French E-commerce Hits €196.4B in 2025: Growth, AI, Mobile Trends

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The market finally shakes off the inflation hangover

After two years of price pressure, French e-commerce is growing again. The sector’s revenue reached €196.4 billion in 2025, a 7% increase over 2024. That growth splits into two different stories: services pulled in €120.3 billion (+9%), while products returned to positive territory at €76.1 billion (+4%) after two years of decline.

This product comeback is the most encouraging signal in this year’s data. It tells me the 2023 inflation shock is finally behind us. But the aftermath is visible in shopper behavior: the average basket value keeps falling, now at €62. People are buying more often, but they’re careful about every euro.

The transaction count backs this up. We saw 3.2 billion purchases in 2025, an 11% jump from the year before. E-commerce now represents 12% of all retail trade and nearly 30% of activity in key non-food categories, like home equipment (32% market share) and clothing (30%).

More buyers, more screens, more mobile

Let me show you the data on who’s actually shopping online. In France, 42.2 million people aged 15 and over made an online purchase in the last twelve months — that’s 72.9% of that population, and 80% of the 16–74 age group. The number of online buyers grew by 0.6 million in just one year.

The demographic breakdown reveals real gaps. The 30–44 age group leads with a 90.8% online purchase rate. Those over 75 lag far behind at 25.9%. And among professionals, executives and higher intellectual professions top the chart at 96.5%.

Here’s another shift that matters: 55% of online shoppers now use multiple devices to buy. The computer is still the primary tool (76% use it), but mobile is catching up fast, with usage jumping seven points in a year to reach 69%.

Payments and delivery: where innovation never sleeps

Cards are still king — 92% of online shoppers pay with a bank card. But alternative methods are making real inroads. Loyalty points and gift cards are used by 76%, digital wallets by 57%, and direct debit by 48%. Buy-now-pay-later has hit 21% adoption, and 51% of shoppers have tried it at least once.

Security remains the top priority for online buyers: 94% say a secure payment environment is important. Next comes ease of process (92%) and available payment methods (87%).

Delivery is another front where habits are changing. Home delivery is still the most common method, used by 77% of online shoppers. But out-of-home options, pick-up points in particular (76% use them), are surging, now representing 46% of all delivery choices. It’s all about flexibility.

AI is already reshaping the buying journey

The standout stat from the Fevad report: nearly one in three online shoppers already uses AI somewhere in their purchase journey. That number jumps to almost three in four among regular AI users.

The merchant side is even more telling. 94% of merchants say they use at least one generative AI solution, and 87% report concrete changes to skills and processes as a result. And 69% of surveyed executives see agentic commerce as one of the most promising innovations for the next three years — right behind generative AI itself.

For consumers, AI use is concentrated in the earlier stages. 58% of regular AI users rely on it for search and decision support, while only 27% use it at checkout and 35% for post-purchase tracking.

Second-hand has become a permanent habit

This isn’t a fad. Over 41% of online shoppers bought a second-hand product online in the last twelve months. This doesn’t replace buying new — it complements it. In fashion, 30% of buyers mix new and second-hand items, and the same proportion applies to toys, games, and physical cultural products.

My take: the playbook changed, and it’ll change again

Here’s what actually happened. The French e-commerce market came out of the inflation crisis with a resilient consumer base, a mobile-first (or multi-screen-first) reality, and an AI adoption curve that is faster than most predictions.

Merchants who have invested in AI, flexible delivery, and marketplace presence are already seeing results. Those who haven’t are at risk of being left behind. But don’t just chase the shiny tools — look at what the data says about where the value is. It’s in the compounding effects: better product discovery, smoother payments, and building trust through security and convenience.

Slow down. Think. The next year will bring more agentic commerce and deeper AI integration. The winners will be those who adapt methodically, not those who react to every headline.