This is the race of B2C ecommerce, which reached a market share of 11.5 per cent in 2026, an increase of half a percentage point over the previous year. Some product categories far exceed this market share: consumer electronics and IT reach a record 45%, publishing 42%, while furniture & home living and clothing are both at 20%. This is what is revealed by the 2026 edition of the Netcomm B2C eCommerce Observatory - School of Management of the Politecnico di Milano, which records a 6% growth in the value of goods transacted to approximately EUR 42.6 billion, while by the end of the year the total value of products plus B2c services purchased online will reach EUR 66.6 billion. In a market that on average grows by 6%, the beauty & pharma department recorded an above-average increase (+8%), while IT and consumer electronics, clothing, publishing, furniture & home living and food & grocery showed growth in line with that of the sector with rates of between +5% and +6%. The automotive and spare parts sector is slowing down.

"Retail is currently going through a delicate phase with pressures acting on several fronts. On the one hand, geopolitical tensions, rising costs and an economic framework marked by falling consumption and the growing polarisation of purchases, which are increasingly unbalanced between luxury and low-cost logic. On the other hand, rapid transformations along the entire value chain and an evolution of consumption styles that sees apparently opposing needs coexisting: there are those who seek efficiency, speed and time reduction, and those who instead favour quality, relationships and care for the experience," points out Valentina Pontiggia, director of the Netcomm B2C eCommerce Observatory - School of Management of the Milan Polytechnic. In this scenario, the meaning attributed to the product is also changing: in clothing as in lifestyle and food, the consumer is no longer satisfied with the good itself, but demands an experience around it. Retail and eCommerce must therefore become enablers of this experience, investing in technological innovation and profoundly rethinking the role of the physical shop and its integration with the online channel".

Among the representative sectors of Made in Italy there is food & grocery declined in 3 segments: food delivery, online shopping from supermarkets and food & wine, the most sought-after food and beverages, which sees a growth of +5% on 2025 and is worth 5.1 billion euro. In particular, growth continues in the food delivery segment (+7%), which now accounts for 47% of online grocery. Food grocery is also growing by 5% with a 35% share of the value of online groceries. In food & wine, on the other hand, the export component accounts for around 20%, with the segment growing by +3% year-on-year and an average receipt of around EUR 136. The beauty & pharma segment, comprising cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and personal care and hygiene products, reached 3.6 billion (+8%) with an average receipt of 37 euro. Furnishing & home living, i.e. indoor and outdoor furniture, gifts and decorations, kitchen accessories, textiles, lighting, recorded growth in line with the sector (+5%) and reached 4.9 billion with an average receipt of EUR 152. Clothing with shoes and accessories saw a +5% increase compared to the sector and reached a value of 6.6 billion, with an average receipt of EUR 115. Computers and consumer electronics are also in line, registering a growth of +6% over 2025 and worth 9.5 billion with the highest average receipt at EUR 213. Car and spare parts closes the ranking with +3% on 2025, reaching 2.9 billion for online sales of cars and spare parts.

"Digital commerce in Italia is entering a new phase of maturity: it is no longer growing only in terms of expansion of the offer, but in terms of its ability to create value through quality of experience, integration and customer relations," emphasises Roberto Liscia, President of Netcomm. The data show a dynamic and resilient market: Italian ecommerce companies, in the Netcomm research conducted on four European countries, express a higher level of optimism than the European average and almost 70% expect growth in 2026. Today, people are looking for less complexity, more orientation, simplicity and trust. In this scenario, data, artificial intelligence and omnichannel integration become decisive levers for building higher value shopping experiences".