What do we buy online?

In the first half of 2021, 77 percent of Dutch people aged 12 years or older (approximately 11.7 million people) purchased something online. This is 9 percent more than a year earlier and 21 percent more than in 2019. Clothing, meals and films and series via streaming services or downloads are the most frequently ordered goods or services.

Dutch people aged 12 years or older most frequently bought clothes, sporting goods, shoes or accessories such as bags and jewellery (59 percent) in the three months prior to the surveynoot1 ‘ICT use by households and individuals’, which was held in the months April to July 2021. Almost half (47 percent) ordered meals from a restaurant, fast food chain or caterer. Around 30 percent also purchased furniture, home accessories or/and garden items, cosmetics or sports articles. A quarter bought one or more of the items from a private person via the internet, for example via Marktplaats.

Show datatableInternet purchases in the three months prior to the survey¹⁾ (% of persons aged 12 and over)Hide datatableInternet purchases in the three months prior to the survey¹⁾ (% of persons aged 12 and over)

Internet purchases in the three months prior to the survey¹⁾ (% of persons aged 12 and over)

Jaartal	Minder dan 3 maanden geleden
2015	54
2016	57
2017	62
2018	64
2019	64
2020	71
2021	77
1)The survey ‘ICT use by households and individuals’ is held annually in the months April to July.

Films and series purchased most often of all online services

Of online products or servicesnoot2, films or series accessed via a streaming service or download were the most often purchased (46 percent). Thirty-five percent bought music via a streaming service or download, an internet subscription or mobile phone. Buying tickets for the cinema or a concert or cultural event dropped sharply from 29 percent in 2020 to 8 percent in 2021.

Show datatableProducts and services purchased online in the three months prior to the survey, 2021¹⁾ (% of persons aged 12 and over)Hide datatableProducts and services purchased online in the three months prior to the survey, 2021¹⁾ (% of persons aged 12 and over)

Products and services purchased online in the three months prior to the survey, 2021¹⁾ (% of persons aged 12 and over)

Diensten	Share
Films and series via streaming service	46
Music via streaming service or download	35
Internet or mobile phone subscriptions	35
E-books, online magazines, newspapers	18
Online games, games or downloads	17
Computer software or software upgrades	15
Other paid apps	9
Tickets for cinema or cultural events	8
Paid health or sports apps	5
Household services, e.g. cleaning, babysitting, handyman services	5
Tickets for sporting events	2
1)The survey ‘ICT use by households and individuals’ is held annually in the months April to July.

More expensive online purchases growing in popularity

Not only are ever more people shopping online, the amount they spend is also increasing.

Of the people who purchased something online, 26 percent reported to have spent 500 euros or more. This was 21 percent a year earlier. Men spend more money on online purchases than women. Thirty percent of the men and 22 percent of the women said they spent a total of 500 euros or more.

The Dutch most often made internet purchases of between 100 and 500 euros; 42 percent made purchases in this price range in 2021. We also shop online more often: In the past year, 42 percent of the Dutch population made six or more internet purchases, compared with 33 percent in 2020.

E-shopping most popular among people aged between 25 and 44

Especially 25 to 44‑year‑olds shop online; in 2021, 89 percent of this group bought goods or services online. The most significant increase was observed among over‑65s. Sixty-eight percent of 65 to 74‑year-olds shopped online; in 2020, this figure was 59 percent. Thirty-five percent of over‑75s made online purchases, compared with 25 percent a year earlier.

People on low incomes shop online less often

Of those in the lowest income groupnoot3 (first quartile), 61 percent shopped online in 2021; in the highest income group (fourth quartile) this figure was 89 percent.

Women are just as active e-shoppers as men: 77 percent of men and women shopped online.

The questions

1. How are figures calculated by CBS?
2. How many dwellings in the Netherlands?
3. How fast is the Dutch population growing?
4. How tall are Dutch people?
5. How many farm animals are there in the Netherlands?
6. Which jobs often cause a poor work-life balance?
7. How many diamond wedding couples are there?
8. How much energy is from renewable sources?
9. How many people fall victim to domestic violence?
10. How many people use the Internet of Things?
11. What are the major religions?
12. What are the most popular majors?
13. What do people die of on an average day?
14. How much water do we consume?
15. What do we buy online?
16. How are the various animal species doing?
17. How many under-23s receive youth assistance?
18. Which flower bulbs are most common?
19. How many companies in the Netherlands?
20. Where do Caribbean Dutch children live?
21. How do we use our land?
22. How many electric cars are driving around?
23. Which jobs have the highest levels of mental fatigue?
24. How much nitrogen is emitted at livestock farms?
25. How many workers belong to a trade union?
26. How much have food prices gone up?
27. Where were people in the Caribbean Netherlands originally born?
28. How many families are at risk of poverty?
29. How sustainable is our behaviour?
30. What do we import from China?
31. How many girls become teenage mothers?
32. Has our purchasing power gone up or down?
33. How many adults smoke?
34. How many millionaires in the Netherlands?
35. How many tourists stay overnight in the Netherlands?
36. How does CBS handle your privacy?