Average Units per Transaction in Ecommerce
It’s important for businesses to set and track metrics to understand how well they are performing in comparison with their competitors and the market average. This allows them to set realistic business benchmarks and goals and identify areas with room for improvement.
For online businesses, indicators like the average add-to-cart rate and average page views per visit in ecommerce are some of the most important metrics to keep an eye on. But those aren’t the only insightful ones. The average units per transaction metric can also provide an overview of the shopping habits and preferences of buyers.
Average units per transaction: 2022–2023
According to recent market data, the metric of average units per transaction in ecommerce has been fluctuating between 3.09 and 3.41 over the past 12 months. In other words, the number of items consumers purchase online per sale currently falls between these two figures.
The year-end holiday season, which ranks among the busiest shopping events of the year, saw the average units per transaction hit 3.41 and 3.34 in November and December of last year, respectively.
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In January 2023, the average units per transaction fell by 0.19 units to 3.15, before a further dip of 0.06 saw it fall further to 3.09 in February 2023, the worst-performing month of the year so far. Consumers bought slightly more items per purchase in March 2023, as the average units per transaction rose to 3.29.
Another month of increase followed, which took the average to 3.35 in April—the highest so far in 2023. In May, the average units per transaction in ecommerce fell to 3.12, before rising marginally to 3.14 a month later. July’s average units per transaction in ecommerce saw a surge of 0.16 units, to 3.31. But the metric has been falling every month since then, eventually reaching 3.14 in October 2023.
Average units per transaction by device
The average units per transaction differs from device to device. The data shows that as of October 2023, consumers shopping on desktops bought the highest number of products per checkout, at 3.64.
In comparison, the average units per transaction on tablets and mobiles are 2.94 and 2.77, respectively.