2013 Holiday Season U.S. Desktop E-Commerce Spending Reaches Record $46.5 Billion, Up 10 Percent vs. Year Ago Shortened Holiday Calendar and Lagging Final Week of Spending Led to Underperformance Relative to 14 Percent Growth Forecast
Cyber Monday Ranked as the #1 Spending Day for 4th Consecutive Year
RESTON, VA, January 7, 2014 - comScore (NASDAQ : SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today reported holiday season U.S. retail e-commerce spending from desktop computers for the full November-December 2013 holiday season, showing that $46.5 billion was spent online from desktop devices, an increase of 10 percent vs. year ago. While this year's spending total represents a record for online holiday spending and a double-digit gain from last year, it nevertheless fell short of comScore's forecasted 14-percent growth of $48.1 billion in desktop spending.
2013 Holiday Season Spending vs. 2012
Non-Travel (Retail) E-Commerce Spending
Excludes Auctions and Large Corporate Purchases
Total U.S. - Home & Work Desktop Computers
Source: comScore, Inc.
Millions ($)
2012 2013 Percent Change
Full Holiday Season (Nov. 1 - Dec. 31) $42,286 $46.545 10%
Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 28)* $633 $766 21%
Black Friday (Nov. 29)* $1,042 $1,199 15%
Cyber Monday (Dec. 2)* $1,465 $1,735 18%
Green Monday (Dec. 9)* $1,275 $1,401 10%
*vs. Corresponding Shopping Days in 2012
Although the 2013 holiday season fell short of our initial forecast, it still performed very well in certain regards, said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni. Achieving a double-digit growth rate while significantly outperforming the growth of brick-and-mortar retail by a factor of at least two is noteworthy, particularly considering the inherent challenges in this unusual holiday season.
Added Fulgoni, Ultimately, it seems that spending softness relative to expectations was mainly the result of the compressed holiday calendar. With just three weeks of online shopping between Thanksgiving and Christmas, consumers did not have the same opportunity to buy that they would have in a more typical holiday season. They made up for it to some extent by spending significantly more online on the weekends, but so many fewer workdays provided a headwind for the season that ultimately proved very challenging to overcome. That said, it should also be noted that many consumers continue to be challenged economically, which forced retailers to offer large price discounts in an attempt to stimulate demand. Unfortunately, this also had the effect of reducing total dollar sales since consumers could buy more for less.
Apparel & Accessories Ranks as Top-Gaining Category for the 2013 Holiday Season
For the 2013 holiday season, Apparel & Accessories ranked as the top-gaining product category with a gain of more than 13 percent vs. year ago and outpacing Consumer Electronics (bolstered by smartphone sales) by a razor thin margin. Computer Hardware (bolstered by tablet sales) ranked third by fractions of a percentage point, while Toys & Hobbies and Video Game Consoles & Accessories rounded out the top five.
Top 5 Gaining Product Categories by Sales Growth for 2013 Holiday Season
November-December 2013 vs. November-December 2012
Total U.S. - Home & Work Desktop Computers
Source: comScore, Inc.
Rank Top Gaining Product Categories Percent Change
1 Apparel & Accessories 13%
2 Consumer Electronics 13%
3 Computer Hardware 13%
4 Toys & Hobbies 13%
5 Video Game Consoles & Accessories 12%
Top 10 Heaviest Online Spending Days in 2013
The 2013 holiday season saw 10 individual spending days surpass $1 billion desktop spending and was once again led by Cyber Monday (Dec. 2) with a record $1.735 billion, the day's 4th consecutive year it has held the #1 position. Tuesday, Dec. 3 ranked second with $1.410 billion, followed by Green Monday (Dec. 9) with $1.401 billion. Including purchasing from mobile devices, Cyber Monday reached the $2 billion threshold, the first time such a spending level has been attained in a single day.
Top 10 U.S. Online Spending Days of 2013
Non-Travel (Retail) Spending
Excludes Auctions and Large Corporate Purchases
Total U.S. - Home & Work Desktop Computers
Source: comScore, Inc.
Rank Date Spending in Millions ($)
1 Monday, Dec. 2 (Cyber Monday) $1,735
2 Tuesday, Dec. 3 $1,410
3 Monday, Dec. 9 (Green Monday) $1,401
4 Thursday, Dec. 12 $1,317
5 Friday, Nov. 29 (Black Friday) $1,199
6 Wednesday, Dec. 4 $1,172
7 Wednesday, Dec. 11 $1,161
8 Tuesday, Dec. 10 $1,138
9 Friday, Dec. 13 $1,021
10 Thursday, Dec. 5 $1,014
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2013 Holiday Season U.S. Desktop E-Commerce Spending Reaches Record $46.5 Billion, Up 10 Percent vs. Year Ago Shortened Holiday Calendar and Lagging Final Week of Spending Led to Underperformance Relative to 14 Percent Growth Forecast 
