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Little Movement At The Top
The global top 10 has not changed dramatically since 2020. Amazon remains number one by gross merchandise value (GMV). Pinduoduo holds second place, while Douyin has moved up five positions over five years — the biggest shift in the ranking.
Shopee and AliExpress appear in the 2025 top 10, signalling the continued rise of Asia-based platforms in global commerce.
Regionally, Amazon maintains strong positions in the Americas and Europe. In Asia, Pinduoduo and Douyin are among the largest players by GMV.
GMV Concentration Varies By Category
ECDB data also show that market concentration differs significantly by product category. In 2025, the top five global retailers control between 50% and 75% of GMV across most segments, with the exception of DIY.
In grocery, the leading platforms account for roughly 64% of total GMV, while in care products and furniture & homeware the figure rises above 70%. Electronics and hobby & leisure also show high concentration levels.
Source: ECDB
DIY stands out as the least concentrated category, where the top five retailers represent only around 23% of GMV, leaving a larger share to smaller and regional players.
For European merchants, this suggests that competitive pressure is highest in the electronics, home, and FMCG-related categories, while DIY and niche verticals may offer more fragmented opportunities.
Growth Is Coming From Outside Home Markets
The clearest pattern in the data is the gap between domestic and international growth.
Between 2023 and 2025, Douyin recorded 81.8% compound annual growth internationally, compared with 23.5% in its domestic market. Shopee posted 27.0% international CAGR over the same period.
Apple shows a similar dynamic: 21.6% international growth, while domestic GMV declined 8.2%. For major platforms, overseas markets are increasingly carrying overall expansion.
D2C Leaders And One Notable Decline
Direct-to-consumer sales continue to play a significant role in global e-commerce. In 2025, Apple generated $59bn in D2C revenue, maintaining a clear lead. SHEIN followed with $47bn, while Haier reached $17bn, according to ECDB.
Growth dynamics, however, differ across brands. SHEIN expanded at a 15.8% compound annual rate between 2023 and 2025, while Sephora grew even faster at 22.9%. Nike was the only brand among the D2C top 10 to record a contraction, posting a -13.1% CAGR over the same period. The figures suggest that scale alone does not guarantee sustained digital growth.
Source: ECDB
Shopify’s Share Continues To Rise
Alongside marketplace dominance, merchant-operated stores are gaining ground. Shopify increased its share of global e-commerce volume from 4.4% in 2023 to 6.2% in 2025.
The shift indicates that while large platforms continue to consolidate GMV, brands are also investing in their own infrastructure and direct customer relationships.
What This Means For E-commerce In 2026
The 2025 data point to three clear patterns:
- concentration at the top of the market
- rising influence of Asia-based platforms
- stronger reliance on international expansion
At the same time, D2C remains viable but uneven, with growth increasingly dependent on execution rather than brand size.
For European retailers and marketers, the message is practical rather than theoretical: international reach, category positioning and the channel mix will define competitiveness more than sheer scale.
