Let’s delve into eBay statistics, a prominent e-commerce platform with a rich history that began with its initial focus on customer-to-customer auction services. It soon expanded into business-to-consumer transactions.
Emerging as one of the notable success stories from the dot-com bubble, eBay navigated challenges after going public in September 1998, ultimately becoming the world’s largest e-commerce website by 2001.
In 2022, eBay recorded a substantial $9.7 billion in revenue. Despite its historical significance, eBay currently holds a 3% market share among retail e-commerce companies in the United States as of Nov 2023.
Remarkably, it maintains its status as the second most-visited shopping site, accumulating an impressive 1.2 billion visits in Oct 2023.
Table of Contents
3.2. eBay Quarterly Revenue (2005 – 2023)
3.4. eBay GMV (Gross Merchandise Value) from 2007 to 2022
3.5. eBay Market Share Worldwide 2023
3.6. eBay Market Share 2023 (In U.S)
4.1. eBay Annual Users (2010 – 2023)
4.2. eBay Quarterly Users (2010 to 2023)
4.4. eBay Active Buyers (Quarterly)
5.3. eBay Traffic from Social Media
1. eBay Key Statistics
- eBay boasts a global user base exceeding 135 million.
- Within the United States, 3.67 million users access the eBay app monthly, while global usage surges to over 62 million users.
- As of December 2023, eBay secured the second spot among the most-visited shopping sites, amassing over 850 million visits in that month alone.
- In 2023, eBay’s revenue reached $10.62 billion.
- An impressive 100 million unique visitors frequent eBay each month.
- In the United States, eBay ranks as the fourth most downloaded shopping app, following Amazon, Walmart, and Temu.
- There are more than 1.7 billion active listings on eBay.
- eBay’s revenue in 2021 was $10.42 billion, marking a growth of more than 17% compared to the $8.9 billion revenue recorded in 2020.
- In 2023, the site drew more than 129 million visitors, indicating a 6% decrease.
- The eBay app garnered approximately 2.3 million downloads by July 2023.
- An impressive 66 million individuals utilize the eBay mobile app monthly, surpassing 34.9% of US mobile users.
2. eBay Quick Overview
Founded | 3 September 1995 |
Founder | Pierre Omidyar |
Headquarters | San Jose, California, U.S |
Key People | Thomas J Tierney (Chairman), Jaime Iannon (President and CEO) |
Business Type | Public (NASDAQ: EBAY) |
Industry | E-commerce |
Revenue | US$9.79 billion (2022) |
Source: Wikipedia
3. eBay Statistics: Revenue
eBay sales in 2022 were $9.7 billion, experiencing a 9.3% decrease compared to the figures from 2021.
3.1. eBay Annual Revenue (2005 to 2023)
Year |
Revenue |
2005 |
$4.5B |
2006 |
$5.9B |
2007 |
$7.6B |
2008 |
$8.5B |
2009 |
$8.7B |
2010 |
$9.1B |
2011 |
$11.6B |
2012 |
$14B |
2013 |
$16B |
2014 |
$12.8B |
2015 |
$8.5B |
2016 |
$9.2B |
2017 |
$9.9B |
2018 |
$10.7B |
2019 |
$9.7B |
2020 |
$10.2B |
2021 |
$10.8B |
2022 |
$9.7B |
2023 |
$10.060B |
Source: Company Data, Macrotrends
3.2. eBay Quarterly Revenue (2005 – 2023)
Year | Revenue |
Q1 2005 | $1032mm |
Q2 2005 | $1086mm |
Q3 2005 | $1106mm |
Q4 2005 | $1329mm |
Q1 2006 | $1390mm |
Q2 2006 | $1411mm |
Q3 2006 | $1449mm |
Q4 2006 | $1720mm |
Q1 2007 | $1768mm |
Q2 2007 | $1834mm |
Q3 2007 | $1889mm |
Q4 2007 | $2181mm |
Q1 2008 | $2192mm |
Q2 2008 | $2196mm |
Q3 2008 | $2118mm |
Q4 2008 | $2036mm |
Q1 2009 | $2021mm |
Q2 2009 | $2098mm |
Q3 2009 | $2238mm |
Q4 2009 | $2371mm |
Q1 2010 | $2196mm |
Q2 2010 | $2215mm |
Q3 2010 | $2249mm |
Q4 2010 | $2495mm |
Q1 2011 | $2541mm |
Q2 2011 | $2760mm |
Q3 2011 | $2966mm |
Q4 2011 | $3380mm |
Q1 2012 | $3277mm |
Q2 2012 | $3398mm |
Q3 2012 | $3404mm |
Q4 2012 | $3922mm |
Q1 2013 | $3748mm |
Q2 2013 | $3877mm |
Q3 2013 | $3892mm |
Q4 2013 | $4530mm |
Q1 2014 | $4262mm |
Q2 2014 | $4103mm |
Q3 2014 | $2150mm |
Q4 2014 | $2323mm |
Q1 2015 | $2061mm |
Q2 2015 | $2110mm |
Q3 2015 | $2099mm |
Q4 2015 | $2322mm |
Q1 2016 | $2137mm |
Q2 2016 | $2230mm |
Q3 2016 | $2217mm |
Q4 2016 | $2714mm |
Q1 2017 | $2303mm |
Q2 2017 | $2419mm |
Q3 2017 | $2498mm |
Q4 2017 | $2707mm |
Q1 2018 | $2580mm |
Q2 2018 | $2640mm |
Q3 2018 | $2649mm |
Q4 2018 | $2877mm |
Q1 2019 | $2413mm |
Q2 2019 | $2423mm |
Q3 2019 | $2083mm |
Q4 2019 | $2821mm |
Q1 2020 | $2129mm |
Q2 2020 | $2337mm |
Q3 2020 | $2258mm |
Q4 2020 | $3547mm |
Q1 2021 | $3023mm |
Q2 2021 | $2668mm |
Q3 2021 | $2501mm |
Q4 2021 | $2613mm |
Q1 2022 | $2483mm |
Q2 2022 | $2422mm |
Q3 2022 | $2380mm |
Q4 2022 | $2510mm |
Q1 2023 | $2510mm |
Q2 2023 | $2540mm |
Q3 2023 | $2500mm |
Source: Business of Apps, Macrotrends
3.3. Is eBay Profitable?
Even though online shopping has increased, eBay remains robust, making over $10.2 billion in revenue in 2020 and having more than 1.5 billion active listings. However, in 2022, eBay experienced a 12% decrease in its Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV), reporting $18.2 billion compared to the previous year’s figures.
Below is the annual net income/loss of eBay from 2005 to 2022
Year |
Annual Net Income/Loss |
2004 |
$778.22M |
2005 |
$1,082.04M |
2006 |
$1,125.64M |
2007 |
$348.25M |
2008 |
$1,779M |
2009 |
$2,389M |
2010 |
$1,801M |
2011 |
$3,229M |
2012 |
$2,609M |
2013 |
$2,856M |
2014 |
$46 |
2015 |
$1,725M |
2016 |
$7,266M |
2017 |
-$1,017M |
2018 |
$2,530M |
2019 |
$1,786M |
2020 |
$5,667M |
2021 |
$13,608M |
2022 |
-$1,269 |
Source: Statista
3.4. eBay GMV (Gross Merchandise Value) from 2007 to 2022
Year |
GMV |
2007 |
$46.57B |
2008 |
$48B |
2009 |
$48.35B |
2010 |
$53.53B |
2011 |
$60.33B |
2012 |
$67.76B |
2013 |
$76.42B |
2014 |
$82.75B |
2015 |
$81.3B |
2016 |
$83.49B |
2017 |
$88.4B |
2018 |
$83.83B |
2019 |
$85.51B |
2020 |
$87.6B |
2021 |
$87.37B |
2022 |
$73.9B |
Source: Statista
3.5. eBay Market Share Worldwide 2023
-
- Globally, eBay secures the 2nd spot in eCommerce site visits, closely following Amazon.com but surpassing Amazon.jp.
- Over half of eBay’s annual sales revenue comes from international buyers.
- As of September 2023, eBay US stands as a significant e-commerce entity with a market cap of $23.37 billion.
Rank |
Company |
Market Cap |
1 |
Amazon |
$1,432B |
2 |
Alibaba |
$217.2B |
3 |
JD.com |
$41.96B |
4 |
Prosus |
$131.34B |
5 |
Pinduoduo |
$141.38B |
6 |
eBay |
$21.57B |
7 |
|
$20.86B |
Source: Yaguara
3.6. eBay Market Share 2023 (In U.S)
Company Name | Market Share |
Amazon | 37.6% |
Walmart | 6.4% |
Apple | 3.6% |
eBay | 3% |
Target | 1.9% |
The Home Depot | 1.9% |
Costco | 1.5% |
Best Buy | 1.4% |
Carvana | 1.4% |
Kroger | 1.3% |
Source: Statista
4. eBay Users Statistics
4.1. eBay Annual Users (2010 – 2023)
Year |
Users |
2010 |
92M |
2011 |
97M |
2012 |
105M |
2013 |
131M |
2014 |
149M |
2015 |
157M |
2016 |
158M |
2017 |
167M |
2018 |
175M |
2019 |
173M |
2020 |
161M |
2021 |
159M |
2022 |
138M |
2023 |
129M |
Source: Business of Apps
4.2. eBay Quarterly Users (2010 to 2023)
Year |
Quarterly Users |
Q1 2010 |
89M |
Q2 2010 |
92M |
Q3 2010 |
93M |
Q4 2010 |
94M |
Q1 2011 |
96M |
Q2 2011 |
97M |
Q3 2011 |
99M |
Q4 2011 |
100M |
Q1 2012 |
102M |
Q2 2012 |
105M |
Q3 2012 |
108M |
Q4 2012 |
123M |
Q1 2013 |
127M |
Q2 2013 |
131M |
Q3 2013 |
135M |
Q4 2013 |
140M |
Q1 2014 |
145M |
Q2 2014 |
149M |
Q3 2014 |
151M |
Q4 2014 |
154M |
Q1 2015 |
156M |
Q2 2015 |
157M |
Q3 2015 |
159M |
Q4 2015 |
162M |
Q1 2016 |
162M |
Q2 2016 |
158M |
Q3 2016 |
160M |
Q4 2016 |
162M |
Q1 2017 |
165M |
Q2 2017 |
167M |
Q3 2017 |
168M |
Q4 2017 |
170M |
Q1 2018 |
171M |
Q2 2018 |
175M |
Q3 2018 |
177M |
Q4 2018 |
1798M |
Q1 2019 |
171M |
Q2 2019 |
173M |
Q3 2019 |
174M |
Q4 2019 |
174M |
Q1 2020 |
174M |
Q2 2020 |
161M |
Q3 2020 |
163M |
Q4 2020 |
165M |
Q1 2021 |
166M |
Q2 2021 |
159M |
Q3 2021 |
154M |
Q4 2021 |
147M |
Q1 2022 |
142M |
Q2 2022 |
138M |
Q3 2022 |
135M |
Q4 2022 |
134M |
Q1 2023 |
133M |
Q2 2023 |
132M |
Q3 2023 |
132M |
Source: Business of Apps
4.3. eBay Active Sellers (2007 to 2022)
Year |
Number of Sellers |
2007 |
1.3M |
2008 |
1.8M |
2009 |
2.1M |
2010 |
3.3M |
2011 |
6.8M |
2012 |
13M |
2013 |
18.4M |
2014 |
25M |
2015 |
24.8M |
2016 |
24.1M |
2017 |
22.9M |
2018 |
22.3M |
2019 |
21.1M |
2020 |
20M |
2021 |
19M |
2022 |
18.3M |
Source: Company Data, Business of Apps
4.4. eBay Active Buyers: Quarterly (2019 to 2023)
Year |
Number of Active buyers |
Q1 2019 |
171M |
Q2 2019 |
173M |
Q3 2019 |
174M |
Q4 2019 |
174M |
Q1 2020 |
174M |
Q2 2020 |
161M |
Q3 2020 |
163M |
Q4 2020 |
165M |
Q1 2021 |
166M |
Q2 2021 |
156M |
Q3 2021 |
152M |
Q4 2021 |
147M |
Q1 2022 |
142M |
Q2 2022 |
138M |
Q3 2022 |
135M |
Q4 2022 |
134M |
Q1 2023 |
133M |
Q2 2023 |
132M |
Source: Statista
4.5. eBay Sellers By Country (2023)
Most eBay sellers originate from two countries: the United States and the United Kingdom.
Additionally, 15% of eBay sellers are based in California, USA. In 1999, eBay initiated its international operations, venturing into the UK, Germany, and Australia. Presently, eBay has a presence in over one hundred eighty countries.
Country |
Percentage of Sellers |
United States |
31% |
United Kingdom |
29% |
Germany |
15% |
China |
12% |
Australia |
4% |
Italy |
2% |
Source: Business of Apps
5. eBay Demographics
5.1. eBay Website Traffic (June 2023)
In 2023, the monthly website traffic on eBay’s website reached a recorded 769 million visits.
Statista’s research on eBay reveals that a significant 65% of the platform’s web traffic originates solely from the United States. Additionally, their findings indicate that 58% of eBay’s traffic within the U.S. is generated through mobile devices.
Month |
Desktop |
Mobile |
June 2023 |
256.18 million |
294.65 million |
May 2023 |
259.44 million |
299.32 million |
July 2023 |
261.76 million |
302.61 million |
April 2023 |
250.49 million |
322.08 million |
August 2023 |
220.1 million |
327.19 million |
March 2023 |
273.02 million |
333.28 million |
Source: Yaguara
5.2. eBay Downloads
Below given table shows eBay’s Annual Downloads from 2017 to 2022
Year |
Downloads |
2017 |
38M |
2018 |
37.8M |
2019 |
36.2M |
2020 |
40.3M |
2021 |
31.4M |
2022 |
30.5M |
Source: Business of Apps
5.3. eBay Traffic from Social Media (Jan 2024)
Social Media Platform |
Percentage of Traffic to eBay |
Youtube |
49.6% |
|
19.33% |
|
14.18% |
|
3.45% |
|
4.2% |
Others |
9.24% |
Source: SimilarWeb
5.4. eBay Users by Age (Jan 2024)
Age Group |
Percentage |
18-24 |
14.35% |
25-34 |
24.99% |
35-44 |
19.69% |
45-54 |
17.22% |
55-64 |
14.37% |
65+ |
9.37% |
Source: SimilarWeb
5.5. eBay Users Based on Gender (Jan 2024)
Analyzing the composition of the audience provides insights into a site’s market share among different demographics. On ebay.com, the audience is comprised of 59.75% males and 40.25% females.
Gender |
Percentage |
Male |
59.75% |
Female |
40.25% |
Source: SimilarWeb
5.6. eBay Visitors by Country (Jan 2024)
Country |
Percentage |
United States |
79.29% |
Mexico |
1.29% |
Canada |
1.2% |
United Kingdom |
0.79% |
Japan |
0.76% |
Others |
16.67% |
Source: SimilarWeb
5.7. eBay Top Marketing Channels (Jan 2024)
Channel |
Percentage |
Direct |
58.59% |
Referrals |
2.49% |
Organic Search |
23.62% |
Paid Search |
8.44% |
Socials |
2.93% |
|
3.5% |
Display |
0.42% |
Source: SimilarWeb
6. Paypal vs eBay
Aspect | eBay | PayPal |
User Base | Operates on eBay’s platform; buyer and seller base integrated with eBay’s ecosystem. | Over 390 million active users globally in over 200 countries. Offers standalone payment solutions. |
Payment Control | eBay has total control of the end-to-end payment process using Adyen. Transactions stay on the eBay platform. | PayPal operates as a standalone payment system. Transactions are processed on PayPal’s website. |
Pros | Direct transfer of funds to sellers’ bank accounts | Optimum account security. |
Lower processing fees for most sellers. | Ease of use. | |
Ease of buying without the need for a separate PayPal account. | Zero maintenance fee. | |
Variety of accepted payment methods. | Diverse currency support. | |
Cons | Potentially delayed fund deposits, sometimes extending to a week. | High transaction processing fees. |
Shipping delays due to occasional fund release delays. | Account freezing issues. |
7. FAQs
7.1. Is eBay growing or shrinking?
Recent reports indicate that eBay’s business is contracting at an increasing pace. The number of buyers has decreased by 13%, surpassing the 9% decline observed in the previous quarter.
7.2. How many people use eBay?
eBay boasts a global user base exceeding 135+ million.
7.3. Is eBay an e-commerce site?
It operates as an online shopping platform, serving both as a business-to-consumer E-tailing enterprise and a consumer-to-consumer E-tailing business.
7.4. How much does eBay make a year?
For the twelve months ending September 30, 2023, eBay reported a net income of $2.715 billion, reflecting a remarkable 9596.43% increase compared to the previous year.
7.5. How many sellers are on eBay?
Currently, the platform hosts over 18 million sellers.
7.6. How many buyers on eBay?
In 2023, the recorded number of active buyers on eBay stands at 134 million. The eBay website experienced a monthly traffic of 2.98 trillion in the year 2022.
7.7. Do people still use eBay?
Indeed, individuals continue to utilize eBay for buying and selling goods. With over 185 million active buyers worldwide, the platform remains a favored option for online shopping and selling.
Conclusion
In conclusion, eBay is a strong player in the e-commerce scene.
From starting as a customer-to-customer auction platform, it has grown to become a global giant, weathering challenges like the dot-com bubble.
With over 135 million active buyers globally, eBay’s revenue hit $9.7 billion in 2022 and $10.060 billion in 2023, showcasing its financial strength.
It adapts to changing market dynamics and buyer behavior, remaining dynamic and resilient. With a diverse seller base, a presence in 180 countries, and international expansions since 1999, eBay stands as a significant force in online retail.