Consumers spent a record $9.12 billion on online shopping this year during Black Friday, according to Adobe, which tracks sales on retailers’ websites.
Total online sales for the day after Thanksgiving rose 2.3% year over year, with electronics a major contributor as online sales increased 221% on an average day in October, Adobe said. Toys were another popular category for shoppers, up 285%, as was exercise equipment, up 218%.
Many consumers embraced flexible payment plans on Black Friday as they continue to struggle with high prices and inflation. Buy now, pay later payments are up 78% compared to last week, starting Nov. 19, and Buy now, pay later earnings are up 81% over the same period.
Some of this year’s hottest items included game consoles, drones, Apple MacBooks, Dyson products and toys such as Fortnite, Roblox, Bluey, Funko Pop! and Disney Encanto, according to the report.
Black Friday shoppers also broke a record for mobile orders, as 48% of online sales were made through smartphones, up from 44% last year.
The record spending comes on the heels of a strong Thanksgiving shopping day, during which consumers earned a record high of $5.29 billion online, up 2.9% year-over-year. According to Adobe, shoppers spend approximately $2 billion to $3 billion online every day.
For retailers, these numbers can be a promising indicator for the coming weeks. Forecasts for the early holiday season are subdued, with Target, Macy’s, Nordstrom and other retailers reporting sales declines in late October and early November. Consumer confidence has also weakened over the past month as inflation hovers near four-decade highs.
Although Black Friday is over, e-commerce activity will remain strong throughout the weekend, according to Adobe’s report. Adobe expects consumers to spend $4.52 billion on Saturday and $4.99 billion on Sunday ahead of the biggest online shopping day of the year, Cyber Monday.
This year, Cyber Monday is expected to generate $11.2 billion in spending, up 5.1% year-over-year, according to Adobe.
