eBay Statistics and Usage

eBay Statistics

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.

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

ebay statistics

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

Pinterest

$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

ebay statistics

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%

Facebook

19.33%

Reddit

14.18%

Pinterest

3.45%

Twitter

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

ebay statistics

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%

Mail

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.