It started in 1984. 72-year-old Jane Snowball had just broken her hip. Because of the injury, she was asked to participate in the Gateshead Shopping Experiment, a program designed to help pensioners with mobility problems.
She agreed, and her participation got her a standard television with a Videotex chipset and remote control with a "phone" button. This piece of technology transformed her old telly into a computer terminal connected to retailer computers that processed orders.
She sat down in her armchair, pressed the "phone" button on her remote, and saw a directory of available retailers in her area on her TV screen. She chose Tesco and made an order for cornflakes, eggs, and margarine.
Tesco received her order, packed her goods, and delivered them to her door. By 2022, the global retail e-commerce industry was forecast to generate more than 7 trillion dollars in sales by 2025.
Today's orders are more sophisticated and complex than Mrs. Snowball's three-item list. At the height of the pandemic, people bought a lot of laptops, televisions, and even vehicles from online retailers. And we have more than a couple of retailers to choose from now.
In fact, there are reportedly as many as 24 million retail websites in 2022.
In fact, there are reportedly as many as 24 million retail websites in 2022. The proliferation of all these online marketplaces is mostly due to the fact that people prefer buying online nowadays.
In fact, one in every four people in the world reportedly shops online. In 2021 alone, 2.14 billion people purchased products through online marketplaces, which is about 28% of the entire human population.
And everywhere else in the world, e-commerce has logged significant boosts in profit. Latin America recorded a 25% increase in e-commerce sales in 2021 (85 billion dollars), while the Philippines, Russia, and the UK saw a 20% growth in their respective regions.
In short
- An online marketplace is a platform where many sellers offer goods to buyers, and the main types are vertical, horizontal, global and hybrid.
- Amazon had $716.9 billion in net sales in 2025, and third-party sellers made 61% of its paid units in Q4 2025.
- eBay grew GMV 7% with only 1% more buyers in 2025, so repeat buyers and active sellers matter more than raw sign-ups.
- Niche marketplaces such as Depop and Reverb grew around a single category and were later sold as separate businesses.
- US online retail reached $340.2 billion in Q2 2026, 17.1% of all retail sales, and is still growing 12.2% a year.
Part of the guide Starting a marketplace
Why People Like Shopping Online
The rise of online shopping sales is backed by many factors, foremost of which is the COVID-19 pandemic. Digital Commerce 360 added almost 219 billion dollars to e-commerce sales between 2020 and 2021.
Market and consumer data researcher Statista also says that in the Asia Pacific region, 17% of respondents said their shopping increased to two to three times a week after COVID-19, compared to once to thrice a month before the pandemic.
17% of respondents said their shopping increased to two to three times a week after COVID-19.
In the US, another survey by Statista found that consumers reported a 13% increase in buying household supplies after the pandemic; frequency also increased. This trend is expected to continue, especially because there are a lot of benefits associated with buying goods on online marketplaces instead of traditional stores.
Some people even feel okay with never visiting a physical store again, according to a JungleScout survey.
Some people even feel okay with never visiting a physical store again, according to a JungleScout survey.
Wow! First off, shopping online accords people a lot of conveniences, and this is central to the appeal of e-commerce marketplaces. For example, the check-out process for online orders is very fast (no standing in lines).
With next-day delivery options, there's more incentive. Oberlo says that about 28% of surveyed consumers say getting their orders the next day is an important motivator. And if that's not enough, some stores offer free shipping. Consumers can also apply vouchers to get discounts for more value.
What are the Top Online Marketplaces in the World?
Leading the pack of online marketplaces in the world is Amazon. Started in 1994 as an online bookshop out of Jeff Bezos' garage, it shot to nationwide popularity within a month of its launch.
As of 2022, it had a market cap of around 1,700 billion dollars and is way ahead of global competitors like Alibaba, eBay, and Rakuten. Its share of US e-commerce varies by product category. Additionally, 65% of its US-based shoppers are subscribed to its paid subscription service, Amazon Prime.
Another contender is eBay, which started as AuctionWeb and was envisioned to bring buyers and sellers together "in an honest and open marketplace."
Twenty-seven years later, it's pulling in more than 10 billion dollars in annual net revenue, mostly through transaction fees.
Jack Ma's Alibaba holds sway on the other side of the world. Founded in 1999, Alibaba was started by Jack Ma and 17 friends and students as a Chinese online marketplace. Since then, it has expanded into a wide array of B2B and B2C services, as well as cloud infrastructure, media, and entertainment.
In 2021, Alibaba totaled 109 billion dollars in consolidated revenues from advertising, membership and other service fees, and sales commissions. It also successfully killed eBay's attempt to enter the Chinese market in 2003 by removing merchant fees on one of its online marketplaces, Taobao.
More recently, Alibaba reported revenue of RMB1,023.7 billion (about US$148.4 billion) for its fiscal year ended 31 March 2026, up 3% on the year (Alibaba results, May 2026).
Online Marketplaces in 2026: What the Latest Numbers Show
Most of the figures above come from 2021 and 2022. Here is what the biggest marketplaces reported in their latest full-year results, together with official government data on online shopping.
| Marketplace / source | Latest figures | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon (full year 2025) | $716.9 billion net sales, up 12% from $638.0 billion in 2024. Third-party sellers accounted for 61% of worldwide paid units in Q4 2025. | Most of the units sold on the world's largest store come from independent sellers. The marketplace model, not first-party retail, does most of the work. |
| eBay (full year 2025) | $79.6 billion gross merchandise volume (up 7%), $11.1 billion revenue (up 8%), 135 million active buyers (up 1%) | Sales grew much faster than the number of buyers, so growth came from existing buyers spending more. |
| Etsy (full year 2025) | $11.9 billion consolidated GMS (including Depop, and Reverb until its June 2025 sale), of which $10.46 billion on the Etsy marketplace. Consolidated active buyers and sellers were 93.5 million and 8.76 million; the Etsy marketplace alone had 86.5 million active buyers and 5.6 million active sellers. | Etsy sold its music-gear marketplace Reverb in June 2025 and its fashion resale app Depop to eBay for $1.2 billion in cash (about $1.4 billion at closing after adjustments and interest; completed 30 July 2026). |
| US Census Bureau (Q2 2026) | $340.2 billion in US retail e-commerce, 17.1% of all retail sales, up 12.2% year on year | Online is still a minority of retail spending, and it keeps growing. |
Sources: Amazon Q4 2025 results (5 Feb 2026), eBay full-year 2025 results (18 Feb 2026), Etsy full-year 2025 results (19 Feb 2026), Etsy: sale of Depop completed (30 Jul 2026), US Census quarterly e-commerce report (18 Aug 2026).
Three lessons for a new marketplace
- The giants are marketplaces now. If 61% of Amazon's units come from outside sellers, the business is mainly about matching buyers and sellers and earning on that match. Your site works the same way at a smaller scale: your revenue comes from sellers (listing fees, featured ads, memberships), not from your own inventory.
- Niche marketplaces are valuable on their own. Depop (fashion resale) and Reverb (musical instruments) each grew around a single category and were later sold as separate businesses. A focused audience is an asset, not a limitation.
- Growth comes from engaged users, not just more users. eBay grew sales 7% while its buyer count grew 1%. For a small marketplace this means repeat buyers and active sellers matter more than raw sign-ups. Track how many listings each seller posts and how often buyers come back.
Calculator
Which way of charging earns more for your marketplace?
The same sellers and listings, charged four different ways. Change the numbers to your market: the share who pay is the honest guess that decides it.
Revenue a month for each model on its own. Many marketplaces mix them: free listings with paid promotions is the most common start, because it keeps listings coming in. More free tools →
What Does This Mean For You for Starting an Online Marketplace?
The success of these online marketplaces provides a clear view of the potential value of starting your very own marketplace website. Like Amazon, eBay, and Alibaba, an online marketplace offers a platform for sellers to offer goods to buyers. There are four main types of online marketplaces: vertical, horizontal, global, and hybrid.
A vertical marketplace enables different sellers to offer the same types of products. A horizontal marketplace, by contrast, covers many different product types in one place.
One key difference between the two is the specific type of products sold. For example, handcrafted wearables will be sold in a vertical marketplace, while all types of clothing, including those made by hand, will be sold in a horizontal marketplace.
A global marketplace, on the other hand, brings all types of products to all types of buyers.
A hybrid marketplace offers its own products in addition to those sold by sellers.
Template
Value proposition worksheet for both sides of a marketplace
Fill it in once for sellers and once for buyers before you write your home page, ads or outreach messages, then rewrite it whenever you change your niche.
If you cannot fill in 'What annoys them' from real conversations, run interviews before you write any marketing copy. More free tools →
The way we shop has shifted. The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the way we all shop.
According to research undertaken by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the Brazilian Network Information Center, and Inveon, online purchases in several product categories increased by 6 to 10 percent since the pandemic.
This is particularly true for ICT/electronic goods, pharmaceutical/health products, gardening and DIY tools, education and online courses, and furniture and household products.
Similarly, McKinsey noted that the US grocery sector saw a 20 to 30 percent shift to online platforms as lockdowns were enforced, accelerating its e-commerce landscape by three to five years.
And this won't stop soon, as about 50% of surveyed consumers admitted to doing their grocery shopping online at least once a week, which can be interpreted as a new-normal mainstay. Additionally, the increased need by consumers for personalization has resulted in 35% of shoppers opting for niche marketplaces instead of traditional ones.
While almost half of the product searches start on either Amazon or eBay, more and more shoppers are getting adventurous and exploring other, more specific marketplaces, especially for apparel, sneakers, or home products.
While almost half of the product searches start on either Amazon or eBay, more and more shoppers are getting adventurous and exploring other, more specific marketplaces, especially for apparel, sneakers, or home products.
And there's now a plethora of support available to vendors. Shopify, for example, continuously offers new features to ensure that service offerings remain relevant amid changing trends.
Of course, it won’t be realistic to think that you’d be able to compete with giants like Amazon within your first month, but holding your own is not impossible, as consumers are displaying lower loyalty to brands because of changing priorities or economic factors.
Start Your Own Marketplace with Yclas
At the same time, starting your own marketplace website is not as difficult as it used to be. Yclas offers an easy-to-use platform replete with themes and templates that you can customize according to your specifications.
Whether you want to start a horizontal, vertical, global, or hybrid marketplace, an online car dealer website, or a business directory, there are a ton of built-in resources that you can use to go live in a day's time.
Need your website to integrate with other platforms? Yclas integrates with Facebook, PayPal, Stripe, Bitpay, Google Maps, Dropbox, and others.
This turnkey solution is perfect for those who don't want to worry about hosting, installation, and coding skills. You can create a 100% customizable website that we host for you.
Or you can go all in and get all that, plus create an iOS or Android app for your marketplace website.
Join our community today!
